Probably a stupid question, but I have to ask.... Need advice..

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by 68rs327, Jan 24, 2016.

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  1. 68rs327

    68rs327 New Member

    Are there any colleges of universities where you can get a bachelor's degree based on "Life Experience"? Please read before you say "NO"......
    Here is my situation, I have worked for the same company for the last 27 years,
    I have been a manager for the last 15 years. The company is making deep cuts and is trying to restructure, but I am afraid they are about to close. My problem is I am a middle aged man, who has worked 7 days a week / 12 hours a day most my life with little time to attend college. Between raising three children and paying bills, definitely no extra time in my life. I can not afford to pay $75 a credit hour to attend college and can't spend what money I have saved on college in case I am without a job. I have been looking online to see what jobs are out there and most require a bachelor's degree. I am a department manager and have years of management experience, lots of certifications in program management, Microsoft Certified, Six Sigma Certified in three belts and about 20 college credit hours. Bottom line is I can't afford and don't have the time to attend a traditional college or online college. So to my question, Is there a creditable online college that will award a Bachelor's degree based on "Life Experience"? I have been researching several, Concordia College and University, Sheffield University, Hampden University, University of Denton, and Degree Pro's (they don't tell what colleges they use). I know the answer is probably going to be "NO", but out of these, which is the best.... And if you say None.... What's a guy like me to do?
    Thank you,
     
  2. sanantone

    sanantone Well-Known Member

    There is no accredited college that will just hand you a degree for what's on your resume. A lot of companies verify degrees, so earning one from a diploma mill will do you no good. However, there are colleges that will let you demonstrate college-level learning obtained outside of the classroom. This is done through prior learning assessments (PLA) aka portfolio assessments or challenge exams. These do cost money, though. Some colleges have also evaluated certifications and licenses for college credit. Additionally, some organizations have gotten their training programs and tests evaluated by ACE and NCCRS for college credit. There are hundreds of colleges that will award college credits based on ACE or NCCRS recommendations. You can also use knowledge obtained outside of the classroom to pass CLEPs, DSSTs, Uexcels, etc. These cost around $100 each plus the testing fee of the testing center you go to. There are colleges with competency-based programs that allow you to work at your own pace, but they run from $1,300 to over $4,000 per term. It's going to take you a few terms to finish a bachelor's degree, at minimum. University of the People is technically tuition-free, but their required testing fees will total $4,000 by the end of the program. Nations University is only $960 per year and allows you to move at your own pace, but they only offer theology-related degrees. Regardless of how you choose to complete your degree, you're going to pay at least a few thousand dollars to earn a degree from an accredited school.

    Have you considered applying for financial aid?
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 25, 2016
  3. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    To underscore a central point without all the detail: colleges don't award credit for life experience. They sometimes do, however, award credits for lifelong learning through the process sanantone described.

    If you're serious and you think you need to get a degree, you have a very long slog ahead of you. But where will you be if you don't do it?

    Good luck.
     
  4. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    Three things to add to sanantone's excellent advice:

    1. The "schools" you mention are not just bad, not just fake, but really dangerous. Notorious degree mills. When you apply for a job and mention such schools, and you don't get a response, it quite possibly is because of those things on your CV. And more than a few people have actually been arrested and even imprisoned (though rarely) for using such degrees in public.

    2. Enrolling in a legitimate school can help with the job application process, even without the degree. People will say, on their resume or in their job application, something like, "Bachelor of Arts degree, in process at Thomas Edison State University," or "Enrolled in B.S. degree program in economics; degree expected fall 2018.

    3. I continue to hear from quite a few readers who are pleased and often surprised by how much credit toward a degree they get for their career experience, certifications, and things like military courses, foreign language skills, etc. See Steve Levicoff's article on his Edison experience on the opening screen of this forum.

    Best wishes in your quest. -John Bear
     
  5. Davewill

    Davewill Member

    The short answer is NO, the long answer is YES. There are degree programs that can be done mostly or completely by testing out. There is also the PLA process outlined above. The whole thing CAN be done for 3-6k depending on your circumstances. Do you have ANY college credit already? I'm 53 and just now completing my BA from Thomas Edison State University (www.tesu.com). I was able to bring 69 credits from my stint in community college 20-30 years ago. My sig on that other forum spells it out in gory detail. The rest was a combination of testing, PLA, and a handful of classes over about 18 mo.. If I had been going for a business degree (and I had that knowledge) instead of Computer Science, I could have skipped taking ANY classes and finished in under a year.
     
