“If time be of all things the most precious, wasting time must be the greatest prodigality.” – Benjamin Franklin
Many times, people ask on the forum about getting college credit for life experience, or ask about what they should do when they’ve already earned a lot of credit at one or more different colleges, or have received a lot of training in the military. Because of this, I’m going to take a slight detour today and talk about assessment colleges.
The three schools that I’m referring to are Charter Oak State College in Connecticut, Excelsior College in New York, and Thomas Edison State College in New Jersey. These regionally accredited colleges, sometimes called the “Big Three”, are unique in allowing students to transfer in up to 100% of the credit used to earn the degree there.
They’re helpful in that they offer transfer credit for military training (even for basic training), or any other training or certification that’s ACE evaluated. That includes IT certifications, such as MCSE from Microsoft.
They also happily accept credit by examination, such as CLEP. These testing programs are ideal for those who either already know a lot about a particular subject, or who are good at learning about a subject quickly and independently. If you weren’t troubled by the SAT or ACT exam when you were in high school, then CLEP might be right for you.
And then there’s life experience. It’s unfortunate that this term has been sullied by degree mills who offer “life experience degrees” in exchange for nothing more than a check, because the reality is that more learning happens outside school than inside, and there should be ways to validate that. This is done at assessment colleges through portfolio evaluation, the student puts together evidence of learning outside the academic setting that corresponds with the material offered in a particular course, and if that portfolio is acceptable, the student is awarded transfer credit. It’s not an easy process, however, and in my own personal case I didn’t bother with it, finding that CLEP tests and even courses were a more efficient way to demonstrate that prior learning.
So what’s the catch? Well, this method of degree completion isn’t for those who need to be told what to do and then simply follow directions. As a student at one of these colleges you’ll need to take responsibility for designing your own program, not just a major or concentration, but also determining how you’ll fulfill general education requirements. Will you take courses offered by the college itself, or will you take courses somewhere else, such as a low cost community college, and transfer it? Will you CLEP out of a general education subject you already know well? Keep in mind that you’re responsible to come up with a plan, but that doesn’t mean you can just do anything, as you’ll have an academic advisor who will have to approve that plan.
Sometimes people say, sure, all of that sounds really convenient, but how well respected are their degrees? That’s one I can answer personally, since my Bachelor’s is from Charter Oak State College. Not only have I been hired for jobs in higher education, but I’ve twice been admitted to graduate school based on my Charter Oak degree. They’re solid, and for self-starting independent people, I recommend these schools as a way to complete a useful degree as quickly and inexpensively as possible.
Next up, a little discussion on the importance of motivation and goals.