FEMA Classes at TESC

Is anyone still taking FEMA classes? I am thinking about attending TESC in the fall of 2010 (I know I still have lot's of time) and would like to know more about the FEMA classes. I'm still researching some other schools as well. (I know they won't take the FEMA credit) I plan to pursue a degree in Business Administration. I will complete my AA in May of 2010. Can I take the FEMA classes and apply them towards my business degree? How many FEMA classes can I take that will be accepted by TESC? What has been your experience doing this? Does it affect your GPA - I doubt it? I would really like to obtain my degree in a year's time. Any feedback anyone can give me will be helpful - thanks!

 

You can apply FEMAs as free electives. TESC accepts 25 FEMA courses. Here is the most up to date list I have seen for which FEMAs are accepted. They transfer in as "credit" just like a CLEP or DSST. These are awesome classes that really give you an idea of how disaster response works. I enjoy them (but then again, it's my major )

IS-01
IS-03
IS-07
IS-08.A
IS-10
IS-11
IS-15.A
IS-111
IS-120
IS-139
IS-208
IS-230
IS-235
IS-240
IS-241
IS-242
IS-244
IS-271
IS-275
IS-279
IS-288
IS-292
IS-301
IS-324
IS-346
IS-386
IS-393.A

 

Why would TESC even allow these courses to be used as credit? They aren't even approved by the ACE. This is why I don't think TESC is a very legitimate school.

 

You are wrong! Thomas Edison State College is a very legitimate school!

I am curious why you think FEMA courses are not legitimate?

 

Because the ACE doesn't even approve of those courses. That's why. No other respectable university accepts those credits because they aren't approved by the ACE.

Why would you want to attend a school with such low standards?

 

Bellevue University also accepts FEMA courses in direct transfer. These courses are offered by the U.S. Government (Dept. of Homeland Security, to be exact). It doesn't get much more legit than that!

 

Ha, bellevue university? Another unranked school. Might as well attend Devry or U of P.

Oh yes, if the U.S. Government slaps their name on it, it MUST be legit. LOL. They might back the classes with their seal of approval, but that doesn't mean the ACE will approve them as college credit. I suppose you also think the stimulus plan is good for the economy since president himself backs it up. LOL.


Once again, these courses aren't approved by the ACE. That is why 99.99999999999% of all universities wouldn't accept these courses as credit.

haha, Bellevue and Excelsior. It's like the U of P or devry with a fancy name!

 

Thanks, this information is most helpful!

 

Since I know of no one else who has completed more FEMA Independent Study courses than myself, I will state for the record that I find the FEMA Independent Study courses to be legitmate courses that provide valuable knowledge in the area of emergency management. The FEMA Independent Study Program provides these courses, along with certificates and transcripts without cost. The existance of these courses has made the United States safer than it would have been without them. I know I am not alone in this estimation.


The United States Army says in Department of the Army Pamphlet 350–59...

Section III
Emergency Management Institute
4–54. General information
a. Introduction. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) offers independent study courses that are pertinent to the instruction of military personnel. The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) administers the independent study program for the agency.

 

You are now very wrong!

You are now very wrong! Just because a school decides to recognize or grant credits doesn't mean they are sub standard. A school reserves the right to accept or reject what it believes is acceptable or not acceptable. If there was an issue with it, the accreditation authorities would address that.

As far as ACE is concerned, there are many schools that do not grant credit just because ACE says it is acceptable! Once again, the individual institution makes that determination.

Although I am not a graduate of TESC, I know many outstanding professors, military officers and civilians that have graduated from TESC. To imply that TESC is not respectable or sub standard is pure nonsense!

 

Perhaps you should actually take a FEMA before you condemn the system. They are very thorough, informative courses.

I'm not sure what you have against University of Phoenix and TESC. They are accredited, recognized schools. My father graduated with his Masters in Business from U of P. I can assure you, their degrees are considered very good in the business world. My father got the degree to pave the way for his promotion to VP in a large medical supply company. The president of the company also graduated from U of P.

