Can you help me plan my degree path?

[rebel100]

At COSC the following is the path of least resistance for the first 60 or so credits:

Worked this up for my cousin, thought someone might find a use for it,

Charter Oak State College AS Degree (2 year pre-bachelors)

Literature and Fine Arts (a) (3cr): Analyzing and Interpreting Literature CLEP (3cr) $100

Social/Behavioral Science (b) (3cr): Criminal Justice DSST (3cr) or Psychology CLEP (3cr) $100 or Sociology CLEP (3cr)

Ethics (d) (3cr): Ethics in America DSST (3cr) DSST Business Ethics (3cr) should satisfy AND is Upper Level, Saylor BUS205 Business Ethics/law may work (3cr) $25

Information Literacy (y) (1-3cr): COSC cornerstone will satisfy

Communication (6cr and 3cr): College Composition CLEP (credit for English 1 and 2 for 6cr) and DSST Public Speaking (3 cr) note two separate tests here!...you can probably get the speech requirement waived if you can demonstrate any history of public speaking or teaching. $100-$200

US Gov (u) (3cr): US Government CLEP (3cr) $100 or either CLEP US History (1 or 2) $100

Non US History/Culture (n) (3cr):
Global Understanding (g) (3cr): DSST Human Cultural Geography (3cr) Satisfies BOTH $100

Mathematics (q) (3cr): College Math Clep (6cr) or Straighterline College Algebra (3cr) or ALEKS College Algebra (3cr) if ALEKS doesn’t look like it will work just do the Straighterline option to complete this. ALEKS $60(3 months)

Natural Science (s) (7 cr): CLEP Biology or Chemistry, DSST Natural History, DSST Astronomy, CC Science with Lab, Straighterline Science with Lab, Saylor. Straighterline is an excellent choice for this requirement…likely the least painful way! Perhaps College Biology with a lab for non-majors? Local CC is a great source for this one as well. You must complete two courses in science; one of those must be a science course with a lab. Saylor.org has a couple of options that might be doable, at least they would be cheap. Complete one of the ACE approced Saylor Sciences at $25, plus any SL Science with a lab $150 TOTAL $175

Using the above you would roughly have about 31 credits via CLEP,DSST, Saylor, or Straighterline,. Another 30 or so credits would be completed via FEMA IS courses for FREE. Saylor also has several cheap courses (less than $30) that can be applied to the degree…this are preferable, perhaps, to FEMA as they offer more utility in your bachelors later on.

Cornerstone course (3cr) COSC $1200

Rough Cost:
CLEP/DSST Exams @ $100 each = $800
2 Straighterline Courses approx. $300 (if finished in 30 days, Math/Science requirements)
COSC Matriculation/Graduation Fee’s, and the cost of the Cornerstone Course (3cr) roughly $1200
TOTAL = $2180

Online College Courses For Credits Towards Your Degree | StraighterLine
Credit Aligned Courses « Saylor Academy
Free Clep Prep.com
Emergency Management Institute | Independent Study (IS) - Course List
ACE Credit Courses

With the above completed you would be halfway to a Bachelors degree.

[High_Order1]

Thanks!

... I just printed that out.

I sent some information into CO. We'll see what they say next.

Onward!

[High_Order1]

A question immediately pops up...

For the science portion:

I have several certifications in hazardous materials. I have, for instance 40 hour (in class, not online) HAZWOPR, taught by a college. I have Hazardous Materials Team Operations, which was a state (classroom) course, that certifies you as a hazardous materials technician. I also wrote a book on WMD, but, it just would demonstrate I have an ok grasp of basic science.... milelol:

Does CO have a history of accepting that type of education in lieu of seat time or clepping?

[KayV]

They would only be able to do that if it is on an ACE, NCCRS, or military transcript and listed as counting toward science credits in the description. Even better would be if it were listed as "with lab."

[High_Order1]

Oh.

well, it is starting to sound like all that training is going to turn out to be worthless towards a degree.

[KayV]

Actually, by taking such an impressive number of these classes, you have already proved to yourself that you can do the work AND you have given yourself an academic mindset that will help you immeasurably with obtaining your degree. Just because one particular requirement can't be met with one particular class doesn't mean it's worthless.
You could still use it toward portfolio credit, and at any rate you can use lots of the FEMA classes and such toward a Charter Oak degree. Don't lose hope, just find an alternative and keep moving forward. Good luck!

[High_Order1]

Well,

Charter Oak basically told me what I already knew. Great, lots of training there. Little is applicable towards a degree. I didn't even really want a degree, but I kinda have always needed one.

So, I've gone from not caring, to honestly a little excited, to 'not surprised'.

sigh

I think I will leave this up, and occasionally add to it; maybe someone else in my shoes will find it and save them some heartache.

Thanks for the WONDERFUL input here! You saved me quite a bit of money and time, but most importantly, frustration.

[High_Order1]

So,

I got my transcript from my police academy.

Walters' State Community College (East Tennessee) awarded me the following institutional credit:


CRJT 1030 Basic Firearms Education 3cr
CRJT 1130 Defense & Tactical Driving 3cr (that, by the way, was REALLY fun!)
CRJT 1310 Community Relations Concepts 3cr
CRJT 1510 Criminal Law and Procedure 3cr
CRJT 2390 Basic Law Enforcement Procedure & Techniques 3cr
EMTB 1040 First Responder 4cr
HPER 1010 Physical Conditioning 1cr (that....was *not* fun lol)
HPER 1720 Weight Training 1cr

for a grand total of 21 credit hours.

I also made the President's List, for what that's worth.

[rebel100]

Well,

Charter Oak basically told me what I already knew. Great, lots of training there. Little is applicable towards a degree. I didn't even really want a degree, but I kinda have always needed one.

So, I've gone from not caring, to honestly a little excited, to 'not surprised'.

sigh

I think I will leave this up, and occasionally add to it; maybe someone else in my shoes will find it and save them some heartache.

Thanks for the WONDERFUL input here! You saved me quite a bit of money and time, but most importantly, frustration.

Why heartache? you've been shown the express lane to your stated goal. I had over 160 credits but no bachelors degree when I started down this path. If you need the degree stop looking to cash in your training and focus rather on achieving your aim. By picking the right courses to test out of you can use all that experience and vo-tech training to blaze right through this.

get the general eds done as I've described, use those FEMA for just about all your electives, and knock out 9 UL courses....Hell, Sanantone proved that these exams are transferable to COSC....pick one and get cracking https://csuglobal.edu/undergraduate/prog...tions/cbes If your as educated and knowledgeable as you claim several of these should be doable without your even having to study.

You've also received an invaluable education on this and the other forum. You asked how to do this, and we have explained it for you. For a few thousand dollars and a little time you can do this. 203 years from now you can either be a dude with a bunch of knowledge and a fistful of training certs OR you can be a dude with a bunch of knowledge, a fistful of certs, and an actual degree....if the latter is valuable to you stop searching and start acting.

[High_Order1]

Why heartache?

Very simply,

Few things bug me. One of them is duplicity. I don't enjoy it when a person tells me the same thing multiple times. I don't really care for taking the same training over and over, unless there are perishable skills and / or new things.


I have no, *zero* interest in taking one more writing course. I have no interest in slogging through any more physical science courses. I had hopes that taking these things in the past would be credited. I don't want to, but accept I'll need to take a social studies course, because I don't know much about that. But the other stuff... I'd rather eat brussel sprouts for breakfast. Cold.

I hear you on the searching / doing thing. I typically am a doer. Thanks.