"Big 3" degree value?

[ryoder]

My boss Tunis very little of univ of Phoenix and doesn't know anything about Thomas edison, so she doesn't have a negative opinion of it.
We also hire a lot of people from India and they often have a bs from India and a masters from a US school. The India BS is totally ignored. Of course what the person can do and what they know is of much more value than where they were taught.
Over reliance on past affiliation with a school seems like a crutch to me. So I'd say, get your degree with the big three and spend the time and money you saved earning a masters or learning something that will enable you to add value at work.

[Accounting Man]

I just picked up a copy of the Navy Times at the PX yesterday. The cover story was the new improvements to the GI Bill. Even half of the living stipend is a great improvement for distance learners, but I agree.. Where is 50% is good, 100% is better

I've heard good things about the Excelsior Accounting track, but mostly as it applies to a New York CPA. Not sure for the rest of the country.

I'm currently taking the CPA Accounting track at Excelsior. It's true it prepares you for the NY CPA test, but it's good for any state. The only difference is that you need to check with your state's accountancy board and learn their requirements for sitting for their test. In Florida for example, the only difference is that you must take an Accounting Information Systems computer class. Other than that it's the exact same thing as the NY requirements. Hope that helps.

[Chebasaz]

It does! Thanks for sharing the first-hand knowledge!

[Maniac Craniac]

My boss Tunis very little of univ of Phoenix and doesn't know anything about Thomas edison, so she doesn't have a negative opinion of it.
We also hire a lot of people from India and they often have a bs from India and a masters from a US school. The India BS is totally ignored. Of course what the person can do and what they know is of much more value than where they were taught.
Over reliance on past affiliation with a school seems like a crutch to me. So I'd say, get your degree with the big three and spend the time and money you saved earning a masters or learning something that will enable you to add value at work.

:iagree:

Although I have gone back and forth about this a whole lot in my mind, I'm starting to lean towards the Big Three (especially TESC) for completing my BA. The truth is, unless your degree is the one main thing setting you apart, then it probably doesn't make so much of a difference WHERE you get it, rather, THAT you get it. This is the exact case for me, and I've been considering the possibility of just getting the least expensive degree possible and using the saved money for the certification to interpret other languages, and using the saved time to actually study those other languages :coolgleam:

Then again, there is always the idea that I can never quell of going for a graduate degree. MBA from ENMU or MA in Linguistics from UNISA, or MA in Translation Studies from IGNOU, or all three! :roflol: If that lies in my future, the money has to come from somewhere, but it won't come from anywhere if I spend it all on a BA :nopity:

[Ace_King]

I have EC tattooed on my chest. :coolgleam:
haha J.K but, I love the big three.. none of my co-workers heard of it, which isn't a bad thing. My co workers thought TESC and COSC we're just any other regular state college. Like other's said, just get the degree from one of the big three and follow it with a masters at a B&M school.

[OE800_85]

Couldn't agree more, I dropped out of my brick n mortar school and never really got back into the program. Signed up for online/distance courses but I always put it off, it's hard to put yourself through an entire course online, especially when you see no end in sight, in University it was still fun to go to classes, I remember some lectures I attended merely because of the 'ahem, female presence. Or nights studying at the lib were actually fun, you could share in your misery studying for finals. I think this experience alone is invaluable, and I would recommend my kid to go to a b'n'm school, and especially to live in residence. However, maybe that's why I dropped out to begin with Regardless I regret nothing, that was a really great time in my life, and it shaped me as a person.

But when you get older, the value of that experience goes down, and it's hard to participate in the University environment. When I was young I never really wanted to graduate, now I just want it over with! Also, those of my friends who graduated didn't necessarily do well either, it's mostly those people who picked the right program, got a good GPA, got into a good grad program who are doing well. I see all these graduates from the big 3 on here doing all kinds of good professions, career-wise I don't think it matters unless you go into a big program.

After a little while I packed up and went to china to work, teaching english. It's a great experience, I actually want to live here permanently now, but without a degree and teaching certification, you'll always settle for mediocre jobs. I was really excited when I realized that I could enroll at one of these big 3 colleges, and get my degree quite quickly, and then use it as a stepping stone to teacher's college. I'll be much more marketable and make double or even triple what I currently do, and my life is already comfortable here.

Anyways, I went on sort of a rant, but I personally feel right after high school, a real school is worth it. However once you're older and focussed on a career and the real world (shudder), it's best to just get it done ASAP and improve your career prospects.

[OE800_85]

Maybe the best option is for these freshmen to take a couple CLEPs here and there to lighten the load at a b'n'm school, maybe 2 tests and 3 courses per semester, or vice versa, that might be the best of both worlds.

[Maniac Craniac]

Maybe the best option is for these freshmen to take a couple CLEPs here and there to lighten the load at a b'n'm school, maybe 2 tests and 3 courses per semester, or vice versa, that might be the best of both worlds.

Nice idea. I'm trying to convince my wee little brother to take some CLEPs during his summers so that he can graduate early and/or not overload in classes in any given semester.

[andy3000]

I'm not an accountant, but my guess is the CPA exam also holds a lot of weight when job hunting. If I were you I would get the quickest and cheapest BA and then get an MBA at a B&M school.

[burbuja0512]

I'm not an accountant, but my guess is the CPA exam also holds a lot of weight when job hunting. If I were you I would get the quickest and cheapest BA and then get an MBA at a B&M school.

I'm not going into accounting, but I totally agree. Once you've got your masters degree, who will be looking at your undergrad?