Critique my TESU CS Plan

[TryhardTim]

The TESU plan looks pretty good to me. I used the comprehensive plan as well. It's important to plan out your schedule so that you get all of your actual online courses inside the comprehensive year. I failed to do so and had to pay extra for my capstone (I didn't realize the capstone didn't have to be the absolute last class, so did my ethics TECEP when I should have started the capstone). There is also a weird quirk that requires you to take (and pay for) one course AFTER the comprehensive year in order to continue enrollment as per credit. You might need that if you don't actually graduate inside the comprehensive year, which is hard to do. Plan on a last TECEP to fill that role. Also know that you can register for classes in the last month and finish them after the comprehensive year ends, so you actually have 14 months to do all the work.

That's actually really interesting. If I pay for just one extra TCEP after my comprehensive tuition ends, I will be able to continue wrapping up final credits from other sources for up to another year, and I will still have no waiver to pay when I graduate?

Really, this isn't the best way to go about it.  You would actually need to plan out your entire WGU degree first, and then see what CLEP's will satisfy the requirements (there won't be a ton, as WGU doesn't have a lot of GE's in this program, which is where the CLEP's would work).  Taking a bunch of CLEP's and then seeing where your chips fall is kind of random.  It's not even a great plan for the Big 3.

If I were you, I would actually look at the degrees themselves - TESU vs. WGU - and see which degree you like best.  Then, start planning on how you can get THAT degree.

Also, you can call WGU back and see how financial aid works there if you want.  That part will probably be helpful.

That makes sense. I did ask about financial aid, it seems to work the same way as TESU, aka, my Pell grant would basically cover most of the tuition, since a year of tuition at WGU is only slightly more than TESU. I'm more concerned, based on the degree outline, and what the advisor said, that the degree will take me at least two years to finish, if not more. Because TESU's offering is a BA with plenty of gen-eds and free electives, while WGU's is a BS with few gen-eds and no free electives, TESU still seems like the obvious choice for completing the degree in the least amount of time. While I would graduate WGU with more field-specific knowledge, I think I'd prefer to graduate faster, though having learned less, but then gain more practical skills through internships and entry-level work experience. Perhaps that's not the best approach?

[MNomadic]

"Perhaps that's not the best approach?"

Honestly, they're both good approaches, so it's up to you decide which one will work better for you.

Have you already filled out your FAFSA? You can apply to both colleges and see what finaid packages each one will offer, they may not both offer the exact same grants, and you may not get the amount of Pell Grant you were expecting.

[dfrecore]

Really, this isn't the best way to go about it.  You would actually need to plan out your entire WGU degree first, and then see what CLEP's will satisfy the requirements (there won't be a ton, as WGU doesn't have a lot of GE's in this program, which is where the CLEP's would work).  Taking a bunch of CLEP's and then seeing where your chips fall is kind of random.  It's not even a great plan for the Big 3.

If I were you, I would actually look at the degrees themselves - TESU vs. WGU - and see which degree you like best.  Then, start planning on how you can get THAT degree.

Also, you can call WGU back and see how financial aid works there if you want.  That part will probably be helpful.

That makes sense. I did ask about financial aid, it seems to work the same way as TESU, aka, my Pell grant would basically cover most of the tuition, since a year of tuition at WGU is only slightly more than TESU. I'm more concerned, based on the degree outline, and what the advisor said, that the degree will take me at least two years to finish, if not more. Because TESU's offering is a BA with plenty of gen-eds and free electives, while WGU's is a BS with few gen-eds and no free electives, TESU still seems like the obvious choice for completing the degree in the least amount of time. While I would graduate WGU with more field-specific knowledge, I think I'd prefer to graduate faster, though having learned less, but then gain more practical skills through internships and entry-level work experience. Perhaps that's not the best approach?

It's completely up to you as to how you decide your best approach.  What I was saying was to choose the degree first, and then decide how you're going to go about getting it, so you don't waste time and money.

The other thing about WGU is that they usually want someone with experience before joining the program - so you might actually have a harder time getting through it even if you were accepted.  Yes, if you don't have experience, then TESU might be the better choice.  You may also want to do some of the WGU coursework (not through WGU) to try to get the additional coursework in at some point along the way (either during or after your degree).

[davewill]

That's actually really interesting. If I pay for just one extra TCEP after my comprehensive tuition ends, I will be able to continue wrapping up final credits from other sources for up to another year, and I will still have no waiver to pay when I graduate?

Yes. Once you've earned the requisite number of credits to satisfy the residency requirement, it stays satisfied until you graduate. You could even take longer than a year, by doing another TECEP to stay enrolled longer, but you shouldn't need to. It isn't like paying the waiver where it's only good for a year. However, part of the quirk is that you have to pay for the TECEP BEFORE the comprehensive year ends. I had to register for my last classes, then CALL in and have them change me to per credit, then register and charge me for the TECEP that would keep my enrollment current.

[MNomadic]

https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...CS-Courses

Check out this thread. Looks like SDC juat got ace approval for more CS classes. That may change your plan.