British credits

Students who have passed the Advanced Diploma in Business Administration of the Association of Business Executives are being accepted into the final year of British and American universities.

The next step is to find which GRE/CLEP/ECE/TECE/DANTES exams need passing to obtain credits for a final Bachelor degree year.

 

I can see why this diploma allows entry into a British degree program but a USA degree requires credits in a wide variety of subjects other than business to meet depth and breadth requirements.

 

The US institutions are Auburn University (Alabama), Bryant College (Rhone Island). California State University Long Beach, University of Central Oklahoma, City University (Washington), Chaminade University of Honolulu, Hawaii Pacific University, Northwood University (Michigan) Rocky Mountain College (Montana), Ottawa University Kanasas City.

 

Here is a list directly from the ABE web-site: http://www.abeuk.com/frm-recog-univ.html#USA

Several questionable institutions on the list, so one wonders what it's worth.

 

I left out Fairfax and have told ABE about them (they are across the street from me in London). Which others are suspect?

 

Of the above list I am familiar with Cal State Long Beach - I doubt that one would only be required to complete a final year (30 semecter units or SU). The cert you mention appears to be pure business (apart from the 2 GCE A level requirement that might be accepted for 6 SU). Apart from business courses (76 SU) Long Beach requires another 52-59 SU in areas such as english, natural sciences, humanities, social sciences. The California State and UC systems are both extremely strict on meeting requirements. In your original message you did mention CLEP and other exams but one is still required to take a minimum of 30 SU (including 24 at upper division) in residence at Long Beach. My reason for discussing this issue is to ensure that adequate information is provided to potential students.

 

As a graduate of the California State University system, I have to agree with Ian. The CSU isn't going to waive all of its general education requirements for an individual who has taken the ABE exams. Nor will they allow credit by examination to satisfy their 30 unit residency requirement.

What's more, whether or not these exams are accepted, and how many credits are awarded for them, will probably depend on the recommendations of a foreign credential evaluator. My understanding is that the CSU system pays attention to ACE credit recommendations for non-collegiate study, so it might help a lot (and probably eliminate the need for the foreign credental evaluation) if the ABE already has has an ACE recommendation.

The ABE's website makes much more modest claims than those made here:

http://www.abeuk.com/about.html

 

My quotes come directly from the ABE's brochure.

 

Bienville.

 

ABE

I have been aware and familiar with the Association of Business Execurtives prograsmmes for many, many years are they are completely solid! The ABE examinatiosn are 'of a type'. They appeal to the sort of student who is told what to learn and then is able to give information back in timed, written examinations. This is why ABE has so many people taking the examinatiosn in the Middle East and South East Asian countries. ABE has done a good job in getting other internationla institutions to accept its awards, especially its advanced diploma which is equal in standard to the majority of US bachelor degrees in business/management and roughly equivalent to a pass/3rd class British degree.

Most of the students will have already completed the equivalent of the British GCSE Advanced level before taking the ABE examinations and the GCSE advanced level programme includes general courses and is , in my view and experience, roughly equivalent to what one will find in a typical US 4-year bachelor's college programme. This is why British students specialise so early. They have already done the general 'breadth' and 'depth' stuff (albeit, in my opinion, it shoudl be done in even more depth!) at school before going up to university/college.

I think, in reality, any institution accepting ABE advanced diploma holders do so looking at the overall experience and qualifications of each candidate as well as the ABE award(s).

 

How about Fairfax University? It does not appear to be RA.

 

Bernard Leeman already noted Fairfax, but asked about the others.

 

Re: ABE

One of the unaccepted deficiencies of the US education system, is that 'high school' for the rest of the world is completed in the first 2+ years of University. Whats w edo in our professional undergraduate degrees is then covered at masters level, and of course we can then debate the 'levels' of these and higher qualfications.

On of the unaccpeted deficienceis of the non US education system, is that kids have to decide their future at aged 16-17, and then emerge as professionally qualified graduates whilest still relatively immature at say 21 - the US counterpart emerges after 6 years at say 24 and has done the mformative professional studies as an adults rather than as an adolescent.

Just the fruits of 40 years observing the global eduation scene, and bring up 5 children/graduates [law, medicine, IT] and 4 step children, and studying for 40 years myself.

Peter French
BEd MEd MAcc
melbourne, Australia
Professionally qualified in 4 domains -
accounting banking & finance, education & teaching, production engineering

 

Re: ABE

 

Intrigued!

I am intrigued as why ABE in the United Kingdom should suddenly get a mention here by Dr Leeman!

 

I am in England, working in a college opposite the building that houses the ABE. My job is to introduce a programme to help overseas students obtain recognised degrees at low cost.

