Is screwed spelled with a "C" or a "K"? and other questions

Okay guys, here's one of those, what would you do in my shoes questions.

History:
I work in Texas in Law Enforcement, the Texas Commission adopted standards for Post Secondary education defining "accredited" as being RA by one of the six RA and even spells each one out. Bummer....since all but 23 of my credits are NA by DETC. Additionally it has been proposed that all Peace Officers in the State posses a 4 yr. degree by 2010...it was rejected for further study, however it seems to be coming down the pike. Since I don't want to stay where I'm at until I'm 53 (seriously) I am looking to make a department change....thus most departments have now adopted the Texas Commission’s definition of accreditation much to my chagrin.

Thus my pickle.

I spoke with Kaplan University and it looks as if I will be doing approximately 15 courses...however I have crunched some numbers and this is what I am looking at money wise....(which is very important as I am trying to remain debt free).

Kaplan University at 15 courses, minus the scholarship money ($200 a course) and minus my employer tuition assistance comes out to a final $10,550 give or take including the technology fees.

University of Phoenix MS degree with all 12 classes, minus tuition support from my employer (which is more than for an undergrad degree) would come to about $10,440. But I would still have to complete a BS from somewhere, in something. CCU would get me there for about $3,000, which isn't bad. Then again so would Southwest.

APUS is about to be RA and I believe they will achieve it, however should they fail I'll be doubly screwed and at taking about 12 to 15 classes from them, I'm looking at $0.00 as my employer will cover 100% of their tuition...

Additionally I have looked at Capella, St. Leo, Excelsior, COSC, etc. and the above options seem the most viable.

I was settled on Kaplan until crunching the numbers (remember, I am trying to stay as debt free as possible) and could...

A.) get more bang for the buck at U of P.

B.) go to Kaplan as the original plan...and quit being so jumpy.

C.) go to APUS, possibly get a RA degree, if it doesn't work out, all I've lost is some time and I can still do the U of P thing.

What say the galley?

 

Forgot to mention....I was hoping to move around 18 months to 2 years....

Option A...is the 2nd fastest..most likely.

Option B...is the fastest (possibly).

Option C...could be quick unless they are not RA by the time I finish or do not get their RA in which case...I hit a bog.

 

Dang it...too late to edit, but I forgot to mention.

Option A is for a MS...

Option B is for a BS...

Option C is for a BS or BA...

I am a soon to be former student of The College for Professional Studies for 3 reasons...

1.) they are shutting down and as of now have exactly 1 (ONE) student advisor...which is like trying to get the Pope himself on the phone.

2.) I would still pay out $7400 to complete a NA BS through them...not worth it.

3.) they are NA...which is my problem.


Okay...I think I'm done...thanks for the patience.

 

15 courses at Kaplan? Not really making sense to me. That would be 75 to 90 quarter hours + 23 existing credits (I'm assuming they are semester hours - 35 credits in quarter hours) = 110 to 125 total. Any degree program is going to require 180 quarter hours to graduate. Where are you getting the rest?

Were you planning on using CLEP or Dantes exams for the rest of the credit? If you're just looking for a degree, I'd just test some more and get a BS from Excelsior or COSC, and forget about those classes.

 

Kaplan and UoP are both pretty expensive options.

One I'd look into is U-Ohio Athens, which allows you to do credit-by-exam for any course they offer via DL (which is most of their courses). Thus, anything you've taken DETC, you can simply take the exam at U-Ohio and get the credit for that class, and either apply it to a U-Ohio degree, or bank it at Excelsior, Charter Oak, or Thomas Edison and convert it into a degree.

Another option might be to see if Edision still offers their flat-rate program. You used to be able to pay a fee of about $3500 or so for all-the-portfolio-you-could-cram-in within a year's time. You could portfolio all of the credits you took via DETC and bring them into an Edison degree. The flat-rate option also included up to 30 credits of courses offered by Edison itself. I haven't checked to see if that's still one of their tuition options.

But in any case, any of the above options should be substantially less expensive than taking the credits at Kaplan or UoP.

