Help - advice needed for rancher needing degree

[operalady]

Hello all.

I find that the longer my kids and I are on the road to our CBE degrees the more opportunities I find to help others. Another friend has come to me for advise. He has a Ranch Management Certificate from TCU (go horned frogs!) but has hit some employment roadblocks. These are the 34 TCU credits he has earned:

Ranch Operations & Development (RAMA 30102)
Methods of livestock identification, dehorning, castration and controlling external parasites; the planning and construction of fences, corrals, and buildings to facilitate the handling of the livestock.

Soil & Water Conservation (RAMA 30403)
Soil formation and development; soil characteristics which affect productivity; soil erosion by wind and water, and wildlife conservation and management practices; Soil and Water Conservation District and U.S.D.A. agency assistance; preparation of coordinated conservation plan.

Beef Cattle Production (RAMA 40103)
Economics of beef production enterprises; selection by records and visual appraisal for economically important traits including reproduction, gainability, and carcass value; inheritance; systems of breeding; production programs; management practices.

Animal Health Management (RAMA 40303)
Anatomy and physiology of cattle, indications of health and disease, development of immunity, specific infectious and noninfectious diseases of cattle, control of internal and external parasites, toxicology, basic veterinary skills and equipment.

Range Management (RAMA 40503)
Principles of plant growth and reproduction; economic characteristics and field identification of range plants; ecology of range plants and animals; management of rangeland for all its uses including setting and adjusting stocking rates, distribution of grazing, grazing methods and supporting practices; preparation of ranch management plan.

Ranch Records & Finance (RAMA 40603)
Basic records needed for management and income tax reports – records of income and expense, inventories, net worth, statements, budgets, production records; term problem in which all records for a year ‘s operation are recorded and financial statements are prepared; sources of credit for ranch operations.

Ranch Business Management (RAMA 30213)
Business law as applied to the livestock producer, business organization, estate planning, labor relations, application of management principles to ranching.

Animal Nutrition & Feeding (RAMA 30703)
Digestion and use of feeds for maintenance and production, selection of feeds for maintenance and production, selection of feeds based on composition and cost, ration formulation, feed processing and handling, dry lot feeding programs, supplemental feeding on pasture, possible limiting factors in feeding efficiency.

Sheep & Goat Production (RAMA 40112)
Sheep breeds and crosses; selection for mutton and wool production; Angora goat selection; breeding; supplemental feeding; marketing of wool and mohair.

Animal Health & Reproduction (RAMA 40313)
Reproduction in cattle including organs and functions, natural and artificial breeding management, calving management, examination of cows for pregnancy, evaluation of bulls for soundness and fertility, selection of horses for soundness, treatment for sickness and injury, horse breeding.

Marketing of Livestock & Meats (RAMA 40803)
Relation of production to marketing, trends in marketing and consumption, meat processing and distribution, U.S.D.A. activities, market outlets and procedures, futures, seasonal and cyclical influences on prices, selection of time and place to market, handling and transportation of livestock to improve weighing conditions and minimize losses, merchandising purebred livestock.

Forage Production & Use (RAMA 40903)
Characteristics and management of introduced pasture plants; combinations for extended grazing, seedbed preparation and planting; weed control , fertilization, irrigation, grazing management and harvest for hay, silage and seed.

He also has some computer/drafting credits from another school.

How might they fit into a TESC BSBA or ASBA? Any other degree suggestions are welcome!

[cookderosa]

Hello all.

I find that the longer my kids and I are on the road to our CBE degrees the more opportunities I find to help others. Another friend has come to me for advise. He has a Ranch Management Certificate from TCU (go horned frogs!) but has hit some employment roadblocks. These are the 34 TCU credits he has earned:

Ranch Operations & Development (RAMA 30102)
Methods of livestock identification, dehorning, castration and controlling external parasites; the planning and construction of fences, corrals, and buildings to facilitate the handling of the livestock.

Soil & Water Conservation (RAMA 30403)
Soil formation and development; soil characteristics which affect productivity; soil erosion by wind and water, and wildlife conservation and management practices; Soil and Water Conservation District and U.S.D.A. agency assistance; preparation of coordinated conservation plan.

Beef Cattle Production (RAMA 40103)
Economics of beef production enterprises; selection by records and visual appraisal for economically important traits including reproduction, gainability, and carcass value; inheritance; systems of breeding; production programs; management practices.

