Using One Bachelor's Degree to Get Another

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by guyfawkes, Oct 18, 2016.

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  1. guyfawkes

    guyfawkes Member

    I already have a Bachelor of Science from a RA school, but I was just wondering if anyone is familiar with any schools other than the Big 3 and Athabasca that would accept 100% of the credits from my degree towards another? Athabasca only accepts 42 credits from a first Bachelor's degree toward a second, and I forgot the specifics, but one or two of the Big 3 requires 30 credits to be earned after the first Bachelor's when working toward a second, and the other one or two require some combination of capstone, literacy requirement, and cornerstone classes, in addition to at least one requiring special permission.

    This may sound like a weird request, but I am just trying to make my resume more impressive when applying for officer positions in the military. I am also working on a Master's degree, but I won't graduate for a while and any green weights for my resume will help me in the short-run. Besides, I was told by an Air Force officer recruiter that they don't even really look at any degrees past Bachelor's degrees as far as eligibility.
     
  2. Life Long Learning

    Life Long Learning Active Member

    The issue is will the Big 3 take the RA credits? That may be your biggest issue?

    COSC takes FEMA so do 30 IS credits post BS RA degree.
     
  3. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member


    Military recruiters have not the best of reputations. It would be wise to investigate further.
     
  4. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member

    From long ago I recall my state of New York as having requirements beyond those of the regional accreditor. How many credits may be accepted could depend on the school, the accreditor and, if separate, the government authority where the school is located.
     
  5. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    Just curious . . . what is the subject of your first degree and what subject do you have in mind for the second?
     
  6. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    you can earn a second bachelors at any of the schools you mentioned. Speaking only of TESU, you will be able to transfer 100% of your credit, however those are not the right questions. The first right question is how "how will my existing credits fit into a new degree distribution?" (for instance, if a new degree requires calculus and you haven't yet taken calculus, that will leave a hole.) The second right question is "how many new credits will be required" and I believe at TESU it is currently 24 upper level which includes their capstone course. You can check the current catalog (search: second bachelor) for the particulars.

    I'm still not sure what you're trying to accomplish- but knowing what you need to do will help people help you. There are probably faster and cheaper ways to accomplish your goal without earning an entire second BA.
     
  7. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    Yeah, not that it matters but I wouldn't bother getting a second BA, at least not for the reason you've described. If you're going to have to take new courses (and you will) you're be better off getting a grad diploma or some sort of certification. At least those are steps forward. A second BA is just a lateral move.
     
  8. rebel100

    rebel100 New Member

    Most schools are going to require 24-30 brand new credits earned after previous degree conferral (or at least not used previously). They will almost always require the credits to be in a separate field unique from the original degree. For example, if you hold a psych degree they are unlikely to award you a sociology degree...the fields are too similar. I don't think you wil see much return on your investment of time, money, and effort adding a second BA.

    If you want to add some relatively quick polish I would go get a cheap RA Grad Cert ata place like Ft Hays or AMU/APU with a plan of rolling that into an actual Masters one day.

    When I was in your shoes I opted for the self paced MBA at WGU...something like that is both cheap and resasonably quick to complete..then they get to see "MBA" at the end of your name. In my case it definitely helped.
     
  9. Graves

    Graves Member

    In this case, the recruiter is correct about OTS applicants. The first Bachelor's degree is considered qualifying, so the major and GPA are weighted for acceptance. Additional degrees are listed during the application process, but they are only helpful bonuses unless the requested career field has a specific degree requirement (e.g. engineering, chaplaincy, medical programs). This is only specific to the Air Force.


    OP: Most colleges have specific rules regarding previously conferred degrees. As many have said, most will grant transfer credit, but will also require a certain number of courses to be taken at the university. I'm pretty sure the Big 3 aren't exceptions to this rule either.
     
  10. guyfawkes

    guyfawkes Member

    Kizmet,
    My B.S. is in Social Science, so extremely generic, and I was thinking something along the lines of Sociology or Psychology, as I have many credits in both of those subjects.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 19, 2016
  11. guyfawkes

    guyfawkes Member

    I have 20 FEMA credits already, but they would have to be able to be applied to the second degree, and FEMA credits aren't usually specific to a degree. They might only be able to complete a few electives.
     
  12. guyfawkes

    guyfawkes Member

    decimon,
    He is an officer recruiter who has been doing this for 17 years. I am in the process of applying to a board, so he is the go-to guy. Someone at the information session asked him about putting their Master's degree in the application packet, and he said to do it, but that it wouldn't make much of a difference. They only look at the Bachelor's degree for eligibility.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 19, 2016
  13. LearningAddict

    LearningAddict Well-Known Member

    Do any of the Big 3 take FEMA credits anymore? I seem to recall a situation where they had to be passed through another school and transferred which seemed awfully odd to me.
     
  14. Life Long Learning

    Life Long Learning Active Member

    COSC does directly.

    Excelsior does if you pay for them thru FCC, CCC, and or GCC.

    TESU does NOT in any way!

     
  15. rebel100

    rebel100 New Member

    FEMA credits in and of themselves will not qualify you for a second degree at COSC.
     
  16. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    With a BS in Social Sciences I would think a BA in Sociology/Psychology would be pretty much total redundancy. If I saw that on someone's resume I'd think "What is he doing?" If you're determined to get the second Bachelors then at least pick something outside that social sciences box.
     
  17. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    You can take TESU off your list. They won't allow you to duplicate your major, so you'd have to go completely outside any of the social sciences.
     
  18. LearningAddict

    LearningAddict Well-Known Member

    Thanks, L3.
     
  19. LearningAddict

    LearningAddict Well-Known Member

    I'm curious. Does anyone know if any of the Independent Study courses with FEMA count for ACE Credit? I took a quick comparative glance at the ACE list and FEMA IS Course listings and couldn't find any matches.
     
  20. Life Long Learning

    Life Long Learning Active Member

    None of the FEMA IS are.

    NFA has three online course that are ACE.

     

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