  6. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    To give you a sense of how much work is involved in PLA, when I went back to wrap up my Bachelor's I took one look at the requirements and decided to just use credit by examination (CLEP) and a few accelerated courses instead. It was quicker and had a much more certain outcome.
     
  7. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    Are there any colleges of universities where you can get a bachelor's degree based on "Life Experience "? Please read before you say "NO"......>>

    Insert "accredited" into your question, and the answer is no. Believe me, if you're ejected into the big pond of sharks trying to get a job, you're not going to want a big red flag diploma mill on your resume. You're better off with nothing than a fake degree.

    Revise your question to ask if there are credits you can acquire to use toward an accredited bachelor's degree based on life experience, the answer is yes. The problem with this carrot that schools use, is that you typically have to pay tuition on those credits (saving time not money). IMO, there are more efficient ways to save a lot of time and a lot of money.

    Here is my situation, I have worked for the same company for the last 27 years,

    Which is probably why you're in a panic. Take a breath, and realize that the world has changed a lot in 27 years. When you last applied for a job, people were not using the internet, social media, or online learning like they are now. There are a lot of ways to not only network, but rebrand yourself and expand your skills. It's a bit like a mid-life refresh ;) As long as you don't do something crazy and impulsive, you can position yourself for change.

    I can not afford to pay $75 a credit hour to attend college and can't spend what money I have saved on college in case I am without a job.

    Everything costs something, in fact, if you're chasing a life experience credit (also called Prior Learning Assessment PLA) those can cost as much as $400 per credit. If I were in your shoes, I'd do 5 things.

    1) you have to tighten the budget and stockpile money. Our family has been through 2 companies closing the doors- if we had the kind of warning you do, we'd have been in a better position. The last thing you want if you're out of work is debt.

    2) look for all the actual -legitimate- credentials you can and start accumulating them. I know this doesn't apply, but when my hubby went through this (he's a chef) there were a few certifications he'd held years ago that he let laps. He went back in and renewed those credentials, added a professional association and a volunteer service role to his resume. All very well received. We had very little money, so he picked the highest yield. One credential was very very hard to get, but if he could pass the exam would only cost him $200. He failed the first time and took it again and passed. The job he has today is because of that credential! Sign up to volunteer with SCORE or Junior Achievement- that's free and looks great. Finally, join a local chapter of a professional organization, if you can't pay $ for that, choose something interesting.

    3) Take Dr. Bear's advice and get an "in progress" degree on your resume. Here's how you can do it for free tomorrow. Compare the 3 closest community colleges in your town. See which one accepts the most CLEP credit. (search box CLEP at their website). Choose the one with the most generous policy and go fill out a free application for admission. Choose an AA or AS in business. (not an Associate of Applied Science in business) Fill out the Federal Financial Aid application (free online) and that will go to your community college and check you for grants. If you qualify for a grant, that's up to $5600 per year no repayment. (everyone qualifies for loans, don't bother with those, you don't need debt to do this). If you qualify for a pell grant, enroll in the minimum to activate the grant. It will probably be 2 classes starting in August. You won't able to register yet, but we're building an in progress degree, so don't worry. If you don't qualify for a pell grant, no worries. You don't have to enroll until August. Again, we're building an "in progress" degree so don't worry.

    4. Now, refer back to your college's CLEP acceptance policy. Pick one of the business exams that are accepted. You'll have no trouble whatsoever independently studying for one of them (let me suggest Princ. of Management). We can talk more about how to study, but you're going to allocate 2 weeks to study for the 90 minute multiple choice exam, and then pay $80 to take that exam. If you pass, you'll have earned 3 college credits - sweet! If you fail, you're out $80 bucks, but if that happens I'll eat my hat. No way someone with your certifications couldn't take that exam and pass. You probably don't even need 2 weeks- my guess is you could take it in 2 days, but let's just take it slow for the first one.

    5. Lather, rinse, repeat. Seriously, without getting stuck on the details of how to CLEP test, you can complete probably half of an associate's degree via testing in the next 3 months. People here are testing out of ENTIRE bachelor's degrees in a year. These are legitimate, accredited degrees. Clearly you're ambitious, but now you can do it the RIGHT way and come out winning. :)

    Edit to add: as soon as you fill out that college application, go change your resume. ABC Community College, Associate of Science in Business Administration, in progress (or similar)
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 25, 2016

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