Can I send CLEP/DSST scores for 2 Bachelor Degrees?

Discussion in 'CLEP, DANTES, and Other Exams for Credit' started by elenlushk, Aug 16, 2018.

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  1. elenlushk

    elenlushk New Member

    Hello! My situation currently is that I'm enrolled into Berklee College of Music's Online Degree program (Bachelor of Professional Studies), but at the same time I'm trying to do credit by exams to qualify for credits with Charter Oak State College to go the route of getting a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. I'm NOT currently enrolled and haven't applied to COSC yet, I'm still at the beginning phases of studying for the exams (CLEP/DSST).

    Confusion is starting because I don't know if what I'm planning to do is going to hit any policies in which I won't be able to get my test scores accepted at both colleges.
    Some extra info I want to give is that I'm still unsure whether if I am going to complete the Berklee Bachelor program because it may not be worth it financially speaking for getting jobs. However, my biggest question and concern is whether if COSC will choose not accept my CLEP/DSST scores because I would've sent my scores to Berklee as well.

    All I could find so far is the concurrent degree policy on COSC's website:
    'Bachelor's Degree
    An undergraduate student cannot concurrently earn a degree using substantially the same courses at two different institutions. If a student is earning a bachelor's degree at another institution, the student must notify Charter Oak State College's Admissions Office upon applying to Charter Oak State College and submit a request in writing to the Director of Admissions for permission to earn concurrent degrees. This request must include the field of study of the degree being sought at each institution and the courses to be included. For the Director of Admissions to determine if the fields of study are substantially different, the student will need to demonstrate that he or she will be taking at least 30 credits that are not in the other degree program. The 30 credits that are different must be in the concentration and a minimum of 15-18 must be upper division.

    Once accepted at Charter Oak State College, if a student wants to earn a concurrent degree at another institution, the student must notify the Provost. This notification must include the field of study of the degree at the other institution and the courses being taken toward the degree. The student will need to earn at least 30 credits that are not in the other degree program (as above).

    The Provost will either grant or deny permission to earn concurrent degrees. If the student does not have permission from the Provost to earn concurrent degrees and the student does earn a second degree concurrently, then the student may be denied a degree from Charter Oak State College.'


    It says: 'For the Director of Admissions to determine if the fields of study are substantially different, the student will need to demonstrate that he or she will be taking at least 30 credits that are not in the other degree program. The 30 credits that are different must be in the concentration and a minimum of 15-18 must be upper division.'

    So my question is:
    Does this mean that as long as I have 30 extra transfer credits (for the Business Administration concentration and with 15-18 upper level) that I am not using for my Berklee degree, I can apply the rest of my CLEP/DSST test scores to both schools?


    If there is anything I missed or a specific order I should go about with my credit transfers, any suggestions are welcome!

    Another question is:
    Would you recommend I hold off on sending my free score reports from CLEP/DSST to Berklee at the time of testing so I can send the credits correctly to 2 schools when I'm ready? Or it doesn't matter?

    Thanks for reading!
     
  2. AsianStew

    AsianStew Moderator Staff Member

    I have a few questions for you. How far along are you with the Berklee degree? Why have you decided on COSC instead of Excelsior/TESU or WGU?
    I checked Berklee out: Which program are you taking? There are a few that lists "Music" https://www.berklee.edu/berklee-online/undergraduate-degree-programs

    1) That's correct, you can transfer 30 credits in another concentration or major that is different than what you are currently studying at Berklee. You can apply your CLEP/DSST and other courses towards both schools, they'll need ALL transcripts from every source you have taken credits from.

    2) It doesn't matter, send the scores to both schools, if you send it later it'll cost you $20/subsequent transcript. It's best to send it to Berklee first, for COSC, wait until you have all your CLEP/DSST and other sources completed. I usually tell people for COSC/Excelsior to apply/enroll at the very end of their degree as there are yearly enrollment fees - for TESU, there are residency fees.

    I noticed you entered the same question on the sister board. I'll paste my reply there also for discussion...
     
    Last edited: Aug 16, 2018
  3. elenlushk

    elenlushk New Member

    I've done 42/120 so far with Berklee, doing the Interdisciplinary Music Studies program. Not sure about continuing because I've started aiming at the job education requirements now more than I was aiming to fulfill my music education for my passion... Only 12 courses (36 credits) can be transferred into Berklee with CLEP/DSST so after that I'd still have 14 classes (4 classes max per quarter) to take with berklee and the tuition isn't as cheap as the big 3. Also, if I have a Bachelor from another college, I don't really need another Bachelor for job needs... so I've been having this dilemma about whether if I should continue with Berklee to be honest.

