My Goals and Intentions and General Information
****Disclaimer-I am just providing advice from my own experience. What worked for me, might not work for you. If you are willing to research, work hard, and be consistent, you can earn your degree. I was blessed to have the opportunity to focus on school all day, every day. It was my job, 8 or more hours a day. I also had a very strong support system from my family and a solid faith in my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. With that being said, I earned my B.A. in History and Political Science, graduating with the honor of Summa Cum Laude. It took me a total of 9 months to earn my degree, including utilizing ACE-accredited courses. My total cost was less than $1,500. Now, I have the opportunity to share this information with others. I am not making money from sharing this information. I truly want others to know that they can achieve their dreams as well. Don't compare my journey to yours; just use it as something that is possible for you and your loved ones.
*You do need a GED or High School Diploma. If you need a GED, refer back to the GED page to get started on your educational Journey.
If you are not willing to put in the hard work, this information may not be useful. With that being said, if you are motivated and willing to work hard, you can earn your bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited university. When I say regionally accredited, that is what you want your university to be. Who's regionally accredited? Harvard, UCLA, USC, Yale, and many other top notch universities. Whenever in doubt about a university, just check to be sure they are regionally accredited.
Imagine avoiding the average time it takes to earn a degree, which is 4-6 years. Imagine earning your degree without the average debt for a student, which is around $30,000, or even higher from $50,000-$100,000. This is the information I want to share with you. I will point you in the right direction and try to give a general template to follow. Ultimately, it will come down to your research and due diligence. I am just trying to get this incredible information out to barrios, minorities, blue-collar workers, Christian families, and anyone who will listen. This is a game changer.
In our current climate, colleges and universities have become less about education and the student. Some will even claim that many universities are not giving an education, only indoctrination. Higher education is big business and big money. Students are spending years and a lot of money just to earn their AA. If you add on a bachelor's program, it is very time-consuming and costly. However, if you want the traditional college experience, the information I am sharing might not apply. This is primarily about online learning. My goal is to let individuals know they can avoid those major deterrents to earning a degree. This is about empowering the student and enabling them to achieve their goals without the pains of traditional higher education.
When I mention that colleges and universities are more about the bottom line, I am generalizing. The good news is that some universities actually do care for their students and want to see them earn their degree. These universities recognize that not everyone is in the same category regarding age, financial situation, goals, available time, and other circumstances. They have introduced programs, systems, and opportunities for many people who might have thought that higher education was not for them, like I did. The two universities I will mention are the University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI) and Western Governors University (WGU). These universities offer competency-based education (CBE), which allows students to progress quickly and avoid high costs. There are others, but in my opinion, these two are head and shoulders above the rest.
With a CBE program like WGU, in most cases, a student can show competency in a course and test out. That means they can avoid taking a several-month-long course when they already know the subject. There is also the option to study the material as fast as you can retain it and take the exam in as short a time as a week or two. I want to be clear: everyone is different, and everyone works, learns, and excels at different paces. At WGU, there are several stories of students earning their degrees in less than a year, and for under $5,000-$10,000. For those who are able to excel that quickly, either they have plenty of experience in the subject matter or strategically follow a game plan.
UMPI is different in its program style. They have the YourPace program, which I loved. YourPace allows you to work as fast as you want. There are milestones and a final for every course. But the great thing is your final can first be submitted as a draft for review. Then the professor notifies the student of what changes are needed or if the final is ready to submit. My experience with interacting with the professors was what a student needs to learn and grow. Professors such as Dr. Sebold and Dr. Zaborney truly care for their students. When I met them face to face, I knew they were invested in their students' success. I also had the pleasure of meeting the president of UMPI, Dr. Rice. My conversation with him reaffirmed my belief that UMPI's goal is pro-student and pro-education. Dr. Rice, Dr. Sebold, and Dr. Zaborney represent what universities across this great country are in desperate need of: educators who care for their students.
What makes these universities so special? Besides the terrific programs they offer, they are also credit transfer-friendly. And when it comes to accelerating, this is key to your success. Third-party credits earned can help eliminate a significant amount of time and cost for your degree. For instance, you can transfer in a majority of the general elective credit hours. Many of these general elective requirements that universities demand are not directly applicable to a career or degree. When you earn third-party credit hours, you can focus more time and effort on the courses that are directly related to your actual degree while enrolled in your university. Often, many students struggle to complete general electives, and third-party ACE accredited hours can be the solution. I wish every university accepted ACE accredited hours, but that's not the case.
Third-party credits are earned from courses evaluated and recommended for college credit by the American Council on Education (ACE). ACE is a leading advocate for making higher education available to underrepresented groups. They started in 1918 and have a rich history of bringing major improvements to the educational system. In 1942, ACE helped usher in the GED program, which has helped countless people. ACE is highly respected and is the only major higher education association of its kind. ACE-accredited courses are key to earning your degree in less time and at a fraction of the cost. ACE is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that I am personally grateful for.
There are several online platforms that offer ACE-accredited courses. The two that I used are Study.com and Sophia Learning. Both are great and have their own unique styles. Study.com has a lot more courses, while Sophia Learning's monthly cost is lower. Study.com offers more upper-level courses that can transfer. The exams are proctored tests. Sophia Learning does not have proctored tests, the exams are open book. Their general education courses can be completed quickly. Both platforms are wonderful resources that can help any student tremendously. I really enjoyed Study.com's method of teaching the material, while I appreciated the simplicity of Sophia Learning. I highly recommend utilizing both platforms.
There are several strategies that greatly help you excel in earning your degree. I'll touch on them briefly. Part of any strategy is to utilize all resources that are within the boundaries of not violating any codes of conduct. I want to make it clear that there are plenty of sources that do not violate these rules. Social media groups are great source of information, advice, and encouragement. All will come in handy. Degree Forum has degree plans that can be used as your roadmap. There are YouTube channels like College Hacked that have several videos with great information, and for a fee they can actually design a degree plan for you personally. When you use available resources, you can target courses that can be satisfied by Study.com or Sophia Learning courses. In which will help you save time and money in earning your Bachelors degree.