Excelsior College and Real World Value?

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by infantryexcel, Apr 20, 2011.

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  1. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Hello everyone!
    I am new to this community, but every decent review I read about colleges or programs route to this forums.

    I am going to be Active Duty Army this coming September when I get out of one station unit training and I am trying to get some perspective on what to expect from Excelsior College.

    I have done a ton of research and decided on Excelsior due to accreditation and even a little additional accreditation for business : IACBE.

    I will be going online for the B.S. in Business.

    My question is how are the online classes structured, or if that can't be answers, are the courses really hard?

    Will I have a hard time getting into graduate school? I know it will be sufficient for OCS which is my main goal but I would like to have a masters to fall back on in case of a discharge down the road for some reason.

    Thank you for all of your support in advance since its greatly appreciated.

    -Alex
     
  2. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    Hi Alex. Welcome to Degree Info! For starters, you may be interested in why your posts are delayed: http://www.degreeinfo.com/distance-learning-discussions/35100-new-users-ask-where-did-my-posts-go.html

    Excelsior College is a fine choice for your BA. It is regionally accredited, which is the most recognized accreditation, so you should have no problem with transfer credits or others honoring your degree. You should have no trouble getting into graduate school with your degree. I'm pretty sure that they offer discounts for the military, which should be helpful. The classes are always going to be substantial in a good quality online school. Excelsior will mostly concentrate on lots of reading and writing, so if you like that sort of thing, you will love it. As long as you can do that, it will not be that hard to pass, but it will be a lot of work.

    Another good choice would be SUNY, the state college system for the state of New York. They offer a number of online programs and the tuition is roughly about $200 a credit, or about $600 a class, which is really low. I'm looking at that online program for my college age child.

    There are many other good programs out there that I'm sure others will suggest. The problem will be in choosing which one is right for you.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2011
  3. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Thank you! Do you think that being in the military will help me get into grad school? And then maybe more, If I am an officer trying to get accepted into an MBA program?

    Tomorrow I will be speaking to Empire State College (SUNY).

    Thank you for your response and I am actively refreshing the page in hope for your next response haha!
     
  4. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    As long as you have a decent GPA, you shouldn't have any trouble getting into grad school. Military will not affect your grad school, but I understand that grad school can help you get promoted in the military. (Never been military, so I don't really know about it) Some schools will require an entrance exam such as a GRE or a MAT, but those aren't really all that difficult, plus you can study for them before you take them. Many of the for-profit schools don't even require an entrance exam, just a credit card...ahem.

    Most grad schools are not as difficult to get into as you may think. Only the master's programs at the top schools are exclusive and a bit difficult to get into. Those are too expensive for most people anyway. Some argue that the top schools are worth it, especially those business schools with the extra AACSB accreditation, and they may be right, but I would not go for one. Not worth it to me, and only a few employers in a few specific professions really care where you got your graduate degree. Academia and some financial institutions tend to care, but most others don't. IACBE is the lowest of the three extra business accreditations. They are, in order of stature AACSB, ACBSP and then IACBE. That's not to say that IACBE is bad, in fact, it's great. Any school that has an extra business accreditation has proven that they are attempting to be a cut above. IACBE is a fine extra accreditation.

    Empire State is the school my kid is applying to. My kid really liked one of their English programs.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2011
  5. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Do you think I could get into Empire State with a 2.7 GPA from a Suny Community College? I had a 3.82 GPA the first semester carrying 18 credits, and now my business department is not letting me take my exams early anymore before I leave for basic. This semester will force my GPA to a 2.7 Cumulative. What do you think? How hard are the classes at Empire if you do know?

    Thank you again, very much!
     
  6. Maniac Craniac

    Maniac Craniac Moderator Staff Member

    D.Surf, nice job! You should work for ChaCha!!!
     
  7. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    **removed**
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2011
  8. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Could I get into Empire State with a 2.7 Cum GPA? 3.82 One semester for 18 credits. and a really bad one for second semester because I leave for basic training before I can do my finals, and the business department at this suny community college has gone back on their word of letting me test early. I leave 2 days before finals start.

    How hard are the online classes if you have any idea as I'm sure you might have an idea of.

    Thanks again!
     
  9. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    Thanks, MC. I prefer banana dancing over the Cha Cha. :banana::banana::banana:
     
  10. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    You could probably get in with at 2.7 cumulative. You might start out on academic probation. Let us know what they say tomorrow, I'd like to know too.

    Oh man, that sucks about the finals. I would think they would give you a break because of your military. You might should double check.

    Like I said before, online classes usually are not all that hard, per se, but they are a lot of work. Lots of paper writing and lots of reading. Generally, if you do well enough on your papers you can pull a "B" in most classes at many schools. If you are not good at reading and paper writing, you may find them difficult.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2011
  11. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Bump for all knowing SurfDoctor*
     
  12. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    Current Excelsior policy is that you are only required to take 3 or 4 semester units of courses through Excelsior. The balance of your 120 units can be earned at any RA college/university or through CLEP/DSST and transferred into Excelsior.

    This is also a low cost way to earn a BS.

    As far as grad school my Excelsior BS degree got me accepted into two grad programs.
     
  13. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Whats weird is the fact that they don't list any transfer requirements at all. Calling them in 15 min when they open. Will let you know what they say!
     
  14. infantryexcel

    infantryexcel New Member

    Hm..

    Well, I spoke to an admissions representative.

    She said my 2.7 GPA will not really be too much of a factor in my gpa since they look at the "whole package" as she kept saying. She said that they place an emphasis on the essay with the application in terms of admission. She was very nice as well!

    She said that they place an emphasis on the writing due to the fact that, "there is a lot of writing in our courses"

    If I don't make it in somehow, excelsior college here I come.
     
  15. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    Good news! Just make sure your essay is pretty solid. Check it for grammar, sentence structure and APA style. Although it does not have to be in APA, I'm sure, it might help. If you want to send the completed essay to me, I'll look at it for you.

    Either way, whichever school you end up at, you are fine. Empire State has the advantage of being known as a B&M institution and a state school. This will probably look better on a resume to some employers than a DL school, but, as I said before, it usually doesn't matter that much.

    If you aren't familiar with our slang, B&M means brick and mortar; a physical school that can be attended in person. DL, distance learning, can mean any form of non-traditional school, but we usually use the term to signify online school.
     
  16. BrandeX

    BrandeX New Member

    I've always gotten the impression people go to one of the big 3 because they don't want to take classes, or as few as possible.
     
  17. joikd

    joikd New Member

    Absolutely test out! In one of my more motivated moments, I took 8 tests over four consecutive days (only studied the day before & the day of the test). The business strategy course (mandatory for me) I am taking was around $1000. I don't know if all the courses are that expensive. If so, forget it!
     
  18. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    One still has to accrue a minimum of 120 semester hours - for me the advantages of EC were:
    (1) I could apply existing credits from around a dozen schools in two countries,
    (2) I could meet all remaining requirement over those listed in (1) by taking courses I liked rather than the mandatory courses of some schools (now of course you need to take 3 or 4 mandatory courses at EC).
     
  19. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    That depends on your definition of what constitutes a class. Someone going to one of the "Big 3" will not have to attend physical classes, but there are classes to be taken online. The format may vary, but the outcomes are roughly the same.
     
  20. Maniac Craniac

    Maniac Craniac Moderator Staff Member

    I'd rather take classes, but then again, I'd rather save as much money as possible. My decision to go with the Big Three is mostly a concession. I concede that I would not be able to have either the traditional college experience nor the traditional nontraditional experience. I just need the dang degree done.
     

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