Crippling self doubt! (aka starting college at 40!)

[Mil0]

Mil0, I took a look at Montgomery College's policies concerning accepting non-traditional courses such as CLEP & DSST, etc.  They only allow a maximum of 50% of your credits to be from non-traditional sources.  That's not unusual as that's similar to what you will find at most brick & mortars universities.  In fact, most B&Ms do not accept anywhere close to that many non-trad credits. 

Before you proceed with MC, consider asking MC for specifics on precisely what non-traditional exams and courses they will accept.  Will they accept any course accredited by ACE (American Council on Education)?  That's possible but not likely.  

It's not clear to me exactly how MC plans to treat Aleks credits.  Even though the counselor said they would accept your outside credit, I'd get in writing which Aleks credits they will accept and for what.  If they do accept Aleks, will Aleks credits satisfy your college math requirements at MC or it is only going to serve as your substitution for your placement tests?   

Before you register for Aleks or any other non-traditional source, unless you just want the experience, consider whether TESU, COSC or EXC meets your academic and personal goals.  Add WGU to your list if you want fast, easy & cheap!  I've not seen any regionally accredited university cheaper than WGU if you can buckle down and do this in 6 months.  But WGU is a different beast than TESU, COSC & EXC.   

If you decide one of the 4 institutions is right for you, the guidance you will receive here is exceptional.

And I'm happy to share Aleks tips.  I just want you to have a better idea of what Aleks credits are going to provide you before you register.

I went to double check on MC's credit policies because I was pretty sure you transfer in more than that. You can transfer in 45 credits, which is 70% of the degree. Keep in mind, they only have associates degrees at Montgomery College as it's just a two year school. I think you may be getting your 50% number because you're thinking of a BABS which is 90 credits, when the AS is just 60 total. You have to take 15 at MC to get a degree from there and to qualify for the matriculation agreements and other agreements they have.  

19.  How many transfer credits can be applied toward a program?
A maximum of 45 transfer credits can be applied to a degree program or 70% of the credits required to a certificate program.

My understanding is that the Aleks course would satisfy the math requirement in general. The placement exam is irrelevant unless I'm taking math classes, which I'm not. It's just to "guarantee" that you're successful so they don't want to put you into a math class that you'll bomb. Instead, they make you take two, paying paying for and doing the work for both but only getting credit for one. 

The more feedback and the more I read on this board, the more it makes sense just to go to one of the big 3 for my bachelors because in the same amount of time as getting the associates, due to delays from scheduling and course delays, I could have a BA/BS instead. 

Is it possible to get two bachelors at the same time? As in, will they apply the same general education courses to two different degrees? While I understand I could do a BALS and then just have the masters in Emergency & Crisis Management, I'd rather have my BS in an EM field in the event that I don't complete my masters or just.. something happens. Know what I mean? 
I also  know that the big 3 offer masters degrees in various EM concentrations so it's like, at that point, why even switch schools? I don't want to get ahead of myself but the possibilities are endless. My thought process is that if I did the BALS and the BS in EM, I could have the BALS and use that to get into UCF and start working on my master while I finish up the BS in EM. That way I could get one of the positions I've been interested in and keep working while I work on my Masters.  

I don't want to get into the weeds about it too much since I just need to get moving. It's just figuring out what I need to do to move forward down the right path from the start BUT the first part of that is just getting started. 

Classes start at MC on the 28th. I'm really enjoying working at my own pace though. So far, in the last week alone, I've received 6 college credits. The thought of having to attend classes (even via the web) is almost a little off putting because I want to dive in not just stick my toe in the water and inch up little by little. 

I went to register for classes, or at least figure out my schedule and I'm a little screwed by MC. This is the link for the AS Emergency Management and it has a sample schedule. The EM prerequisites are EMGT 101 & EMGT 103 which you'd take in your first semester. The only problem is they're not offering EMGT 103 this spring. This would make it so I could only take ONE EMGT course this spring and that just feels disappointing. They only have one professor who teaches all ~15+ EMGT courses. They only seem to offer EMGT 103 in the fall. Either way, it feels like there are a lot less expensive ways to earn the general education credits that I need. 

Hope this all makes sense. Barely got any sleep this week and I'm about to pass out now.