Thomas Edison State .... Expert Help Needed

Hi to all.......I've visited this site a number of times and find the amount of varied opinions and views very interesting.

My situation : 43 years old. Work for a fortune 500 company that allowed me to progress on my own over the last 20 years. Many assumed I had a BS at a minumum because of my growth within the company. Because everyone takes a different path, my choice at the time ( 15 -20 years ago ) was two AAS degrees ( state community college ) One in Communications and Media Arts and one in Mechanical Design. Because corporate America is ever changing it was strongly suggested I get my BS ASAP.

Now this is where I ask for the "experts" help. I know many of you as I read this forum have been in my shoes. I don't want to reinvent the wheel but I do need some advise moving forward to avoid the land mines.

I Payed my $375 to TECS for an evaluation of my tranfered credits. They will transfer 80 credits. I applied with the Liberal Arts degree in mind. I have the following questions / comments:

1. If they transfer 80 credits for my Lib. Arts , will it be 80 for my BS in Business for example if I choose that instead or do they recalculate?? I tried to ask these questions to TESC but they are looking for my 4G + to be sent in so I can set up a conference with them.
2. I'm confused on the Portfolio and I've read the threads on this site for a succesful completion ( which I appreciate ) but to me it's still confusing.
3. The TESC testing is also open ended to me. Advise?
4. I know the ever ending discussion on TESC / Excelsior etc. vs. going back to school nights for the next 8 years. I'm looking for the fastest path for completeion of my BS.
5. Has anyone gotten credit for teaching? TESC sent me a form that I have to send to the Dean of the college I taught along with that send my first and third born and they will look at giving me credit for the courses I taught. Any experience here??
6. I picked TESC for a number of reasons....opinions on the choice?

In general , I look at this as part of the war in keeping your head above water in the work place today. I also agree this is a great opportunity for me at this age to even have this option. I wouldn't go into battle without sitting down with someone who has fought before me. I hope by your help and insight , I can be one in the near future that can help the next guy fight the next battle.

Thanks in advance for any insight , help , opinions

If not now , when
If not us , who

 

TESC

Hello, I would not qualify myself as an expert. I would transfer the eighty credits to TESC. Liberal Studies seems to be the quickest degree you can get with your background. I would line your transcript up and plug in the courses you have taken against the requirements. I would immediately begin to take the FEMA EMI courses that will be considered "new " and transcripted as is from FEMA to TESC. My husband used 15 of these for his electives in his second BA. You should be able to complete this work with a BA before July 03. I am considering the same timeline that my husband used. I will be glad to assist you in any way with portfolios. Hille (Check Lawrie Millers page for TESC information)

 

A Dumb (but not impulsive) response...?

If it serves your utilities, just DO IT! Later will just be later--a disutility.

You seem to be hung up on whether or not to do a Liberal Arts degree or a Business desgree--without suggesting how many of either you have from previous Associates-level work?

I say just go for it!--If you change your mind later, and if you find yourself completing the degree in swimming style, you can always go the the other one, either at TESC, or perhaps via Lawie Miller's second degree plan. Can't lose either way, except time.

--Orson
PS A wise economist points out: "there is only one truely unrenewable resource: time."

 

Do you have your heart set on TESC?
I have found Charter Oak State College more accepting of my credits. They program is extremely flexible and I found it easier to complete than TESC.
COSC give you an option to create a concentration plan.
Good luck

 

Check this out--I was in your situation. This assessment was dead accurate.

http://www.degreeinfo.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1346

 

Re: TESC

Hille.......is there a specific FEMA site on the web that shows what there is to offer?,,,,,,thanks,

 

Re: Re: TESC

The FEMA Emergency Management Institute has a new website. Their main page is http://training.fema.gov/emiweb/IS/. Go to the bottom of the page and click on the link to see all of the courses offered.

I've completed many of them (although never for college credit) and found some of them very interesting. They are all very easy to complete. I'd guess that these self-study courses are some of the easiest college credit hours you can earn.

 

Re: A Dumb (but not impulsive) response...?

Your right......blunt but right(lol)

 

Welcome to degreeinfo.com, RUKIDNME98. And thanks for bringing up the other thread, 4Q - I doubt I could pull off that anaysis during a holiday week. RUDEKID, the analysis I did for 4Q should give you a good example for your own situation. As to your specific questions:

1. The 80 credits would be applied in the same manner regardless of whether you go for a degree in liberal arts or business. If time is of the essence, go for the faster degree (which is probably liberal arts). You can do a broad spectrum degree (such as Humanities) or a focused major degree (such as Communications), depending on your credit distribution in Communications, you may have already met the major's requirements. Remember that the liberal arts degree is a B.A., not a B.S., but this should not be an issue.

2. P.M. me with your e-mail address. I will send e-mail you a copy of my guide to doing a TESC portfolio, which will explain it to you a lot better than theirs. (By the way, I did 98 credits by portfolio, tested out of 16 credits by TECEP/DANTES, and only transferred in 6 credits. I pulled off the degree in a year and a half, and that's only because I didn't have someone like me around who had been through the process already.)

3. Sure . . . Just look at the list of TECEP and DANTES exams - they're both easier and have more flexible grading that the CLEP's. If you find something you think you can pull off with minimal study, play Nike commercial and just do it. It's a quick and fairly easy way to credit.

4. That's not a question. Nonetheless, you've found it. If the issue is comparing TESC with Excelsior, at this point I would go with TESC. Their affiliation with a major state college system adds to their credibility. At one time, I would have put them both on an equal par, but Excelsior since went private and is no longer one of the schools that is directly a part of the University of the State of New York (although, technically, all colleges and universiteis are under the purview of the USNY Regents to some degree). Past that point, my opinion is subjective, but I never had any complaints with TESC.

5. You're essentially talking about anotehr way of doing a portfolio. If you have taught a course in a subject (especially at a college), it is a given that you know that subject at least as well as someone who has taken a course in the subject. The letter or form from your supervisor or dean simply becomes a form of validating your knowledge. In other words, you might be better off submitting your experience for credit as a portfolio than gonig through other means, whether or not you use the TESC form. But you should be able to receive credit. Keep in mind that the credit will be for the subject taught, not for teaching per se, since TESC does not grant credit in the area of education per se (that is, teaching degrees).

6. Um, good choice. (My god, man, you want absolution?) Seriously, if you find that this is as easy as it should be for someone with your experience, then it's time to have some real fun and think about doing a master's degree, where you might actually learn something. (I've always said that I learned nothing doing my B.A. except how to do a B.A. Since an undergrad degree can be earned solely through knowledge you already have, while a master's requires new learning, the master's is where your true learning really begins.)

If you are considering a master's, and if your interest/involvement in business dictates that you might want to pursue an MBA, the one caution I would offer is that you cover your bases by meeting the pre-requisite requirements for admission into an MBA program if you have the time to do so now. That is, make sure your bachelor's transcript includes Stats, Micro/Macroeconomics, and any other common pre-req's for MBA admission. TESC's Masters of Science in Management program is outstanding, but it's still not an MBA; moreover, if you ern your bachelor's from TESC, I would recommend another school for a master's. (That's just the way things are done - show a different school for each degree. There are plenty of them out there.)

Again, welcome to degreeinfo.

 

DEFINITELY...

As Steve writes:
"If you are considering a master's, and if... you might want to pursue an MBA, the one caution I would offer is that you cover your bases by meeting the pre-requisite requirements for admission into an MBA program if you have the time to do so now."

Absolutely. It simplies and accelerates your degree.
(However, does anyone know how this affects the "excecutive" MBA that big companies often pay for--that are already accelerated?)

--Orson