The possibility of earning a legitimate accredited BA in only four weeks has sparked debate--both pro and con. Just out of curiosity, if one invested a few more hours each week, could the BA be earned in 3 1/2 weeks? And if so, would it be just as credible? Russell
I think that the '4 Week BA' idea has come under a lot of fire that is probably undeserved. If somebody is claiming that it is possible to start at the average layman's knowledge of a major subject and have a credible bachelors degree in that subject four weeks later, I don't believe it. If they are also claiming that it can be done without significant study, I REALLY don't believe it. But if a student is already well prepared, he or she can schedule all the necessary examinations in the space of a month. Could a bachelors be earned in 3 1/2 weeks? I suppose so, if the exam schedule permitted. Would it be as credible as a four week BA? Why not? The credibility lies in the examinations, not in how they were scheduled. If CLEPs and so on are credible taken over the space of four years, then they are probably just as credible taken over four weeks or even 3 1/2 weeks.
That was not the premise of the 4 week BA... a 4 week BA is not 4 years of study with 4 weeks of assessment... it is 4 weeks (start to finish). I guess, if you got a credit and could schedule exams, Heriot Watt could be a 1 day MBA... (8 exams at 3 hours each). This was not the issue underdiscussion. The issue was the shortest period of time a reasonably intelligent adult could complete a RA degree (start to finish) and whether this degree qualifies as legitimate in comparision with generally accepted standards.
Agreed. I could be terribly wrong, but my impression was that Lawrie's assertion was that an individual who had consistently "unofficially" engaged in the educational process (coupled perhaps, with some continuing education efforts) could achieve a practical short-cut via examinations. I agree with Bill, and I'm not really certain that Lawrie Miller claimed otherwise. Mark
This is the first paragraph of Lawrie's Introducation posting: "This series is primarily written to benefit mature adults who, for whatever reason, failed to start or failed to complete an undergraduate BA or BS degree, and who now seek some method of demonstrating and translating current competencies into academic credit and thence into an accredited, and universally recognized college degree." I think "current competencies" is the telling phrase.
You are a flimflam artist, Lewchuk. Here is a direct quote from the introduction to BA in 4 Weeks: <Quote> The 15% to 20% of students who can consistently score "A"s in these exams or score in the top 20% of all students, can likely pass most of the same exams (within the top 50%) with no study at all. This is not because the exams are a sham, but because these adults have accumulated a wealth of knowledge over the course of a lifetime that has direct application in these tests. If you have less knowledge coming into the process, it will take you longer to complete it. How much longer depends on your existing knowledge base, how efficiently you study, and your native wit. Now clearly, if you spent your life reading Batman comics and watching "Days of our Lives", and were never intellectually curious, you're going to have a harder time of it. However, most reading this series, and intent on completing a degree, are self selecting for success. To read even this far demonstrates curiosity and motivation. This series isn't for everyone, but it IS for everyone who has the MOTIVATION to read it through to the end and IMPLEMENT the suggested strategies contained herein. <end quote> Yes, an adult who has accrued the necessary know-how over the course of a lifetime, and who now wishes to convert that knowledge into a regionally accredited degree by way of competency examinations. Those with less comprehensive knowledge will take longer to complete requirements. I understand you do not have a regionally accredited bachelor's degree. Perhaps it would serve you better to actually read BA in 4 Weeks, implement the strategies, and strive to complete one. Regretfully, the dearth of academic rigor and integrity you have shown on this board does not augur well for early completion of the process in your case. Your predilection for smoke and mirrors might portend a glittering career in used car sales, though. Again, from the introduction to BA in 4 Weeks: <Quote> This series is primarily written to benefit mature adults who, for whatever reason, failed to start or failed to complete an undergraduate BA or BS degree, and who now seek some method of demonstrating and translating current competencies into academic credit and thence into an accredited, and widely recognized college degree. <End Quote> BA in 4 Weeks is a manual that details how a regionally degree can be earned in 4 weeks or longer dependent upon individual current competencies. I think the introduction is clear on that point. It is interesting to note that the only ones seriously sharing your view was a certified multi dimensioned personality who could not get his personae straight and posted in the wrong name, and another dubious character who now seems to have evaporated into the cyber ether. Yes, evaporated . . . Something like your claim to having a "real" undergraduate degree, Ken: one superior to our lower level RA degrees. What happened to that argument? Rhetorical question, do not bother to reply. You've been rumbled, sunshine. Your 15 minutes are up. (And my welcome on this board is long passed)
Excuse me, but for "someone who has evaporated" (or whatever King Lawrie said in an oblique reference to me), feeding this troll thread just proves my original point. Why go for 4 weeks, why not 3 or 2... dammit, "I want my degree NOW, with minimal testing or study!" (but hey... isn't that what keeps the degree mills in business? Don't forget, many of the degree mills market themselves on the line: "hey... you already know it... let us help you document it & take care of that messy lack of a credential thing.") I sincerely believe, and hope that there are very few 4 week wonders out there. The more that grab a RA Excelsior degree will only cheapen the degree's utility and marketability for everyone else who earned one from that institution and only hasten the entire program's slide down a slippery slope populated at the bottom with the true degree mills.
