Already have AA Degree - Questions

[leslie]

Hello,

I've been studying the forum the last couple days but I have a few questions I wasn't able to find specific answers for. I already have an AA Degree from a local community college. I am looking at the degree plans for TESC. I'm wondering since I already have the AA, will I save a lot of time/money getting the Bachelors? Or will it not matter a whole lot? I know that many people are able to test out of almost everything anyway. I am interested in pursuing either English or Psychology. Business Administration is an option also (seems to be one of the fastest/cheapest routes).

I'm still trying to figure out which tests are for which subjects/credits and which ones I won't have to take.

thanks!

[mednat]

You still stand to save alot of money testing out of your bachelors. Can you post your transcripts? this will allow us to help advise on which credits you need.

Psychology and Business are pretty common to test out of. English appears more challenging, but from what I've seen people are able to complete it.

[plaidwandering]

It will take care of much of the general education requirements in their degree plans. There may be some fine points they still require you to fill, rather than getting a full pass on gen ed(as I would in my home state at a 4 year uni)

For instance, I had no ethics type classes in my AA so I need to fulfill that requirement for tesc.

[leslie]

You still stand to save alot of money testing out of your bachelors. Can you post your transcripts? this will allow us to help advise on which credits you need.

Psychology and Business are pretty common to test out of. English appears more challenging, but from what I've seen people are able to complete it.

So do you mean it will cost even less than someone starting from scratch? I just emailed my old school to see if I can get my transcripts online or if I need to have them mailed to me. It's been a few years since I graduated. I will post them when I get them.

[rebel100]

Hello,

I've been studying the forum the last couple days but I have a few questions I wasn't able to find specific answers for. I already have an AA Degree from a local community college. I am looking at the degree plans for TESC. I'm wondering since I already have the AA, will I save a lot of time/money getting the Bachelors? Or will it not matter a whole lot? I know that many people are able to test out of almost everything anyway. I am interested in pursuing either English or Psychology. Business Administration is an option also (seems to be one of the fastest/cheapest routes).

I'm still trying to figure out which tests are for which subjects/credits and which ones I won't have to take.

thanks!

Already having an AA means you're essentially half done with a bachelors. I say essentially, because each school is a little different on what they require. With that said, think of an AA as being 60 credits, than a bachelors being 60 more for a total of 120. So of course having this half done will mean it costs you a lot less to finish. For TESC, you must satisfy these general education courses (you should have most of these since you have an AA) General Education Courses

From there, simply find the bachelors you want and figure out how to earn the specific credits needed"
BSBA in General Management Degree Program

How TESC counts the CLEp and DSST:
CLEP - College-Level Exam Program
DANTES

[mednat]

So do you mean it will cost even less than someone starting from scratch? I just emailed my old school to see if I can get my transcripts online or if I need to have them mailed to me. It's been a few years since I graduated. I will post them when I get them.

I'm not sure I understand the comparison question. If you're asking if your AA + tests needed= bachelors will be less than someone using tests only to achieve a bachelors the answer is probably not (depending on what you paid to get your AA). If you're asking if your AA will reduce the total cost of your program, then yes it will reduce it quite a bit because you will have less tests to pay for. My original interpretation of your question was, is it cheaper to use testing to complete your bachelors even though you already completed an associates. The answer to this is yes, it's cheaper to test.

Are you trying to keep within a certain budget, or do you have a certain amount of financial aid available? What is driving your question on cost comparison? Are you wondering if you can do it for less than the estimated costs listed on the degree plans posted? If so, yes you would be able to.

[leslie]

I'm not sure I understand the comparison question. If you're asking if your AA + tests needed= bachelors will be less than someone using tests only to achieve a bachelors the answer is probably not (depending on what you paid to get your AA). If you're asking if your AA will reduce the total cost of your program, then yes it will reduce it quite a bit because you will have less tests to pay for. My original interpretation of your question was, is it cheaper to use testing to complete your bachelors even though you already completed an associates. The answer to this is yes, it's cheaper to test.

Are you trying to keep within a certain budget, or do you have a certain amount of financial aid available? What is driving your question on cost comparison? Are you wondering if you can do it for less than the estimated costs listed on the degree plans posted? If so, yes you would be able to.

Sorry for not being clear. Yes, I was mostly just curious as if to whether or not I could do it cheaper than the estimated costs listed on the degree plans posted. It's not necessarily a driving factor, just a curiosity.

I may actually be eligible for a Pell Grant. I need to check still. I am thinking of making a step by step post to the process involved possibly to help others in the future who have been out of school or have never gone.

Right now, I am waiting to hear back from my old school where I obtained the AA degree. I may give them a call today. I'm assuming my next step is applying online at TESC. Then I need to have my old school transfer my transcripts to them? From there I will need to have a credit transfer evaluation completed by an advisor at TESC?

thanks again for the responses and help!

[mednat]

Sorry for not being clear. Yes, I was mostly just curious as if to whether or not I could do it cheaper than the estimated costs listed on the degree plans posted. It's not necessarily a driving factor, just a curiosity.

I may actually be eligible for a Pell Grant. I need to check still. I am thinking of making a step by step post to the process involved possibly to help others in the future who have been out of school or have never gone.

Right now, I am waiting to hear back from my old school where I obtained the AA degree. I may give them a call today. I'm assuming my next step is applying online at TESC. Then I need to have my old school transfer my transcripts to them? From there I will need to have a credit transfer evaluation completed by an advisor at TESC?

thanks again for the responses and help!

If it were my money, i'd check on my pell grant status first. COSC may make more sense if you qualify, as they will setup articulation agreements to facilitate the use of financial aid.

[rebel100]

Generally, we build a viable degree plan and get close to finishing before applying to a program....once you apply you have a limited time to enroll, then you have costs such as annual enrollment fee's....don't usually enroll till your nearly done or your ready to start any specific courses offered by the school.

[leslie]

Generally, we build a viable degree plan and get close to finishing before applying to a program....once you apply you have a limited time to enroll, then you have costs such as annual enrollment fee's....don't usually enroll till your nearly done or your ready to start any specific courses offered by the school.

Ok,
So I have it backwards... I should apply for a Pell Grant now. I've never done that before, so I'm not sure where to have it sent. After deductions I made 17k last year and I live alone and am over 24. I'm not sure if I qualify for anything or not. If I do, I was assuming that they send the funds directly to the school by check. That's why I thought that I would have to be enrolled somewhere first...

After checking out the financial aid stuff, I decide on a degree path based on my previous transcript THEN take and pass the exams - CLEP, etc first, before applying and enrolling to the school I decide to go with?

If this is spelled out somewhere else on the website, I apologize. I didn't see any stickies anywhere at the top of the forum pages that give step by step instructions concerning applying, taking the exams, etc. I've actually been reading during the day on my phone. On my computer tonight I should be able to absorb more of the information

I guess since I already have the AA I should look into COSC also, as suggested. It just sounded like everything I had read thus far pointed to Thomas Edison being the simplest/cheapest to pursue.