Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

tcord1964 — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 04:12:00 GMT

I’m steadily making progress through my Business Math course, and I should be taking the third of four exams in this class by this weekend or the beginning of next week. This week, I am studying financial statements, balance sheets and financial ratios and trend analysis. A few weeks ago, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you what these things are, let along actually work on them.

The great thing about this portion of the course is that the text book material uses actual financial statements from real companies and has you prepare an analysis of the material. This is as “real world” as any course could hope to get, and I have to say I was impressed. I actually feel like I am gaining the knowledge I will need when I move up in the business world.

Although we are all working for that sacred piece of paper…the degree…there is something even more important that goes along with the whole process. It’s the education…the knowledge…that we as students are gaining through our distance learning courses. As I have mentioned before, I have always been something of a math moron. When it came to simple math problems, such as the household budget or balancing a checkbook, I always had to have my wife help me out with some of the math.

Well, this past weekend, she was paging through my Business Math text book and some of the homework I have done. She said “you are actually doing this?” I said “Sure. It’s taking me what seems like forever, but I’m getting through it.” With a look of awe on her face, she said “I can’t even understand this, and I could never do these math problems in your book.” She then added something even more amazing: “You’re better at math than I am now.”

That was my first jaw-dropping moment through this whole process. I have taken so long to get through this course; I was starting to feel like a failure. But, I am learning the material, I have a 95 average in this course so far, and I will likely finish it by the middle of this month. Up next: I’ll be studying inventory valuation and estimation.

I did make one stupid mistake this past week. I had mailed a SMART transcript request to try and get some of my Navy training credit transferred to Penn Foster College. Unfortunately, I mailed it to Penn Foster, rather than the Navy.

I’ve really got to pay closer attention when addressing these envelopes.

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Playing it SMART

tcord1964 — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 22:12:00 GMT

A few months ago, I tried to capitalize on my military training by transferring some of the ACE-reviewed credit to Penn Foster College. I figured it would eliminate the need for me to take some of the courses, and might even save me some money at the same time.

It did not work out that way. Penn Foster requires an official copy of any transcripts, and the Navy sent a copy which was clearly labeled “unofficial”. Of the 90-plus college-level credits I amassed from my military training, none of it was counted toward my Penn Foster College marketing degree program.

Most of my training was in journalism and communications, so I figured that many of the credits would not transfer to a marketing program. However, I thought things like English Composition and Business Communications certainly would.

Not to be deterred, I filled out another request today for a SMART to be sent to Penn Foster College. SMART is the Sailor/Marine American Council on Education Registry Transcript. Any current service member or veteran of the Navy and Marines can view or request a transcript of all of their ACE-reviewed military training at https://smart.cnet.navy.mil/. The Army has a similar system, called AARTS, which can be found here: http://aarts.army.mil/

Initially, I was shocked at the amount of college-level ACE-reviewed credit I had earned through my military training. ACE had even reviewed some of the training I received at boot camp.

Registering and signing into the SMART or AARTS system is very easy. If you get into the system and notice that there is no transcript for you there, you can contact the Navy College Center or the AARTS Operations Center and request that they compile a transcript for you based upon your service record, which will contain information on all of the military training you have received. They can also make corrections to your transcript.

I have yet to get this to work to my advantage, but I know it can be done. Excelsior College offered to transfer more than 90 credits into a BA program for me based upon my military training alone. The SMART or AARTS is a good, low-cost means of meeting some of your credit requirements for degree programs, so you veterans should definitely take advantage of it. After all, you have earned it!

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My Penn Foster College Experience : SMART

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

Playing it SMART