Are there any other 4-year schools as affordable as Penn Foster ($250/course)?

I have this weird obsession of earning a credential from every continent except Antarctica of course

 

Distance learning - about or from Antarctica:

• Engaging middle school students through distance learning from Antarctica -- McCulley et al. 20 (4): A432 -- The FASEB Journal
• https://www.usap.gov/videoclipsandmaps/mcmwebcam.cfm
• https://vimeo.com/193897299
• Students Study Climate Change in Antarctica and Visit NASA Space Centers During National Distance Learning Week
• Antarctic Studies | University of Canterbury
• https://www.theguardian.com/education/2012/apr/20/distance-learning

I skipped the one designed for Portuguese-speaking elementary school teachers.

Sinto muito. Você pode me matar agora. (I'm sorry. You may kill me now.) :smile:

J.

 

Whoops! University of Canterbury (NZ) Antarctica-related courses may not be available by distance. They have distance programs, but I see nothing about this particular area. You may get some info from their "Gateway Antarctica" link, though:

Antarctic Studies | University of Canterbury

One of the PostGrad Certificates involves a field trip to Antarctica. And yes, they offer Master's and Ph.D. programs in Antarctic Studies. Better pack your parka, Phdtobe. :smile:

J.

 

I have been living in the high Arctic for 14 yearsso I have that under my belt. The cheap cabins to Antarctica are still pretty expensive. I visited the most southern point in Africa close enough to the Antarctic. My spouse swam with the penguins but that's not my thing. By the time I get around to getting a certificate from Antarctica they may be more in the offering. Africa is on my radar.

 

That's awesome. I've earned at least one credential from North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. I don't know if I will ever earn any from Africa or South America.

 

Actually you reignited that quest I had. You are so close you should do it. I am hoping that after Africa, to enroll in whatever at Assam DBU, or even do both together.

 

You definitely should enroll at ADBU, the support staff is phenomenal.

 

Even after learning about the structure of the Big 3 many many years ago, I remember scouring the internet for an inexpensive and flexible undergraduate program. Years I spent, looking for what I had already found. EC, COSC, TESU were all right in front of me.

If i could do it all over again, hindsight being 20/20, i would've just dove into the program at EC day 1. This would've saved me time, aggravation, and money.

"Older and Wiser" Me wants to give the blanket recommendation, if you are not going to go the traditional route pick one of the big 3. The Big 3 are the most efficient options, test out and pay the enrollment/administration/graduation fees (yes, i realize that this is a gross oversimplification) and you are done.

I understand that some people want to have the experience of attending as a full time day college student, and others really want to go to a particular local institution that offers a part-time evening option. I'm not trying to minimize the notion that people have individual needs and objectives.

We can make the argument that NA schools offer specific career programs and specialized training, i don't necessarily disagree. One can probably not get locksmith training from the Big 3, but there are a multitude of majors to choose from.

Holding an RA undergraduate degree is typically more beneficial than most other options, even if the degree concentration is in a General Studies / Liberal Arts / Individual Studies focus area.

At no point will I ever have to be concerned with acceptance of my EC undergraduate degree from an accreditation standpoint. Maybe at some point I will be questioned about the lack of name recognition, but I've got the RA concern covered.

It's been awhile for me, but my guess is that Clep exams are still one of the best (if not the best) bang for your buck as far as lower level credits are concerned. I'm also guessing that there are still a fair amount of DSST exams that qualify for upper level credit, also great bang for your buck. That being said, if you still need to fill in a few requirements with the more expensive EC/TESU exams, overall the Big 3 must still be a very competitive option from a cost standpoint. Correct me if i'm off base / out of date here.

I'm not trying to trash going the NA route, I had (and continue to have) such a great experience at EC that I feel it necessary to share.

All this being said, i'm surprised more people haven't "pushed" the big 3 more in this conversation.

 

Saylor is also possible. They have a chart that, if up to date, shows most of the credit test exams: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YdG-SXoHloExcF4EaQRnrD60zeqvt6AWf9alLJ3P4l8/pub?gid=0

 

There are a lot more options now for completing Big 3 degrees.

Traditional: CLEP, DSST, AP, and IB
ACE: Straighterline, Study.com, Saylor, Shmoop, Ed4Credit, Sophia, and many others
NCCRS: Davar and Coopersmith
RA CBEs: TECEP, Uexcel, CSU Global CBE

With the exception of a few Uexcels, all of these options are under $250. Most of them are under $150.

 

I think you nicely summed up the main benefit of going the RA route for an undergraduate degree.

In your case, I wouldn't be too concerned with name recognition of Excelsior, there are dozens and dozens of generic liberal arts colleges across the country that are even less well-known nationally than Excelsior, plus you're adding on graduate credentials that have better name recognition (universal in the case of UMass) that essentially "overwrite" the undergraduate degree.

I know that at least one member here ran into a situation where their NA undergraduate degree caused them heartburn, even with a RA graduate degree, but I can't recall who it was, or the circumstances involved.