2nd Bachelors Question

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by makana793, Dec 21, 2010.

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  1. makana793

    makana793 New Member

    Hello all. I have a shipmate who is considering obtaining a second bachelors degree. He recently lost his job due to the economy going south. I tried convincing him about getting a graduate degree but its a long story. His current degree is in sociology and he's looking to get a bachelors in something like business, organizational mgt, public administration, etc. What schools would offer the maximum amount of transfer credits thus allowing him to finish quicker and start a new career? I was thinking maybe Ashford or TESC.
     
  2. truckie270

    truckie270 New Member

    COSC, EC, TESC. You should refuse to help him until he sees the error in his thinking with a second BA over a MA.
     
  3. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    The big three all award second degree and require at least 30 additional credits above those previously applied to a degree. It is possible that CLEP and DSST exam credit could be used to meet the 30 units. This is possibly the low cost approach to a second bachelor degree.

    Many schools have the 30 unit requirement but stipulate they must be earned from their school.
     
  4. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    I believe a second bachelor could be earned faster and at a much lower cost than a masters degree.
    However whatever degree is sought it should be of relevance to the job that the friend is looking at.
     
  5. makana793

    makana793 New Member

    LOL, you da man Truckie :)
     
  6. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    Most of the online delivered master's degrees out there do not require a bachelor's in the same discipline as the master's would be. Therefore, if he wanted a master's degree in business, org management, public admin, Etc, he could start right away with no need for a bachelor's in the same discipline. For this reason, it makes no sense to pay the money and go through the effort to earn a second bachelor's degree. It's a waste; why get a bachelor's when you could have a master's? Plus, bachelor's degrees are becoming common and one often needs a master's to stand out from the crowd.

    One caveat, many people are going for those same disciplines and competition for jobs will be tough. Finance or accounting degree holders often have a better chance of good employment.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 21, 2010
  7. makana793

    makana793 New Member

    Awesome thanks Ian. I think we'll go that route and try to max out on the credits he already has. For some odd reason folks in my national guard unit always come to me for education/DL questions when we already have a full time Education Services Officer available on base that is trained to address these kinds of issues. That's why I come to the experts on this forum to get the "real deal".
     
  8. airtorn

    airtorn Moderator

    Why spend the time/money to get the 30+ credits required to get a second bachelor's degree in something like business, organizational mgt, public administration , etc. when you can get a master's in those subjects in the 30-36 credit range?
     
  9. makana793

    makana793 New Member

    I agree but sometimes people prefer to do things their own way based on their understanding of the process. Therefore, I just point people in the direction they seek.
     
  10. TMW2009

    TMW2009 New Member

    I concur with the others who say that getting a second bachelor's would be a waste, except under specific circumstances.

    For business-oriented master's degrees, it's easy to get the prereqs done without having to go through the processed of getting a whole second bachelors. If your friend were looking to go outside of the LS/Business fields though (science/math/engi/architecture, and even dare I say, social work - even though there's a bunch of non-accelerated track options) I think a second degree would be a better platform from which to springboard into the job market. But since that's not the case, point them towards a grad degree.
     
  11. bpreachers

    bpreachers New Member

    He could get a Bachelors in Business Admin or Public admin or Management from AMU/APU (American Military University/American Public University). The are a RA/NA distance learning college. Honestly, it would not cost much more for him to go after a Masters with AMU/APU as the Bachelor level courses are 250 per credity hour and the Masters are I believe 300 per credity hour and they do not require you Bachelors be in the same field of study as your Masters.
     
  12. Note that depending on the program there might be MBA pre-reqs required - often the same courses/exams that you would take as part of a BA degree. My program required accounting and stats.

    I'd say that it's worthwhile to look at both options in terms of completion time, $$$, etc. and then make a decision.
     
  13. Maniac Craniac

    Maniac Craniac Moderator Staff Member

    Just to throw this out there, Eastern New Mexico University offers an online MBA that is 30 credits (same as a second BS) and costs less than any other out-of-state MBA in the United States, while also costing similarly to any BS in Business that I have ever seen.

    It's a simple equation. If he wants a second degree, would he rather spend the same exact money and take the exact same amount of courses for a cheap BS or a cheap MBA?

    :smashfreakB:
     
  14. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    We don't know enough about the OP friend's experience, interests, and need to put food on the table, but I question the value of a second bach in any of the easy soft fields like business, or "organizational" anything -- because the Soc degree + experience is as good. For job prospects, grad certificate (fast, but not much transfer credit) gets you skills, currency, possibly networking, and something for the CV while you figure out masters options.

    Then too, the phrase "new career" does suggest community college. Depends on the situation.

    Phillip
     
  15. BrandeX

    BrandeX New Member

    A lot of folks pushing the Master's... however if he is enlisted there is the possibility he could get the 2nd Bacc. quickly via testing out, and maybe for free with Ed. benefits from the service.
     
  16. ITJD

    ITJD Active Member

    As a guy with two bachelors..

    I very rarely if ever put my history degree on my resume. My field (IT) looks favorably upon the right kind of degree for the types of positions I enjoy.

    I've noticed that in some IT shops, should you have a Masters.. it automatically signals to some that you want to run the place. This doesn't bode well in hiring for sysadmin positions in all cases. The same was said of the History degree "You want to be a sysadmin but you don't have a foundation in IT. Are you for real?" In my specific case, the MBA (still one class away) automatically gave me some push towards a senior position, even after I told people I didn't want a senior position. The IT degree was necessary to make things look right.

    Now granted, I could simply have met a higher number of potential bosses lacking self-esteem than the norm.. (IT side) and lucked out with the executives noticing the MBA I took on but never discount trying to make things look right for where you want to be.

    Sides, having the sociology training and keeping it under your hat is a major advantage in business. I'd just not take an undergrad degree in business. I'd go for a strong discipline (IT, Engineering, CS) and pair it with a MBA after the fact.
     
  17. airtorn

    airtorn Moderator

    In most cases, military tuition assistance does not pay for a lateral degree.
     
  18. obecve

    obecve New Member

    OMG! don't waste time on a bachelor's degree. Get a master's and move on. Better pay, advanced degree, better opportunity! You can get into an MPA or business program with it, as well as many other majors
     

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