 

Now, in your partial defense, I noticed that FEMA courses/exams are not proctored. It is possible that unscrupulous students have someone else take the course to obtain credit. The honor system in academics must be upheld or integrity will fail. But then again, DL schools heavily rely on the honor system. I would hope that many DL schools offer proctored examinations. My spouse graduated Troy State University DL program and all the exams were proctored!

 

ACE and FEMA

Not all exams are proctored. Cheating is available in classrooms and online. All programs with non-proctored exams are not bogus.

Perhaps FEMA is not ACE approved because they never applied. Perhaps they don't need their courses to transfer.

 

Or perhaps it's because the courses can be completed within a matter of hours lol.

"My father graduated with his Masters in Business from U of P. I can assure you, their degrees are considered very good in the business world."

I LUL'd at that. Most HR personnel will toss a resume with U of P into the trash. Everyone knows U of P is a complete joke. Well, everyone except the people who went to school there.

 

More likely is a problem with ACE. ACE recommends no college credit for the FEMA Independent Study courses, yet recommends college credit for National Fire Academy Independent Study Courses Q118 and Q318. All of these courses are completed the same way, right down to the unproctored exams. ACE simply is not consistant at times in its criteria for recommending credit.

 

The institution offering coursework or examination has to apply to ACE for review, and pay fees, accept a site visit, etc., to do so.

Instead, FEMA EMI went directly to a real, bricks-and-mortar, regionally accredited, public community college in greater Washington, Frederick Community College, who has been the 'designated credit granting authority' for Independent Study courses since 1998.

Now the Frederick offer is at least a little bit different from accepting FEMA courses 'raw,' as TESC will for some FEMA courses. Frederick adds comprehensive exams which it overlays on top of sets of FEMA courses, "modules." These Frederick exams are proctored; if a major complaint with raw FEMA credit is the unproctored examinations built in, this might make all the difference. But the complainant might want to look at the many other schools offering credit with unproctored exams. TESC may be quite unique in offering credit for some FEMA IS courses 'raw.' It is probably less uncommon for other schools to accept courses already assessed and transcripted by Frederick or TESC, or Clackamas or Guam or any other accredited school whose credits it accepts as a rule.

 

I don't see how accepting FEMA credits is any different from a portfolio assessment. In the FEMA instance the learning outcomes are already identified so it actually makes for an easier assessment and acceptance by TESC.

 

Yet 99.99999999999% of all universities will accept the ACE recommendation to give college credit for National Fire Academy Indepedent Study Courses Q118 and Q318, which are designed just like the FEMA Independent Study Courses. So its clearly not about course content, just perception.

Why are FEMA and National Fire Academy Courses designed the same? Because they are both part of the govenrnment, located right next to each other and FEMA has helped the NFA with their program.

The real reason more colleges are not giving credit for FEMA courses is lack of information on the subject. Any college can give credit for completing the FEMA courses. It is their school and their choice. Some colleges think they are not allow it give credit, which is false.

FEMA is not trying to compete with colleges, but give good courses at no cost, in the area of emergency management. So FEMA isn't heavily pushing the subject of college credits and since they are not paying money to ACE, ACE isn't pushing the program either.

From what I hear the NFA stopped submitting Independent Study courses to ACE, because ACE was not consistant in their evaluations.

 

Most of the people I know using FEMA for their degree, already have knowledge in disaster services. FEMA is a great way to show that knowledge in a definable way.

Interesting.

The President of my father's company strongly recommended that he get his Master's from U of P. Seeing as how your knowledge base of the business world must be larger than the president of a multi million dollar company, and the HR department at Boise State University where my father was hired as a professor. I'm going to follow your wisdom on this one.

What a rude, insensitive, uninformed comment.

 

You are an idiot. Are you 12 years old or somewhere in this age range? If not then your maturity level sure fits into this age bracket. You "LUL'd" at the fact that someone completed their master's from a regionally accredited University based on what? Grow the hell up kid and stop bashing people. If there was an ignore list you would surely be on it. I haven't seen one of your posts that hasn't been either negative or attempting to make fun of someone.