Excelsior College - BS in Electronics Engineer Tech

Hi,

I'm curious if anyone has experience with this college or degree program (Electronics Engineering Technology). It's one of the few online degree programs that ABET approved. They're both regionally and nationally accredited. And it's not quite as expensive as Devry's program.

I work in the trades (HVAC), and I would like to eventually become a project manager for a controls company. I think a bachelors degree would help, although I would prefer construction management. The only construction related online BS degree is through TESC, but they're not recognized by ABET.

Any opinions on this program/school would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

 

Try the University of Southern Mississippi's Online BS in Construction Engineering Technology. ABET accredited. http://www.usm.edu/southernmissonline/programs/cet.php

 

ABET accredits both "engineering technology" and "engineering" programs, but different accreditation standards are used. The "technology" programs have ABET/TAC accreditation, and the "engineering" programs have ABET/EAC accreditation.

In the US (unlike some other countries), engineering technologists and technicians are basically unlicensed and unregulated. So ABET accreditation, while nice to have, is not necessarily vital for "technology" degrees. It's more important for "engineering" degrees, because engineers are licensed and regulated, especially in civil-related disciplines.

In the US, the closest thing to licensure for technologists/technicians is certification by NICET (which is not a government agency, unlike the state licensing boards for engineers). If you want to pursue NICET certification, then you probably do need an ABET/TAC degree. If not, then ABET accreditation may not be critical.

 

Some of Excelsior's courses have lab requirements, so I don't think it is totally online. You might have to find a local college to do these at.

If ABET is not really necessary for you, I would just get a bachelor's degree in anything. I've seen PMs with degrees from all over the place, but they were able to get hired because of their industry experience. You might want to check out bain4weeks.com and just get your bachelor's out of the way, and then do UF's online Masters in International Construction Management. http://classes.bcn.ufl.edu/icm/

 

Regarding bain4weeks, when a potential employer does a background/education check, they typically call the college you graduated from and ask what dates you attended the school. The registrar office can't disclose whether or not you graduated, what your major was, or what your GPA was without your consent. All they can disclose are dates.

So wouldn't this present a problem if someone does a background check? How do you try to explain that you graduated in such a short time. Would you explain to them that you tested for credit?

 

Unless you specifically object in writing, Excelsior will release the following information without your consent: name, address (permanent, mail, temporary, and email), telephone number, degree program and concentration, major area of study, dates of attendance, degrees and awards received, and date and place of birth.

Under FERPA, institutions are permitted to release what is deemed directory information provided certain conditions are met.

 

I've never heard of this being a problem. Even at B&M colleges, with people transferring from different schools, AP classes, CLEP, etc, dates of attendance can be all over the place. Most employers will only care if you lied about graduating and if the school is legit.

But if that ever did come up, I would, explain that you are a smart, independent, hard-working individual that completed his degree requirements by a combination of CLEP, DANTES, ACE reviwed courses, industry certifications, online courses, etc....

 

Getting a BS in Business (Operations Management) by testing out and enrolling in a MS degree program is starting to seem like a better idea.

Has anyone ever had a problem getting accepted into a MS degree program with a BS degree from Excelsior?

I was looking through Peterson's guide, and found three graduate degree programs for Construction Management that are completely online:

East Carolina University, North Dakota State University, University of Southern California.

I live in Las Vegas, so USC seems like the better choice. Although, I'm not sure what their requirements are. Right now, I only have 17 undergrad credits from University of Wisconsin.

 

After I earned my BS from Excelsior (It was then USNY/Regents College) I applied simulaneously to both CSUDH and ERAU masters programs (see my signature) and got accepted by both. I then chose to do the CSUDH masters first folowed by the ERAU degree (ERAU allowed transfer of 9 units from the MSQA to the MAS degree).
[I do not recall the application process too well but my having work experience may have been a factor - certainly some of the requirements for the MSQA were waived including computer programming (I had been doing this since the 60s).]

Incidentally my Excelsior degree is about half engineering courses - many transfered in from certificate courses I took in the UK. I have listed this degree in my engineer resume since 1992 with no one questioning it.

 

Here is the document created by Excelsior that speaks to where some of their Alumni have gone to graduate school (page 3).

It is an old document, created in 2005, however there is no reason to believe these schools would not continue to admit students.

Of course, entrance into any graduate program depends on the admission requirements of that program for a particular school. That said, a regionally accredited college is normally one requirement for other regionally accredited schools, and since Excelsior is regionally accredited, in theory, you should be fine. To be sure, contact the admissions office of the school or the dean of the business department and speak to them.

 

Hi - FYI you might want to look at the BSET programs offered at Old Dominion. They don't get a lot of talk on these distance learning sites but they've got some good looking programs (plus, they've got a great basketball team).

http://dl.odu.edu/database.php?todo=program&level=1