Harvard Extension for a Canadian?

Hey everyone,

I was hoping that someone would be able to give me a little advice before I actually talk to HEU.

I'm currently a Canadian who dropped out of high school when I was 16 to start a business.. I'm now 26 and my business is very successful. However, as a fall back (and to please my mom, who is a college instructor) I'd very much like to pursue a degree and possibly a masters.

I'm somewhat confused as to the path that I need to take in order to reach both of those. I assume I need to achieve some sort of degree. I'm wondering if someone could give me a little advise on the path I should take?

(I'm sure this will come up, but the reasons for me wanting to go to HUE are for:
1 - Prestige
2 - I would love to go and do 1 or 2 semesters in Boston
3 - The classes look very convenient, and my schedule is VERY hectic.. I could only handle 1 course/semester.

Any advice/guidance would be overly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

Hi EduBound, welcome to the forum. You mentioned you dropped out of high school. Did you ever go back and complete your high school education or an equivilant? That will be the first thing you need to do in order to attend HES. Second, I'd like to point out that taking one course at a time it is going to take you a very long time to complete the degree. You need to take 32 4-credit courses to earn the ALB, at one course per term you'd be completing 3 classes a year so it would take you almost 11 years to do the degree. I can tell you the courses at HES are great. I enjoyed every class I took there. Good luck to you!

 

I think that a lot of people are in a similar position - returning to school and perhaps somewhat overwhelmed by the requirements of obtaining a college degree. One course at a time is a long, long road. This is why there is so much interest in "testing out" of courses. It speeds things up substantially. Check out our other forum on testing for credit:

CLEP, DANTES, and Other Exams for Credit

 

HES no longer participates in the F-1 visa program, though I did meet a Canadian last year who was able to study at the school. She subsequently got a B- in her pro-seminar for the second time and could not continue on in the program. This means she was never an admitted student so I'm not sure how she attended classes to begin with.

 

From the webpage of the U.S. consulate in Canada Canadian Citizens • U.S. Consular Services in Canada:

 

Harvard Extension for a Canadian? No we have to many.

 

Thanks for the responses everyone,

"It will take 11 years to get a degree" - That's fine with me, I would be doing it mostly as a hobby/personal goal. I will more than likely never use the degree for anything.
"Finish high school before I move forward" - Do you have any idea of which classes are mandatory? I did finish Math 11 (with 98%) via distance education about 6 years ago. I assume I will need some sort of English class as well?

I'm also wondering if I can take my first ever college class via HEU? A colleague of mine was mentioning that he thought I would need a degree of some sort before even talking to HEU.

Thank you for that information on the Canadian visas.

 

You will need a high school diploma or it's equivilant. US citizens who don't complete high school can earn a GED, not sure what the GED's equivilant is called in Canada. Also, it is HES, not HEU, but yes, you can take your first ever college class via distance study through Harvard Extension School. Best of luck.

 

Canadian citizens do not require a visa to enter the United States directly from Canada for the purposes of visiting or studying.......
Canadian visitors are generally granted a stay in the U.S. for up to six months at the time of entry.

Yes, I know this is what it says, and so for my first on campus stay I did not do as I was told I needed to do (F1, Sevis fee) and created a large foo-pa. I was politely told I needed to ensure I registered for my subsequent trip....which I did, still pointing out quotes similar to the one you have noted.....and things went much better.

This doesn't relate to our getting in to the US, or our return to Canada, but is due to the school's reporting of our presence in their program to the gubment. When we don't register on this end, it creates a predicament for the school.

Be SURE to follow up on this and not simply quote the 'Canadians don't need visa's to visit or study in the US' notices.

 

All this visa stuff . . . forget it! You just fly in, sit through the class and then fly home.
We don't need no stinkin visas!

:cussing:

 

What's Canadia?

 

depends on the school, not Canada, nor being Canadian.....

 

After further research I've found the following: How to Apply: Undergraduate Degree: Harvard Extension School.

Am I wrong in thinking that high school/graduation is not a requirement?

They also mention that I need to include both a resume, and a short essay with my application. Do these hold any merit onto my acceptance into the program? Or are they just formalities? I was under the impression that for the most part it was "open enrollment".

(I do appreciate your responses/time)

One other question I have while I am here: they mention that I need to take 3 "pre-application" courses.. I assume these are fully "open enrollment"?
One of the requirements is EXPO E-25, would it be advised to take EXPO E-5 and EXPO E-15 as the other two? I assume that would require three semesters (Fall, January, Spring) and I would be ready to move forward during the Fall of 2012.

Thanks again for this wonderful website.. this is truly one of the "hidden gems", on the internet today.

 

One last shot

 

I'm guessing that these two requirements, the resume and the essay, are primarily for the purpose of assessing who you are as a student and are exclusionary. However, it's possible that if you turned in an essay that was incoherent, full of errors, etc. that might make a difference.