 

Aside from the other good advice you might try calling Columbia Southern University and looking at what options are open to you to transfer all your credits in and then transfer to the University of West Alabama or one of the other RA institutions they have arrangements with for transfer. I don't know if this option is worthwhile but it might be worth a call.

www.columbiasouthern.edu

Often independent study courses are less expensive than online courses at the same institution and may also be a method to complete the work.

Good luck,

Kevin

 

I'm confused. I thought that Kaplan bought the College of Professional Studies and that, by default, CPS degrees were now RA under Kaplan's accreditation. Am I wrong? If I am, why?

 

I am not sure I understand the whole situation correctly.
Are you saying that you can't apply any NON-RA credits such as DETC or ACE / PONSI reviewed towards a Bachelor's degree, even if the Bachelor is granted by an RA institution such as Exclesior etc...
That's seems odd to me, I always tought that as long as you have an RA degree, it really doesn't matter how you obtained the credits.

 

Welll... ACE reviewed credits from a DETC school should qualify for application to an RA school, it's just that typically there aren't a lot of schools that have gone through the trouble of getting ACE review. I was making that assumption about your credits and offering another route to make them acceptable to an RA degree. But if you have ACE review and approval, you should be able to bring them into your RA degree program (at least through one of the 3 schools mentioned; some other schools may balk) .

 

Agreed, as this exactly what I have done at excelsior.
However my question was to friendfoe, he seems to say that the state of Texas will not accept any NON-RA credits.
My question is will they deny those credits, if they are part of an associate or bachelors degree from and RA Institution?
I think not!
Thanks,
Pilot

 

Agreed, as this exactly what I have done at excelsior.
However friendorfoe seems to say that the state of Texas will not accept any NON-RA credits.
My question is will they deny those credits, if they are part of an associate or bachelors degree from and RA Institution?
I think not!
Thanks,
Pilot

 

Pilot...

Actually, I believe they will. Most police departments require a transcript with an application thus your credits will be reviewed. Most of them will state something like "60 credit hours from an accredited college" then go on to state that accreditation is how the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement defines it. Their definition says "accreditation is from one the 6 regional accreditors such as SACS...etc." and spells out each one. No NA credits will be counted towards this minimum.

As for Excelsior and TESC and COSC...I have contacted them regarding enrolling in their degree program and they will not accept DETC credits even if ACE reviewed.

Yes CPS was rolled into Kaplan University, however that does not make their credits RA as it was NA when I started and CPS is technically a sister school.

I've also considered taking a few certificate courses to get the minimum credit hours...right now I'm needing 45 total...of which I have 23. I'm not sure that CLEP will be acceptable as a credit course.

As for Kaplan...I counted their advanced BS degree in which courses are 6 hours (qtr. credit) at $280 an hour $1680 a course minus the $200 law enforcement scholarship and minus my employers reimbursement, which is not as much for undergrad as grad degrees due to their "state rate" policy. Thus putting a U of P Masters degree in the same price area as an undergrad from Kaplan.

I do apologize...this thread is probably the sloppiest post I've made.

 

Friendfoe,
I think you were misinformed regarding excelsior's policy on ACE Credits.
I am currently a student at excelsior and they do accept any DETC courses as long as they've been reviewed by ACE or PONSI.
If I understand you correctly any courses that have been taken at a NON RA institution do not count even if they are part of an RA Associates or Bachelors.
That's pretty tough!!
If that's the case, in the long run it will become a problem for most of us degree holders.
More than half of credits at excelsior are ACE or PONSI.

 

Pilot...

No, what I meant was, if I transfered credit from a NA school to a RA school, it is still a NA credit...from what I have been lead to understand.

As for Excelsior...I emailed one of their reps for accepting NA credits and they pretty much said "no way jose"....thus if you have a contact there if you wouldn't mind PM'ing me with their info...it'd be appreciated.

As for being ACE reviewed...I guess I need to contact the school to find out if they are ACE approved credits.

 

But if accepted by a RA school as equal then why would those credits still carry the NA "stigma"? If you would have to present transcripts to your employer, rather than just a completed RA degree, and if their intent is to review those credits individually, then wouldn't the RA acceptance hold value? What if, as part of your transcripts, you also included the RA credit review showing that your NA credits were fully accepted?

