Cheapest Options for Online Credits

[Mint Berry Crunch]

Hello everyone! I’m excited to be part of this new group chat and would love your help. I’m currently exploring options to pursue an associate's degree and I’ve accumulated 30 credits through the CLEP program. Could anyone provide some insight into how this group operates? I’d also greatly appreciate any advice or tips you might have for someone in my situation. Thank you!

Welcome! DegreeForum (as the name suggests) is a forum for members to hold discussions about options pertaining to what we call "degree hacking". Simply, we talk about obtaining college credits for the lowest possible costs, colleges/universities that you can attend for similar reason, and a variety of different degree/certificate programs you can enroll into. We mainly focus on regionally accredited colleges/universities, online (synchronous or asynchronous) courses and certs, and degree plans for completing specific programs at the colleges/universities that we have particular interests in. The forum has very knowledgeable people here (some who've been here since it started about 20+ years ago now) who are happy to provide advice and recommendations for you. If you ever need help, go to the applicable category on the home page, search or create a thread, and happy hunting!

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Wow - It's been a while!  I was one of the OG's on here many moons ago.  I got my BS from Excelsior in 2008 and then an MBA from Jacksonville State in 2010.  This forum was essential in my degree and I owe so much to a bunch a people on Instacert that led the way.

With that said, I'm now an old man with kids that are in the college exploration phase.  I'd like some advice...

I have a 20 year old son that graduated homeschool 2 years ago and has been working for a couple of years debating the value of college.  We think there would be some value for an in-person college experience for him.  We are looking at Grand Canyon University (GCU) in Phoenix (We live in Colorado Springs).  They have a large online presence, but we think he needs some of the in-person college experience to round out some of his social skills.  With that said, he would like to complete his degree as quickly as possible.

GCU promotes Sophia, which is new to me, but looks incredible.  Any information about Sophia (pros and cons) would be appreciated.  Additionally, anyone with specific info on GCU and how to best expedite credits via CLEP/DSST/Sophia/etc would be greatly appreciated.  It's been hard finding specific requirements on the GCU website about how many testing credits can be transferred in.  He is looking at a Business degree.

My daughter is 17 and graduates in May from home school.  She is probably looking at staying home for a year before any sort of in-person college experience.  With that said, she has a good acumen for testing and work-at-your-own-pace type classes.  Would you recommend Sophia for her?  CLEP?  I know it depends on the school and what they will accept, but what is the softest way to introduce her to this world?

I'm sorry for the relatively broad questions and I know there are probably discussions on all of these things that I have just not found yet here on the forum, but please humor me.

Thanks in advance!

- Ben

Seems like some people have already pointed you in the right direction. It is always a pleasure to see former members from long ago return - welcome back Ben!