From zero to BS in 22 months

In the past few weeks, I sat my last exam and received word from my advisor at Charter Oak State College that my concentration and essay were both approved. So.... (deep breath)

I did it! I've earned a regionally accredited Bachelor of Science degree! Woo-hoo!!!

I'll officialy graduate in July. I've been extremely pleased with my Charter Oak experience and would not hesitate to recommend the school to others. The staff is courteous, helpful, and accessible. The program is highly flexible, and the costs are relatively low. My average cost-per-credit was about $46.

My concentration was Individualized Studies (Management and Psychology). Here's a summary of how I structured my program, using most of the credit options that COSC offers.

TRANSFER: I transferred 3 credits to COSC from a long-ago community college course.

Cheers,
Mark

EXAMS: I sat 12 CLEP's, 11 DANTES, and 4 ECE's, for a total of 99 credits. This was done over a period of six months in 2002, and five months starting last December. In between, there was a huge project at work that hindered progress for most of 2003. Life's funny about getting in the way sometimes.

ONLINE: This past winter, I took COSC's online course in Project Management for 3 upper-level credits.

PORTFOLIOS: I wrote four portfolios in 2002 on music-related subjects (a hobby) for a total of 12 lower-level credits. This was a challenging, fun, and enlightening experience. If you know the subject matter and have documented evidence to back it up, I'd recommend doing a portfolio. Dr. Maryanne LeGrow, COSC's portfolio advisor, is a pleasure to work with.

OTHER: I applied for and received a Special Assessment for my FCC General Radiotelephone Operator's License, for which COSC awarded me 3.5 lower-level credits. My transcript shows the credits spread over seven "courses", where each course is a section from the license exam.

 

Dulcis!

 

Congratulations, Mark!

What's next? You know that you need a graduate degree.

 

A most hearty, Congratulations Mark!

Thanks for sharing your inspiring story.

 

congrats!

 

The thought had crossed my mind. The hard part wll be deciding on the direction I want to take for graduate studies. I think I'll do what the brick-and-mortar kids do and take the summer off to think about it. Maybe I'll tour Europe...

Cheers,
Mark

 

You've certainly earned it!

 

Mark, wait! I'll get my bike and come with you. We can spread word of COSC across the continent!

 

Mark,

Congratulations!!!

 

Mark,

Congratulations. Keep us posted on that graduate program

Regards,

 

Way to go, Mark!

Congratulations on your accomplishment. I took a similar route at a different institution (Excelsior) and should be finished up in a month.

I looked at taking the GROL for credit a couple of years back (I'm an Advanced class ham operator), but decided against it - I'm glad to see you made it work.

Share your plans with us when you make a decision. In the meantime - celebrate!

73,


Tony