Needed: BS, like, YESTERDAY

OK, I got the "unnofficial" evaluation of my credits from Excelsior today. It looks like this:

"Listed below are the requirements you still need to complete:

General Education (Arts & Sciences Requirement)

11.00 semester hours at the lower level PLUS
21.00 semester hours at the upper level

Distribution Requirements
3.00 in Social Science/History
9.00 in Natural Science/Math
or
6.00 in Social Science/History
6.00 in Natural Science/Math

Written English Requirement

3.00 semester hours in Written English

There are several ways to satisfy the Written English requirement. You may demonstrate competency in expository writing by successfully completing the Excelsior College course "English Composition" (ENG 101), the Excelsior College course "Professional Writing Skills" (ENG 231), the Excelsior College "English Composition" examination or an approved course from the regionally accredited college of your choice. You must earn a minimum of three semester hours and a grade of "C" or better is required. Please visit www.excelsior.edu for more information on these options.

Quantitative Requirement
All baccalaureate degree students are required to take a course (equal to at least 2 semester hours or 3 quarter hours) in quantitative reasoning. You may satisfy this requirement by taking a college level course or examination such as college algebra, trigonometry, or statistics.

Depth Requirements

A depth in the Arts & Sciences

AND

Applied Professional Credit or Additional Arts & Sciences

18.00 semester hours lower level in any academic area plus

Information Literacy Requirement
There are several ways to satisfy the Information Literacy requirement. As the universe of information grows and technology continues to transform learning, information literacy (accessing academic information electronically, selecting credible resources, etc.) becomes increasingly important. You may demonstrate competency in this area by successfully completing the Excelsior College course "Information Literacy" (INL 102) or an approved course from the regionally accredited college of your choice. You must earn a minimum of one semester hour in Information Literacy with a grade of C or higher in order to complete the requirement. Please visit www.excelsior.edu and click on the Excelsior College courses link for information pertaining to INL 102."

So, if I'm reading this correctly...and I'm not sure that I am...it looks like I have about 50 more credits to complete, plus a one credit information literacy requirement? Are there any Excelsior students here who can decypher this for me?

Thanks!

 

Hmm..I think I read this wrong. It looks like I might need closer to 67 more credit hours?

 

67

Yeah It looks like your correct 67 with 21 of them being upper level credits. Just a little advice I'm not sure what you have on your transcripts but if you think they short changed you on any credits give them a call and have them explain it to you... I did

To get more credits I had to change my major and fill out an appeal form to get some technology credits that where over 10 years old I got it down to 12 credits from 53 to get my AAS degree (I'm 6 credits shy)

 

Transfer Credits - What About 138 Credits??

I've read every thread in this post and came away with quite a bit of information that my husband might be able to use. The fact is, I've been behind him for years to complete his degree. If I harass him well enough, he would go to school for two to four semesters, to get me to shut up and then quit. He quits with 3.6 - 3.8 grade point averages, complaining that he hates sitting in a class with who he refers to as 'young kids'. If it isn't a program he could complete in a jiffy, he loses interest.

I recently took the initiative and ordered his transcripts from the four colleges he attended. I added up his earned credits and was amazed to discover that this guy has 76 credits beyond an Associate of Applied Science in Biomedical Engineering Degree culminating in 138 credits. Granted he did earn 68 credits from a college in The Bahamas, however, the courses he took there are closely akin to those taken here in the US. As a matter of fact, the school was accredited in the islands by the time it closed three years ago. There are still college officials hanging around, being paid to dispense transcripts, therefore, acquiring an official transcript would not be an issue, in the least.

I am in the process of looking into this possible Excelsior solution. In the meantime, while I continue my search, does anyone have any ideas or opinions on how a situation such as I have described might typically be handled at Excelsior or Charter Oak State College? What about RIT? Any experience with them and their rules of engagement on transfer or compiling credits? I thought I saw a post, not sure, where RIT has a Life Learning Portfolio Evaluation option? OR - Could I be suffering from a severe case of ‘hubbystressitis’ and could have simply read it all wrong. I’m depending on the brain (and brawn) to help me clear this all up, as I continue my quest (LOL).

