50 Lower Division + 40 Upper Division Needed = Any suggestions? FEMA, ACE, CLEPs ?

Hi,

This forum has always been very warm, receptive and informative to me. Indeed, I am very much thankful to all the contributors who have helped me in the past.

I am trying to fullfill my dream of having an MBA for the past almost 13 years but so far I haven't even finished my Bachelor's degree yet.

Once again, I am going to give it a try. And I hope you guys will kindly help me by offering your precious suggestions and advice.

Here is the situation:

- I have been given 30 lower level credits for my past transcripts towards Board of Trustees Bachelor of Arts degree program by the Western Illinios University as I am enrolled there for the past several years (I live in Southern California). I know I deserve, at least, 50 - 60 lower level credits as I have looked into that but I think it all depends upon the Evaluator. The Western Illinios University has its own in-house Evaluation Center.

[A HUMBLE REQUEST: If you know ANY friendly and knowledgeable Transcripts Evaluator who would like to look at my transcripts and offer me an UNOFFICIAL evaluation then please let me know. Indeed, I would be greatly thankful. I have got PDF file ready.]

- According to the advisor at the Wester Illinios University,

After researching through the posts at this forum and having read about TESC, COSC and Excelsior .etc, I think I can easily finish at least 40 - 50 Lower division credits doing FEMA courses.

What do you think? Can I?

Is there any cheapest way to get the credits for them except FCC mentioned on FEMA Official web-site? (FCC charges you $60 per credit)

[I would like to use FEMA credits more and more and as they are FREE and most importantly, I am quite comfortable doing them. If you know any other method similar to FEMA then please let me know.]

And rest 40 Upper Division, I may try to do through some other sources like CLEPS, DANTES .etc. Any other suggestion, advice, options .etc?

I also have some CEUs which I would like to convert into credits.

My ultimate goal is to do MBA.

So, in a nutshell, I need help regarding,

- 30 Lower Division Credits (Already have)
- 50 Lower Division Credits (Needed - Any suggestions?)
- 40 Upper Division Credits (Needed - Any suggestions?)

TOTAL: 120 Credits needed

Should you have any suggestions, advise or options which you know of then please feel welcome to help me.

Thanking you in anticipation and eager to hear from you...

Take care

Sincerely,

Positive Soul

 

IMO, if your ultimate goal is an MBA, in most cases, the school you attend for the MBA would prefer you have a BS in Business Administration. I may be wrong, but it appears that you are currently attempting a simple liberal arts BA degree. In either case, I'm surprised that WIU didn't give you a list of classes that you have to take and the number of elective credits you would have available. FEMA credits are definitely elective fillers in most programs.

IMO, you should definitely try COSC, TESC or Excelsior. I had many of my credits from a traditional school accepted even though they were over 20 years old at Excelsior. Additionally, they told me exactly which requirements need to be completed. Currently, for a BS in Business Administration in General Business can be completed entirely by test except for two core courses.

FEMA credits are definitely an option. FEMA credits are good for elective fillers because they are easy, quick and they can be done at home. I know of a couple of people that knocked out 10 credits in one weekend. The downside to FEMA credits are that they end up being expensive compared to CLEP and DSST tests. At $60 per credit hour, 3 credit hours costs $180. A CLEP test costs $60 per test, plus a small fee for the testing center. Some of the CLEPS are worth 6 credit hours, so per credit hour cost can be anywhere from $10 to $40 per credit hour. DSST tests are $70 per test and so are slightly higher in per credit hour costs to CLEPS.

The following is my experience so far at Excelsior. I started with 49 credits transcripted in, even though some were over 20 years old from a B&M school. Since late June 2006, I have taken 10 CLEPS and 4 DSST tests for a total of 54 credit hours. I also got 1 credit from the Excelsior Information Technology course which was a requirement. I could complete the rest of a General Business degree by using additional CLEP and DSST tests, but I am concentrating in Accounting. Therefore I am taking all of my accounting courses at LSU.

 

There is an afforadable and easy solultion form you.

APPLY @ www.excelsior.edu for your degree program assessment.

RECEIVE assessment and be guided by EC's advise.

COMPLETE degree requirements via CLEP-DANTES-ECE-D/L courses.

GRADUATE!!!

GOOD LUCK!!!