    I've decided on COSC just because it seems to have more general electives, and the main reason for leaning with COSC is that I wouldn't have to do TOEFL or IELTS for applying. (I'm an international student) Do you have any comments on the Business Administration programs from other colleges? I've been wrecking my brain trying to decide on a major, but really the goal for the major decision is for jobs and also the easiest option out of others that can be completed quickly with third party courses and credit by exam.

    I'm reluctant to send the scores to both schools because I haven't exactly sorted out my list of planned credits to use for each school, and some credits actually don't need to be sent to Berklee as it won't count for anything once I hit the general ed requirement. Say, for social sciences, for example, another test score wont mean anything to Berklee but that credit would work as a different general ed credit for COSC. If I don't send that extra one, it'd count towards the 30 credit requirement. Is my thinking in this flawed?

    I noticed a transcript request with DSST is $30, but that $30 can include all DSST tests scores and not just one, right? I'd hate to send to Berklee first only to find out I can no longer send it to Charter Oak later because I don't hit that 30 credit requirement for concurrent degrees. Only the credits I transfer into the general ed portion of the Berklee program will overlap with some COSC degree requirements.
     
  4. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    To throw this into the mix, people don't pay "tuition" at the big 3. The draw of the big 3 is that they accept transfer and alternative credits, so when you're shopping tuition, recalculate the big 3 tuition at about $50/credit. Some will be less, throw in a capstone or two- but all in you're at about $6,000 for a degree from one of the big 3. For the tuition at Berklee, you'll need to add a zero.
     
  5. AsianStew

    AsianStew Moderator Staff Member

    Where are you from? Do you have any US equivalent courses from your previous studies? List your courses from Berklee and other institutions you have attended. International credits can be evaluated by ECE or WES for credit if you have anything you would like to get credit for, if it's just 1 course, skip it... if you have a years worth of courses or more, then it's worth the $ to get those credits. Furthermore, I'll create a template for you once I get more info on the courses you have completed from Berklee and other schools. I suggest TESU over COSC as they have ACBSP secondary programmatic accreditation and courses are easier to transfer, moreover; they're a univ...

    Hmm, I would recommend completing your dream (kind of) and get a BSBA at the same time from TESU! TESU has a BA Music degree and a BSBA degree, the BA has 17-20 gen ed electives and 27 free elective, you can complete the BSBA professional requirements with these courses. Basically, if my guess is correct, you have just some basic general education and music courses taken. You should just apply to TESU and send them your transcripts and wait for an evaluation, while waiting, work on the remaining General Education and Professional Business Requirements - they're the same as what COSC requires. Where are you now? Are you close to a testing CLEP/DSST center?
     
  6. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    The bottom line is that so long as you don't earn a degree from Berklee, you definitely can use all of those CLEPs/DSSTs at Charter Oak whether also sent them to Berklee or not.
     
  7. decimon

    decimon Well-Known Member

    That's without earning the Berklee degree because you cannot 'double dip' many credits, right?
     
  8. elenlushk

    elenlushk New Member

    But what if I did want to earn a degree from Berklee as well, can't I use my CLEP and DSST credits in both schools as long as I have 30 degrees for Charter Oak that isn't used in Berklee(according to their concurrent degree rule)?
     
  9. elenlushk

    elenlushk New Member

    My previous credits were from a nationally accreditated trade school so it won't be accepted by TESU or COSC I think. I haven't actually done any general education credits at Berklee yet so I don't think anything will transfer.

    ACBSP secondary programmatic accreditation is just for nursing and tech though right? I didn't see an accreditation from TESU regarding their business program, would it really make TESU better than COSC?

    Do you know if COSC still takes FEMA? I know TESU doesn't that's why I was leaning toward COSC.

    I'm gonna check TESU's programs again as per your suggestion!
    I'm actually not close to a CLEP/DSST center at all, but I'll be going to the US for 3 months from mid-Sept so I'm studying for them now. Any recommendations on which tests are the easiest?
     
  10. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Yes, that works.
     
    Maniac Craniac likes this.
  11. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    For the moment, but I've been told that's going to change, so if you really want to use them you should open a dialog with Charter Oak now.
     

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