Every once in a while it is necessary for me to practice my typing skills and throw in my opinion. (Which, when included with a dollar fifty, will get you a cup of coffee in most establishments.) Apparently some of you on this board are illiterate. Of course you may not know who you are because you are unable to understand the weak logic of your own posts, but rather than naming anyone specifically, I will merely point out that you are there, and the readers can decide who you are. Those of you who can read may have noted that Lawrie said "4 weeks or longer". The notion that two weeks or three weeks could be a workable format is ridiculous. To do it in 4 weeks takes a bit of creative scheduling as it is, and to attempt to display your grand wit by using an extreme as an example fails miserably. Perhaps you are upset with yourself because you realize that you could not pass the necessary exams in one, two, or even three months. Or is it possible that you are not capable of understanding the premise behind a BA in 4 weeks? Most intellectually curious people read, learn, and actively participate in many different areas. Some may study astronomy, some may build robots, some may read Chaucer or Milton, some may write poetry or prose, and others may choose to practice the culinary arts or take an interest in herpetology and stock analysis. The fact is that all of these pursuits are actually done by people OUTSIDE THE WALLS OF ACADEMIA. (WOW! Who would have thought you could LEARN outside of school?) Take this a step further. These same people who have amassed various bits of knowledge through their life can now quantify their knowledge on an academic basis by taking a number of tests. If intellectually curious person A has amassed the same knowledge, according to various standardized tests, as Mr. 4 year college student, then (and I hate to be redundant) HE HAS AMASSED THE SAME KNOWLEDGE. Realistically, much of what you learn in any academic setting will be forgotten unless it is something that A) interests you greatly or B) You use in your profession on a regular basis. The amount of time necessary has little to do with the results. Example: Two students are each given an identical set of differential equations to solve. The first student solves all of the equations in seventeen minutes. The second student solves the equations in forty minutes. Is the second student MORE correct because he/she took longer? Is the first student LESS correct because he/she look less time? I would think about that, because the logic that some members of this board are using would fall into one of those above questions.
Also, Lawrie, you are certainly a welcome member to any INTELLECTUAL discussion, which would answer why, at times, you are not welcome on this board. BTW, your information in "BA in 4 weeks" invaluable. Thank You.
Curse the gods of typography! Post SHOULD read: "BTW your information in "BA in 4 weeks" is invaluable.
As someone who is currently a student of Excelsior College I'd like to join the both posters above in thanking Lawrie for his "BA in 4 weeks" series. The information contained there is really helpfull and an excellent reference source. I think, it has been a lot of unjustified criticism aimed at Lawrie in the past months but there were few who took the trouble to thank him for his "BA in 4 weeks" advice. After all, it requires some work and time to put this series together and keep them up-to-date, and let's not forget, he gives it away for free. Thank you very much indeed, Lawrie. Dennis Siemens
Dear Lawrie, No, Lawrie, I don't think this is correct. I tried to convince you online and offline to come back to this board. I also told you that your ideas were useful, regardless of what some people might think. Please check the board by the time you initially withdrew and also your ziplip address. Sincerely yours, Karlos Al "El Caballero" Lacaye [email protected]
Hey, there! Yes, I understand this is not a welcome, but I didn't want you to leave in the first place, so if I give you a welcome, perhaps it is worth as "two welcomes". Thus...Welcome, Lawrie!!! Most cordially, Karlos Al "El Caballero" Lacaye [email protected]
Please e-mail information about where to locate the "BA in Four Weeks". Also seeking a credible way to speed up an online MBA program. - I have "all" the books and am seeking some new ideas. ------------------
Lawrie Miller's "4-week BA" guide is a very useful and practical tool for many people. My example: I am 36 year old, and have been working as a full-time journalist in the last 16 years, building a successful international career. There is a but: I have not completed my BA in my early twenties. Back than, it didn't seem too important to me, since I was already working in the field of my choice. Now, I am thinking to move further, and for the first time in my life I am really regretting not having hung around at college long enough. I plan to get a MA in International relations, and I have both the resume and the academic recommendations to successfully apply to a first-class graduate school. I have "only" to get the damn BA first. It's exactly where Lawrie's gueide enters. I don't pretend to learn anything through testing and portfolios, I just want to get enough credits to complete my BA - the sooner, the better. (for the record, I am enrolled at Excelsior) So, Lawrie, thank you very much.
MY special thanks and opinion on the BAin4weeks.... I would also like to extend a personal thank you to Lawrie Miller for his outstanding reference on earning a BA degree in a significantly reduced period of time. Some have criticized his methods. But the vast majority of the attacks are unfounded. Time is IRRELEVANT to the degree completion progress. Who says that you cannot demonstrate acheivement (which is what those credit-by-exams do: measure acheivement of the subject area tested) in 4 weeks? Or even less? Assuming you could schedule that many exams and test all day every day of the week, you COULD do it in a month or less. A more realistic approach is my degree plan that I set up on my website, http://www.123collegedegree.com . But whether 6 months, 1 year, 10 years. Once you fulfill degree requirements and graduate IN ACCORDANCE WITH that school's academic policies, you have officially earned your degree. There's nothing more to it.
