Advice Needed On How To Proceed

Does bellvue accept National credits towards their bachelors degrees?

Are they RA?

I REALLY want to go to University College for that Certain specialized masters.

I REALLY SUCK AT TAKING TESTS AND RETAINING LOTS OF BOOK KNOWLEGE. CLEPS WOULD KILL ME. Besides. I have TONS and TONS of credits, so I just need to find the right school that will take it.

 

I have prepared a sample mapping for your courses to the BGS at Athabasca University.

Credit Course
03 Survey of World Religions
06 Western Civilization I
09 Western Civilization II
12 SOC-165
15 GE-192
18 GE-127
21 English Cmposition I
24 English Composition II
27 Crimes of the 20th Century
30 Introduction to Programming & Lab
33 IT-220
36 IT-250
39 GE-184
42 TCT-200
45 TCT-210
48 IT-203
51 Intermediate Spanish I
54 Intermediate Spanish II
57 SPH-305
60 ENG-300
63 PHL-405
66 ENG-335
69 TCT-350
72 TCT-360
75 TCT-450
78 IT-302
81 TCT-445
84 TCT-460
87 TCT-465
90 TCT-499

You could contact AU with this sample mapping along with copies of your transcripts and ask them to review whether these courses would meet the BGS regulations.

You have enough left over creit hours to meet the BA/BS or 120-credit hours completed requirement for many graduate programmes.

Good luck!

 

Yes, Bellevue is RA. Yes, Bellevue accepts NA credit toward their BA degree program. They have some very interesting degree options at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and they offer their BA programs in an accelerated format. I really like the school. I also really like Liberty (also RA, also accepts NA credit toward their BA programs, also offers an accelerated format). Both Bellevue and Liberty also have the advantage of having a large brick and mortar campus presence. They are not strictly online/distance schools.

Pug

 

(How to say this without sounding mean...)

FM4C-
I appreciate the situation you're in, but I think this post demonstrates the utility of an NA degree. Mine is not an "anti-NA" attitude; heck, I don't even have my bachelor's degree yet. But a man much smarter than me once said (and I'm paraphrasing) that getting anything besides an RA degree might be a good choice if you're sure it will fulfill all of your future needs. It appears that you are now in a situation where the NA degree will NOT fulfill your needs. Although there exists the possibility that your NA degree will get you into "a" school, it doesn't seem that it will get you into the program you REALLY want to be in.

I sincerely hope you find a solution to your problem, but I also hope those members of this board (and our guests) that are just starting out on the degree trail use your current problem as a learning example as to why they should strive for a RA degree if at all possible. Although other options such has NA or unaccredited may suit someone's current needs, it's very difficult to ensure that your needs in the future will be what you think they will be.

Again, this isn't an attack against you, just an attempt to use this as an example for others.

 

I have to disagree. A NA degree has a ton of utility in the professional/workforce arena. It has good (but not great) utility as a tool to gain entry to RA post-grad programs. The problem here is in getting individual NA credits to transfer toward a RA BA program. NA credits are quite limited in this context unless ACE evaluated.


Pug

 

I think you're missing my point.

Based on his original post, FM4C is getting a NA degree. He now wants to get into a very specific program (Masters of Applied Science in Telecommunications) at a specific school (University College @ University of Denver). The school he wants to go to does not accept his NA degree for admission, whereas (based on what he's posted) they will accept (even require) a RA degree. Therefore, his NA degree has a limited utility that a RA degree doesn't have. I am not aware of any graduate programs (even at an NA) school that don't accept RA degrees for entrance or any limitations on RA degrees in the workplace. The fact that he is having problems "getting individual NA credits to transfer toward a RA BA program" is only a side issue. If he had gone to a RA school in the first place, he would have avoided this problem.

Don't misunderstand me. I wish FM4C all the best in his search for a RA school that will accept his NA degree towards a masters. But this is a good example of why people really, really, really (and I mean really) need to think hard before they spend a lot of time, effort, and money getting a degree that limits them. I don't have a "RA or no way" agenda, I just want people to get the best success they can out of the credentials they earn.

Ryan

 

WOW SENTINEL!

Thank you so much! I will be putting together a plan soon on when and how to send an email to the school and get my transcripts sent. Thank you so much for putting that list together. I suppose they expect the incoming student to prepare such a document prior to them considering credit that can be recieved?

 

No problem.

As to your question whether Athabasca University expects a student to put together a list, such as I presented for your review, it is probably not a requirement though highly benefical to both the student and school for evaluation of previously earned credit hours.

I consulted the course listings at Athabasca University while attempting to map your earned credit hours and subjects to those offered by the school as a means of determining junior v. senior level coursework. Unless specifically asked by AU, I would not bring up the matter of NA credits since the US Department of Education considers them equivalent to RA credits, although each receiving instituion has the right to limit transfer credits based on various criteria; at least this is how I understand the situation.

By the way, in the event University College @ University of Denver requires a 4-year degree (120 credit hours) for entrance to the Masters of Applied Science in Telecommunications, you can apply the AU BGS degree towards a 4-year BA/BS at Charter Oak State College, Excelsior College, or Thomas Edison State College with less than 30 credit hours (10 courses) remaining minus any RA courses from your list that has not already been applied to the BGS.

There is a thread somewhere on this board which outlined the regulations governing NA and RA equivalence in the eyes of either USDE or CHEA.

 

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=20359

 

Thank you for the help. It sounds like you know what you are doing! I will not mention any of the credits being RA or NA, just submit my plan and send my transcripts.

This looks like it will work out well. I do not think that University college will care if the degree is 3 years, I think they just want a RA bachelors in anything. The program is even open to people changing careers, so you do not have to go into the program with prior telecom knowlege.

 

BTW, Just got good news, I am flying up to chicago for an interview for a cellular technician! I am excited!

 

Here is an old thread with a list of RA schools that accept NA credits. http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=24684

 

Way mass totally cool!

 

And here is another, newer thread on RA schools that take NA credits: http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=26285 .

 

Thanks, I will check those out Ted!

 

Firstmode, how are your studies progressing? Did you enroll at Athabasca University?

 

Hello!

I have not enrolled yet. I am taking a 12 hour, 11 week quarter right now and am in Week 10 at the present time. I am working my butt off right now with many of my assignments and getting ready for finals and final projects.

Until I finish a couple of more quarters then I will apply for Athabasca. Until then I will not have all the required credits that was listed in the above credit plan. It is definetly the path I am going to take though.

I am still having some doubts as to weather I should consider attending Devry in Chicago if I get this cellular technician position to learn electronics really well. Knowing electronics at this point may be more valuable over the next 2 years than going after a masters in Telecommunications due to the fact that I will most likely be doing electronics type telecommunications work over the next 2 to 3 years due to my experience rather than network and data engineering which the masters would prepare me for.

But I am definetly going after an RA bachelors at Athabasca as soon as possible since I will have well over 200 credit hours, with the majority being nationally accredited credit hours. I want to make sure that when I decide to start the masters program that I already have the RA bachelors.

 

I have not looked at excelsior yet. I think I may just look at athabasca at this point though. I would love to just get it from sending in my transcripts of possible. I will think about other options if I cannot do Athabasca.

 

Hmmm, I am trying to apply to Athabasca University and send in my educational past, but the form only has drop down menus that fill in your schools. All of my schools are not listed in these drope down boxes! Even the RA community college....