 

Re: 67

It looks like there were three courses Excelsior did not accept, and they were Journalism/Communications-related credits which they considered to be duplicates. I have no problem with that, although I could have sworn I already took English Composition at the University of Wisconsin. No matter, that is my next course at Penn Foster. When I finish the semester there, I will simply transfer that transcript to Excelsior.

 

Re: Transfer Credits - What About 138 Credits??

Why not contact Excelsior College directly and ask about how these credits would be handled in terms of transferability.

Thomas Edison State College offers a Bachelor of Science in Applied Science and Technology degree with a concentration in Biomedical Electronics that might be of interest or possibly a more general Bachelor of Arts .

In any event with 138 credit hours completed, assuming they are semester credit hours rather than quarter credit hours, your husband might be a mere few weeks away from the degree.

 

Re: Re: 67

TCord1964,
FYI! Penn foster's English Composition has not been reviewed by ACE, therefore you will not be able to transfer it to excelsior.
(I already tried that)
English Composition & rhetoric (Ace reviewed) is no longer offered by Penn foster.
Good luck to you & All the best

 

Re: Re: Re: 67

Well, that stinks. Any idea which courses offered by Penn Foster have been reviewed by ACE? I'm in one of their degree programs, and I know some of their courses have been reviewed, I'm just not sure which ones.

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: 67

TCord1964
I can e-mail it to you!
Go to private message and leave your e-mail address.
P.S. I can't attach it here!
Pilot

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: 67

I've also posted this on another board...

I checked to see which courses in my AS degree program at Penn Foster are reviewed by ACE (I came across a list of the reviewed courses. It looks like its about 5-6 years old). I'm still in the first semester, but here is what still lies ahead if I stick with it:

Business Orientation 1 credit
Introduction to Business 3
Math for Business and Finance (Business Math) 3
Principles of Management 3
Principles of Marketing 3
Economics 1 3
Art Appreciation (humanities) 3
Advertising Principles 3
Economics II 3
Business Law I 3
Business Law II 3
Business Statistics (statistics) 3
Retail Management 3
Applied Research Skills 2
Survey of Mathematics (Algebra) 3
Foundations of Political Science 3
Marketing Research 3
Consumer Behavior 3


These are all lower-level courses. Any idea how these might fill the requirements I still have to complete at Excelsior? I think the Business Statistics course might fulfill the quantitative requirement, but I'm not sure. Applied Research Skills is also considered an English or Composition course, according to ACE. Is it worth sticking it out at Penn Foster for the low payments and the transfer credit to Excelsior, or should I just try to test out of as many of the requirements I have left as I can (or both)?

Thanks in advance!

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: 67

Tcord,
Applied Research Skills does not fullfil the Written English Requirement at excelsior .
The survey of mathematics fullfils the quantitative requirement, I am almost certain that the business Statistics is considered applied professional and not Math/natural science.

The following courses are considered applied professional for the BS in Liberal Studies at excelsior
Business Orientation 1 credit
Introduction to Business 3
Math for Business and Finance (Business Math) 3
Principles of Management 3
Principles of Marketing 3
Advertising Principles 3
Business Law I 3
Business Law II 3
Business Statistics (statistics) 3
Retail Management 3
Marketing Research 3
Consumer Behavior 3

These courses are considered humanities
Art Appreciation 3
Applied Research Skills 2

These courses are considered social sciences
Economics 1 3
Foundations of Political Science 3

This course fullfils the quantitative requirement
Survey of Mathematics (Algebra) 3

I am pretty sure of myself but of course you should check with excelsior.
Hope this helps,
Good luck...
Pilot

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: 67

[/B][/QUOTE]"Is it worth sticking it out at Penn Foster for the low payments and the transfer credit to Excelsior, or should I just try to test out of as many of the requirements I have left as I can (or both)?"
I think you should start take as many classes as you can (Ace reviewed only ) at penn foster untill you fullfil all the lower level requirement it is possible see below, and then take upper level Exams/classes.

