BA/BS Psychology

Discussion in 'Nursing and medical-related degrees' started by workingmom, Nov 19, 2008.

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  1. workingmom

    workingmom New Member

    I've been reading this forum for a few months now. Great motivation and lots of information which I appreciate.

    I have an AA, AS and many classes towards a BS (my last classes were 6 years ago now). I'm interested in earning an undergrad in Psychology through distance education (with plans to obtain a Masters either traditionally or online)

    I applied a few months ago to Peru State College (as found on this forum) and still haven't received a degree eval, I called a couple of times and this last time was encouraged to just register for a class I knew I would need to take as they fill up quickly. That didn't really give me a great feeling. I want to know what I'm looking at credit wise so I can plan. And now, it's mid November and although I applied and got my transcripts to them a while back I may miss out on registering for Spring '09.

    So in order to fully do my homework I'm looking for other suggestions on affordable Psychology BS or BA programs. And hopefully ones that are open to doing a degree eval prior to having one register for classes.

    I've also found University of Wyoming are there any others I should add to the search.

    Thank you.
     
  2. japhy4529

    japhy4529 House Bassist

    Sorry to hear about your experiences with Peru. This the first time I've heard of anyone having issues with them.

    Here are some other options for you (this is by no means a comprehensive list):

    Excelsior College - BA/BS Psychology (very liberal credit transfer policies). One can theoretically transfer in 100% of the credits required for graduation.

    TESC - BA in Psychology - Same scenario as Excelsior

    American Public University - BS in Psychology

    Utah State University - BS in Psychology

    Good Luck!

    Tom
     
  3. -kevin-

    -kevin- Resident Redneck

  4. workingmom

    workingmom New Member

    Thanks guys. I haven't heard of a couple of those.

    For those interested.

    I'll try to add tuition costs of the psych degrees that were mentioned and I've looked at so far.

    Utah: 200/credit hr

    American Public: 750/course (about 250/credit hr)

    Columbia: 210/credit hr

    Upper Iowa: 266/credit hr

    Peru: 168.50/credit hr

    Wyoming: 94+40 134/credit hr

    But then again some of the cost will depend, of course, on what credits will transfer in.
     
  5. japhy4529

    japhy4529 House Bassist

    You're not going to find an online BS in Psychology that is cheaper than U of Wyoming. $134/credit hr. is very inexpensive.

    Tom
     
  6. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    >>

    Depending on what you have now, and what you are able to test out of, TESC www.tesc.edu could be very affordable- I'd estimate $4000+/- total
     
  7. workingmom

    workingmom New Member

    I agree with you there. Even the closest public university to me charges more than most of these and this is for in state tuition.

    I need to research the courses necessary as well though. That's why options are good. For example when I was pursuing a traditional B&M degree they required so many hours of a foreign language, I had 4 years of Spanish in high school, therefore, despite the fact that high school was at that time about 10 years in my past, they wouldn't let me take Spanish again, it had to be a different language. So I suffered through one semester of German, but still would need another semester to meet their requirement - so I'd appreciate a school that didn't have a foreign language requirement. :rolleyes:
     
  8. workingmom

    workingmom New Member

    Thanks Jennifer,

    Actually your posts are some of the ones that have inspired me :)

    I really don't understand the whole testing thing, for some reason I thought it applied to general ed basics, Associate level type classes.

    I think I need to find an upper level guide to testing for dummies and get a grasp on how that whole system works :)
     
  9. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    I'm betting that you don't need any kind of guide for dummies. Since you've been reading our posts for a while you may already know about Lawrie Miller's site BAin4weeks. However, if you've missed it so far then you should check it outbecause it's a pretty comprehensive guide to "testing out" of courses.

    http://bain4weeks.com/

    Good luck.
     
  10. FLA Expatriate

    FLA Expatriate New Member

  11. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    >>

    I'm with Kizmet, you can figure this out. It's like planning a vacation- you can use a travel agent (easy-expensive and vulnerable to misdirection/poor guidance) or you can take your time an plan it out using your smarts to find the best way for your situation (rewarding -economical-and empowering!) That's what you'll get from people here- people who are their own academic advisors, and who know more about the programs than most of the advisors paid to advise :eek:)

    (another board I'm on that you find helpful http://www.degreeforum.net)

    The CLEP and DSST exams are primarily gen ed 100/200 level exams. However, there are a few that can count as "upper level" depending on where you are enrolled. I know more about TESC since I went there, and TESC will count anything 200 level or above in your major- so that opens up some tests that qualify. Additionally, there are TECEP and EC exams which may be accepted by any number of colleges (beyond the "big 3"), and those are for 100-400 level courses. (They are more expensive, always check with your college first)

    At TESC, these exams would count toward a requirement for psych, and all are under $100 multiple choice- pass/fail* You would want to be sure you didn't duplicate credit from a psych course you already completed as part of your AA or AS.