Animal Health Management (RAMA 40303)
Anatomy and physiology of cattle, indications of health and disease, development of immunity, specific infectious and noninfectious diseases of cattle, control of internal and external parasites, toxicology, basic veterinary skills and equipment.

Range Management (RAMA 40503)
Principles of plant growth and reproduction; economic characteristics and field identification of range plants; ecology of range plants and animals; management of rangeland for all its uses including setting and adjusting stocking rates, distribution of grazing, grazing methods and supporting practices; preparation of ranch management plan.

Ranch Records & Finance (RAMA 40603)
Basic records needed for management and income tax reports – records of income and expense, inventories, net worth, statements, budgets, production records; term problem in which all records for a year ‘s operation are recorded and financial statements are prepared; sources of credit for ranch operations.

Ranch Business Management (RAMA 30213)
Business law as applied to the livestock producer, business organization, estate planning, labor relations, application of management principles to ranching.

Animal Nutrition & Feeding (RAMA 30703)
Digestion and use of feeds for maintenance and production, selection of feeds for maintenance and production, selection of feeds based on composition and cost, ration formulation, feed processing and handling, dry lot feeding programs, supplemental feeding on pasture, possible limiting factors in feeding efficiency.

Sheep & Goat Production (RAMA 40112)
Sheep breeds and crosses; selection for mutton and wool production; Angora goat selection; breeding; supplemental feeding; marketing of wool and mohair.

Animal Health & Reproduction (RAMA 40313)
Reproduction in cattle including organs and functions, natural and artificial breeding management, calving management, examination of cows for pregnancy, evaluation of bulls for soundness and fertility, selection of horses for soundness, treatment for sickness and injury, horse breeding.

Marketing of Livestock & Meats (RAMA 40803)
Relation of production to marketing, trends in marketing and consumption, meat processing and distribution, U.S.D.A. activities, market outlets and procedures, futures, seasonal and cyclical influences on prices, selection of time and place to market, handling and transportation of livestock to improve weighing conditions and minimize losses, merchandising purebred livestock.

Forage Production & Use (RAMA 40903)
Characteristics and management of introduced pasture plants; combinations for extended grazing, seedbed preparation and planting; weed control , fertilization, irrigation, grazing management and harvest for hay, silage and seed.

He also has some computer/drafting credits from another school.

How might they fit into a TESC BSBA or ASBA? Any other degree suggestions are welcome!

These will all be free elective, so are CAD credits. So, essentially, he can use 27 for free electives in a BA degree, I think the business degree has fewer free electives, 18 or so. (I could be wrong- double check that) Technically, he would have more completed credits in the BA vs the BS but you and I know that only amts to a few tests, so I'd suggest he go for whichever is his biggest interest. Either case, he has one section complete!
That leaves about 93-102 to go.

The other option, check the school he earned his certificate. If they have an AOS or AAS in some type of cattle degree, he might be really close. Typically, the AOS/AAS degrees have fewer than 30 gen eds, some as little as 15, and if the school takes CLEP he could do it in about 1 semester.
TESC has AOS options too, but the benefit of going local is the name recognition and the cost will be a LOT less.

Let me look around too, I'll see if I can find anything else in my saved links.

[operalady]

Thanks a million, Jennifer! I'm so glad to have your input.

More credits discovered over lunch today!! He and I met and discussed options and goals. He wants an associates, ASAP, and does not really care which one. Right now the goals are best/fastest. That being said he has the following:

All the Ag and Business credits I mentioned plus:

General Credits - (9)
U.S. Government (3) - Arkansas State
English Comp 1 (3) - "
College Algebra (3) - "

Drafting Credits - (23)
Tecnical Drafting (hand drafting) - (4)
Technical Drafting (computer) - 4
Electronic Drafting - 4
Basic CAD - 4
CAD 2 Design - 4
Solid (3-D CAD) Modeling - 3

Engineering Credits - (6)
Fluid Power - (4)
Fluid Power - (2)

I put him to work on contacting TESC for credit eval and deciding if Humanities CLEP is a good choice. What else should I have him look into?

[cookderosa]

Ok, let's dig a little more. I did some looking into cattle/ag degrees. The school I work for offers one.

Let's bring in the option of Charter Oak. They have learner designed areas of concentration. This means, all his cattle classes could fit there. I have no experience with CO, so maybe someone else can offer some suggestions. But, that's a possibility for his bachelor's.