Suggest contacting them again, maybe by phone instead of email and ask for someone in charge. There was a poster here, not too long ago, who sucessfully got their ACE-reviewed Education Direct credits accepted towards a degree at Excelsior. Sorry but I don't recall the poster's forum handle, but it was defintely Ed Direct credits accepted by Excelsior. Probably possible to find the post through a forum search. Your first step should be to find out if your NA credits are in fact ACE-reviewed though, since you mentioned you are not sure of that yet.

Kit

 

Update:

Okay guys if you would like the whole sordid story follow this link...

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=21220

Here is the Cliff Notes version...

I work in police stuff. The Texas Commission of Law Enforcement defined "accredited" as being RA and painfully so. My degree was NA from College for Professional Studies and though my employer would accept it, I could not use it at a lot of other departments and I plan on leaving here in about 18 months...(another long story).

I was about 8 to 10 classes from completion...and needless to say, I have decided to discontinue studying with CPS.

I contacted the "big three" to see if my credits would be accepted. No dice. No negotiation. No cigar.

I posted here to find out what my options were and Gregg DesElms (the venerable) offered Southwestern College in KS. I called them and they said no dice. I emailed them, they said no cigar. I then emailed them to get my transcripts reviewed and they said okay. It turns out they will accept the credits leaving me to fulfill 49 semester hours of which I may CLEP out 6.

Looks like I have a winner...Southwestern College who is RA...accelerated and at a total tuition of $11223.00 which my employer will reimburse 100% and they have a "deferred" tuition payment plan to where I pay $0 out of pocket. Thus the degree will cost me absolutely jack.

Lessons learned.

1.) Degreeinfo is a real life altering web site...a gem. Thank you Bruce.

2.) Gregg DesElms knows what the heck he's talking about. Abrasive though he may be, you would be well advised to listen to him carefully.

3.) Just because a school says over the phone your credits won't transfer, sometimes if you are persistent, it'll pay off.

I am indebted to this place...thanks all of you. I have not yet filled out the application but will begin the process on October 15th. Thus far I have an unofficial acceptance pending an application and the blessings of the registrar. I will keep you guys posted.

 

Well, congratulations. The news doesn't get any better than that, does it!

So, then, I'm battin' 1000 with you, right? I mean, not only Southwestern, but my other recommendation, St. Joseph's College of Maine for your MBA in Leadership, when the time comes, too... right?

Ah, yes... that ol' DesElms is worth listening to...

...but just don't get any on ya'.

But seriously... great news, friendorfoe. I'm glad you finally found a way out of this mess. So, let's see, then... in... what... four or ma five, years from now, you'll have a bachelors in criminal justice from Southwestern (regionally accredited), and an MBA in leadership from St. Joseph's College of Maine (regionally accredited).

Not bad for a guy with the kind of problems you started-off with when you first arrived!

 

You bet...I still plan on St. Joe's (of course) and now that my undergrad will be RA...Troy State may be on my radar. Initially I wanted to enroll in their MS in CJ but they specified that your undergrad be RA. It looks like an entire possibility.

As for coming a long way, I think anyone paying attention, willing to ask questions and doing a lot of research can really turn some things around.

Granted, I went from taking 10 classes to graduate to 14 classes, but that's life...and I won't have to look over my shoulder wondering if my degree will be accepted or not in the future.

DETC is a good accreditation and I find it wholly ignorant when companies or government will not accept their degrees or credits, however I'm just one squirrel....

 

FriendorFoe:

Are you saying Southwestern College will indeed accept transfer credits from a NA (DETC) school? That would be great news for my interm plans until AMU/APU is accredited regionally and I might then pursue their BA in Intelligence Studies or Disaster Management.

You are correct to feel that nationally accredited (NA/DETC) schools typically provide an education on par or in some cases better than their regionally accredited cousins.

 

Yes...it would seem that Southwestern College will accept NA credits from Ashworth College and CPS at least. However I have not received "official" acceptance, I don't know of a whole lot of schools that deviate from their unofficial assessments very often.

Here’s a hint though if you call and ask…they will say that they do NOT accept NA credits, therefore the smart thing to do is just submit your transcripts, let them look your school up in their little black book and tell you whether or not they will accept them then. Remember, I was told that they would not accept DETC credits no fewer than twice.