    CLEP Intro Psych (PSY101) 3 cr
    CLEP Edu. Psych (PSY230) 3 cr
    CLEP Growth and Development aka Lifespan Psychology (PSY211) 3 cr
    DSST Prin. of Stats (STA201) 3 cr
    DSST Organizational Behavior (PSY361) 3 cr

    TESC and EC exams can be found on their respective websites.
    www.tesc.edu
    www.excelsior.edu


    *take this with a grain of salt, things always get updated and my info can be out of date with new rules, double check to be sure.

    You can also visit BAin4weeks to read about the Psychology GRE exam. I can put you in contact with someone (no prior psychology knowledge) who just blew that exam out of the ball park yesterday - earning a score that awards her 30 (!) credits in psychology at Excelsior college (yes, her ENTIRE major completed in one exam). Let me know if I can be any more help.

    P.S. Thanks for the nice words of encouragement :)
     
  12. workingmom

    workingmom New Member

    I had seen the bain4weeks in a sig line, but didn't visit UNTIL tonight - all I can say is you guys rock!

    I'm getting in touch with Excelsior tomorrow as I'm very interested in the GRE Psychology. I have 98 credits towards a Bachelors (not including any AS credits). Luckily I already have Intro to Psych, Stats (one of the few maths I actually like), Sociology, Marriage and Family and I think the 30 credit shot would put me over the edge :) at least how I read it (although I may just want to read it that way:rolleyes: )

    Hopefully Excelsior will talk to me or be willing to look at my unoffical transcript and let me know - because if that's the case I'll so be there!!!
     
  13. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    Too cool. There's lots of people in this neighborhood who've gone that route and so any questions you've got can likely be answered. Also, doing a site search for Excelsior threads will probably give you some useful info as you're waiting for official responses to your questions.
     
  14. japhy4529

    japhy4529 House Bassist

    If you're looking to complete your degree in the fastest way possible, then taking the Psych GRE and applying those credits through Excelsior is a good idea. However, I would add a few caveats to this statement.

    1. Keep in mind that the Psych GRE is no walk in the park! It's intended for people who have already graduated (or are about to graduate) with a BS or BA in Psychology and are looking to gain entry to a Graduate Psych program. I'm not trying to discourage you here. You can certainly do very well on this exam if you study smart. Also, keep in mind that even if you score well enough on the exam to gain 30 credits, in the end you will receive less than that, since you already have an Intro to Psych and Stats course. In this case, you would need to take other Psych courses to make up the difference.

    2. Depending upon the graduate school that you apply with, you may have an issue when the majority of your undergrad psych major is comprised of credits from a Psych GRE. This will be less of an issue for "online only" schools, such as NCU, Walden, etc. However, it will likely be an issue with State and other Private B&M schools with an online program. I would recommend checking with your potential grad schools before you decide to go the Psych GRE/Excelsior route.

    Lastly, Excelsior will perform an unofficial credit evaluation for you, prior to enrollment. Just keep in mind that this unofficial evaluation will likely not be 100% accurate (mine was not, but it was pretty close).

    Good Luck!

    Tom
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 20, 2008
  15. workingmom

    workingmom New Member

    Excelsior update:

    Okay. I just got of the phone with them and the only way they will do even the first eval (which is not major specific only BLS) is by applying. Fairly traditional application process, get them all the transcripts, $75 fee and wait 3 to 4 weeks.

    If I were to take LSU ECE and TESC type courses I could get a grade, but you are correct that the GRE and CLEP are simple P/F.

    As far as grad school, I'm interested in licensed professions either LPC (degree would be Masters Counseling), LSCW (Social Work) or School Counselor (I prefer counseling but the SW is hired in so many more settings including the VA) so I'm pretty much limited to traditional schools and a handful of online programs like Capella. My current GPA towards a Bachelor's is 3.94, so while testing out is EXTREMELY tempting I may need to look at both more traditonal such as Wyoming (they are worth a call) or LSU, ECE, TESC type courses I can still get a grade for. I'm not sure that Capella would care though.

    But just by posting here I feel it's made me follow through so I'll keep plugging away.
     
  16. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    >>

    You should work backward- look at the grad school requirements and then determine if/how you can get your undergrad done within that framework. I know that the areas you are looking at can be very specific with requirements, I'm guessing the GRE isn't the best route- especially with your high GPA. Still get the EC evaluation though, it will give you something to compare to. Also, you can search this forum, a while back there were a few threads about MSW online options. GOOD LUCK!!!
     

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