For an associates. If he goes to TESC, he is going to have to pay an enrollment fee- are you sure he wants to do that? Can I ask what your area is, I'm happy to check into local schools for you- if they have the catalogs online it would be very easy to do that. In any case, let's look at TESC.

Thomas Edison State College | AAS Credit Distribution

I. General Education Requirements 21

A. English Composition 6 ([B]Eng 101, need Eng CLEP)[/B]

B. Humanities 3 (not started)
C. Social Sciences 3 (US Govt., done)

D. College Mathematics 3 (College Algebra, done)

E. General Education Electives 6 (not started)

II. Area of Study 21 (cattle classes, done)

III.Free Electives 18 (cattle classes, cad classes, done)
Total 60 credits



The English CLEP will duplicate 3 and give him 3- closing that requirement.
He needs 9 more credits, 3 in humanities.

My suggestion: Analyzing and Interpreting literature *do the practice test first, if this is too hard for him, there are other options* A&IL gives him the 3 required and overflows the other 3 into gen ed electives.

Second gen ed elective- I'd suggest college math for 6. If he can do algebra, he can do college math. Maybe with an afternoon of brushing up. If he hates math, I suggest human growth and development for 3. For an adult, this is a good exam that he could study for without much trouble. Use the REA guide from local library. If local library doesn't have REA HG&D, maybe it has sociology. That's my third choice suggestion.

I still strongly suggest looking at the local cc. Wherever he earned the certificate is the best bet for an AOS degree. Willing to share the name of that school so I can look at it?

[operalady]

Jennifer,

Great idea about A&I. I bet he'll do well with it, a bit easier than Humanities.

The Ranch Management Certificate is from TCU (Texas Christian University) in Fort Worth, TX.

[cookderosa]

Jennifer,

Great idea about A&I. I bet he'll do well with it, a bit easier than Humanities.

The Ranch Management Certificate is from TCU (Texas Christian University) in Fort Worth, TX.

>>

I spent some time at TCU, Dallas County Community College District and Tarrant County College. I don't think DCCCD or Tarrant have anything useful.
TCU will take his whole certificate, but he has to go for a bachelor's degree. Also, TCU takes CLEP, but only accepts scores of 55 or higher. I estimate he would need around 90 credits with them.

Without knowing all the CCs in the area, it would be hard to find the perfect AOS/AAS program. My suggestion, is for him to call TCU and ask if they know of any associate degree options for their cert grads. They may try and rope him into the bachelor's program, but it's still worth asking.

I'd say TESC is the fastest for an AAS based on the info I have right now. The problem, is that should he try for a bachelor's degree, he really isn't 1/2 way there. In a bachelor's degree, he is still going to need somewhere around 75 credits, the AAS isn't much of a gain. Now if he can live with that, I say go for it. If he thinks a bachelor's degree is on his wish list, go back to TCU and work in some CLEPs. That will be the highest utilization of his existing credits.

[operalady]

>>

Without knowing all the CCs in the area, it would be hard to find the perfect AOS/AAS program. My suggestion, is for him to call TCU and ask if they know of any associate degree options for their cert grads. They may try and rope him into the bachelor's program, but it's still worth asking.

I'd say TESC is the fastest for an AAS based on the info I have right now. The problem, is that should he try for a bachelor's degree, he really isn't 1/2 way there. In a bachelor's degree, he is still going to need somewhere around 75 credits, the AAS isn't much of a gain. Now if he can live with that, I say go for it. If he thinks a bachelor's degree is on his wish list, go back to TCU and work in some CLEPs. That will be the highest utilization of his existing credits.

He's contacting the CCs and TCU now and making his decision. You have been a huge blessing!! Thanks for your time and expertise.

[peace123]

Hello all.

I find that the longer my kids and I are on the road to our CBE degrees the more opportunities I find to help others. Another friend has come to me for advise. He has a Ranch Management Certificate from TCU (go horned frogs!) but has hit some employment roadblocks. These are the 34 TCU credits he has earned:
.

He also has some computer/drafting credits from another school.

How might they fit into a TESC BSBA or ASBA? Any other degree suggestions are welcome!

Operalady, the new BPS starting on 3/1/10 at Excelsior might be of interest to your Rancher friend.

[operalady]

Operalady, the new BPS starting on 3/1/10 at Excelsior might be of interest to your Rancher friend.

Thanks for the suggestion!