To return to an earlier point, apart from Fairfax, which institutions listed by ABE aren't accredited? Before writing my original letter I checked the names on the ABE list against the unaccredietd institutions listed on this website. Fairfax was the only one listed as not accredited.

Other institutions that have awarded credits for ABE exams include Adelaide University, Charles Sturt University, Deakin University, Griffith University, James Cook University, La Trobe University, Monash University, Murdoch University, The University of Queensland, the University of Southern Queensland, The University of Sydney, the University of Tasmania (AUSTRALIA),

The University of Botswana

The University of the Witwatersand (South Africa)

Laurentian University, Queen's University, McMaster University, the University of New Brunswick, the University of Toronto, the University of Windsor (CANADA)

The University of Bath, the University of Central England at Birmingham, the University of Glamorgan, Glasgow Caledonioan University, Coventry University, the University of Sheffield, the University of Southampton , the Open University, the University of St Andres, the University of Wales, the University of Ulster, the University of Strathclyde, South Bank University, Oxford Brookes Univeristy, Middlesex Unievristy, the University of Leicester. the University of Portsmouth, Sheffield Hallam University, Edingburgh Business School at Heriot Watt University (BRITAIN)

Universities in Malaysia (3), Macau, Hong Kong, Kenya, Sri Lanka, New Zealand (5), West Indies

 

Dr. Leeman, I don't think anyone here is skeptical about the possibility of turning the ABE exam into credit--as someone who earned 114 semester hours of his BA by examination, I'm always happy to see this sort of thing gain acceptance. What I think we're wondering is how much credit, and towards which requirements. My reading of your first post in this thread was that if you went to Auburn with an ABE, you'd be able to walk out with an AA. Because an AA consists mainly of general distribution requirements rather than discipline-specific work, I can say with a reasonable amount of confidence that I don't think this is possible. What I'm really interested in knowing is what the ABE might be worth at these schools in terms of credit and/or units. If it can shave 18 upper-level sh out of an Auburn BSCS, that's good news; if it can shave 3, that's still good news. But it's helpful to know which. If it really is worth 66 sh, then that's fantastic--but we need to know when and where. Just because 300 schools accept a credential doesn't mean that they agree on how much it's worth. (Just ask the folks who have taken CLEP general exams.)


Cheers,

 

Thanks

I have written to Thomas Edison College, Excelsior and Charter Oak asking for a rough estimate of what CLEP/DANTES/GRE/ECE combinations would be needed to add to an Advanced Diploma in ABE to enable students to get a Bachelor degree.

 

How sure are you?????

I don't doubt you, but I do have reservations of the accuracy of the information provided to you. I am the Principal of a Business College here providing Nationally Accredited Training to Advanced Diploma level [AQF 6], am a National Committee Member of a National Body in the area of trainer qualifications, and a member of the Education Committee of a National Professional practice body in Accounting.

I am yet to find anyone at the Universities listed who has even HEARD of ABE, let alone anyone who has assessed any qualifications from them, or furthermore admitted with any degree of advanced standing anyone with ABE qualifications.

Maybe you can tell us who at this large list of Institutions is the "ABE" person.

This has 'echoes' of other UK para-professional bodies who seem to look up a Who's who of educational institutions and bandy around names at will to 'embelish' their acceptance, when the instsitutions have never heard of them, and would never recognise them as quoted.

I will patiently await your posted reply,

Peter French MEd MAcc MACE
Principal
Carlyle Education Pty Ltd
Registered Training Organisation No 6823
Australia

 

Response to Peter french

Peter:

I really would not go down this path. I can categorically assure you that ABE is the sort of organization that does not go around claiming associations where they don't exist. The problem with getting 'recognition' of this kind from institutions is that the person who was the original 'lead' at the institution often leaves and gets a job elsewhere and if few ABE students have sought entry to the institution no one seems to know about the affiliation/recognition. I have personally seen copies of letters from the registrars or deans, or which ever persons agreed the recognition of ABE awards at a particular institution. At one time (may still do so, I don't know) the ABE used to publish a handbook with copies of all the letters from institutions testifying to their willingness to consider ABE advanced diploma holders for admission to particular bachelor's degree level programmes. In my view ABE serves a useful purpose. It offers a sound programme at a very reasonable cost and affords people the opportunity to make something of themselves when often they would not otherwise be able to do so because of the huge cost of attending a university. With the ever increasing number of distance learning programmes now available, many ABE diploma holders will be able to have the chance to do the last year of a bachelor's degree remaining in their own countries rather than having to travel to the US, UK, Australia - or wherever.