You need 18.00 semester hours lower level in any academic area.
You should take 6 business courses at Penn foster.
(See my previous post)

For the remaining 6.00 SH in Social Science/History
Take the Economics 1 3 & Foundations of Political Science 3

For the 6.00 SH in Natural Science/Math.
Survey of Mathematics 3
There are several other classes you can choose from
Physical science 3
Physics application 3
practical algebra 3
practical calculus application 3
Analytic geometry & calculus 4
These courses can also help you fullfil the 11.00 semester hours at the lower level that you need.(GENERAL EDUCATION)
They have all been reviewed by ace and as far as I know are still offered by penn foster:
Economics II 3
Essentials of psychology 3
Human behavior 3
Music Appreciation 3
Organizational behavior 3 can work both ways Applied Pro or social science.
Reading in world civilization 3
Technical writing 3 (But does not fullfil WER)
Good luck again!!

 

In the program I am in, I can't pick and choose my courses at Penn Foster. They are sent to me one at a time, and I have to do them in order. After I finish the first semester, I suppose I could just buy the courses I want.

Also, I hope to get a BA in Communications from Excelsior. Don't the 18 lower level credit hours need to be in that area of study?

Sorry for all of the questions, I just find the Excelsior assessment confusing an unclear.

 

Can't you just resign from the Penn-Foster program and enroll as an A.A./A.S. or bachelor's student @ Excelsior and spend your money on the courses you need from somewhere cheap like LSU? Once you're enrolled @ Excelsior my bet is that your degree will move along more quickly; you can start testing and progressing with the help of an advisor. It seems like an extra expenditure of energy to try to progress at Excelsior while working within the rules/limitations of your current program. If an Excelsior BA/BS is your goal then, in my humble opinion, you should get on board there right away and not look back.

 

I can't withdraw from Penn Foster until I finish the first semester. I suppose I could just stop taking the courses, but I am still on the hook for the tuition for the first semester, so I might as well complete them.

I do plan to enroll at Excelsior, and I'll likely do that once I finish the semester at Penn Foster. At least 13 credits worth of the Penn Foster courses will transfer to Excelsior, so it's not a waste of time.

 

I agree, I think yo should enroll at excelsior and plan your course of actions with the help of an advisor.
You will still be able to take all the courses that I have listed previously if needs be through the Edu Direct business & industrial division for 55$ per semester hour.
It seems to me that it is a win win situation.
Also if you really need a degree ASAP the fastest route is the BS in Liberal Studies and you can add an area of focus if you decide to do so (21 credits in a specific areas however excelsior is very flexible as of which courses are needed )
Good luck...................

 

The BLS might be faster, but I really need the BA or BS in Communications for employment purposes. A Bachelor in Liberal Studies on my resume just won't cut it.

I do agree about taking some of the courses through Penn Foster. You just can't beat that price.

 

I was thinking...if I did do the Bachelor of Liberal Studies could I still get a concentration in something like marketing? If I did that, would my previous military credits in communications/journalism still count towards my degree?

I only ask because if that is the case, I could probably get my AS from Penn Foster and finish the BLS from Excelsior at the same time, if I undertand Pilot's previous post correctly.

 

Tcord1964,
You can have 2 areas of focus.
You will need to have 21 semesters for each area of us.
I am doing a BSLS with 2 areas of focus Business & Insurance.
You can choose any area of focus but it has to be approved by your advisor, shouldn't be a problem at all.
As you already know some of the classes you are or will be taking at Penn Foster, as part of your Associate degree, have not been reviewed by ACE, therefore you will not be able to transfer those.
I truly believe that you should finish this semester, Enroll at excelsior and transfer the credits you already have.
You should then take only classes that have been reviewed by ACE and that will directly apply to your degree /area of focus.
You can always get an associate degree with an area of focus first if you really want to have something quickly and then get a BS.
Good luck..............

 

I agree. I'm going to wrap up the semester at Penn Foster as quickly as I can (it's self paced), and perhaps take some CLEPs along the way as well. Once the semester is done, I'll enroll at either Excelsior or Charter Oak State College. I've been planning on getting a credit assessment from COSC as well, as I've heard they are very liberal with their transfer credit policies. One other major selling point for COSC for me is the fact that they offer financial aid, whereas Excelsior does not.


Do any COSC grads here have any advice/tips about the school and how much financial aid can be obtained to study there?