Western Governors University Questions and Answers / Threads related to WGU

erpadmin

XeeN wrote: »

How's the EWB course setup? How did you figure the 5 hour benchmark?

Well...it took me personally about 7 hours, but that was with interruptions...without them, it would have been approximately 5 hours...

It's not that much to do...you read about WGU's policies, learn about the Course of Study, Mindedge, etc. It is very straightforward and I was fortunate that my first day of classes was on a Sunday and I had the whole day for EWB. You post in the communities to introduce yourself, and post in certain communities....


It really wasn't much.

blue_butterfly

msteinhilber wrote: »

I'm just over one month into the M.S. Info. Security and Assurance program.

If anybody has any questions about the MSIA program and my experiences thus far I'd be happy to help. Current WGU students can add me to the WGU Messenger using nickname "mjsteinhilber" if you want to chat.

Hello!

How do you like the MSIA? Is it worth? They try to scare the candidates over the phone interview by saying that it is really difficult. I am not afraid of challenging but I would like to know how challenging it is. I would apply for the same program as yours by next year.
Thanks and regards,

Psoasman

XeeN wrote: »

My enrollment counselor told me that WGU is changing their EWB / Education Without Boundaries initial course setup. It looks like due to popular demand, starting Dec 1 2011 they will let accepted students take EWB before their start date, thus allowing for a dive into actual coursework on the first day of their first term.

I asked for an exception since I begin November 1st, but didn't get it. Oh well, back to studying for my Network+ (wrapped up my A+ studies, now on target to complete Network+ studies by Oct. 31st).

Mine told me that yesterday, as well. It's now called Orientation and they are wanting you to finish it before your official start date.

TheWahls

Hello,

I'm glad I found this forum. I am thinking of applying. Can you still get the fee waived? If so, would anyone be willing to help me? I think I am supposed to get a phone call tomorrow.

Thanks.

Psoasman

TheWahls wrote: »

Hello,

I'm glad I found this forum. I am thinking of applying. Can you still get the fee waived? If so, would anyone be willing to help me? I think I am supposed to get a phone call tomorrow.

Thanks.

You can post your request here and someone will refer you.
http://www.techexams.net/forums/jobs-degrees/55634-wgu-refer-friend-thread-those-seeking-referral.html

CmptrFrk

Just got the email. Congratulations on passing the WGU Readiness Assessment!

I was a little worried about the essay part seeing as I hate writing, but I passed it.

My Intake Interview is scheduled for Friday.

advanex1

spiderjericho wrote: »

I see what you mean with the CCENT included with the Net Admin track. But in the verbiage/description for Net Admin, they say Server Administrator, which, to me, means having a good grasp of all of the Microsoft pieces in an Enterprise.

But I guess I can see the argument from the design stand point. I'm surprised they don't include VCP5 and Server+ for the Net Admin or the CCDA for the Design.

Now I'm not sure what I want to do. I have to talk to my enrollment guru tomorrow, so I guess we can hash it out then. I just personally want to complete my degree as quickly as possible.

Agreed, that's why I was curious about these as well.

drew726

Would installing Nagios (we currently sure Sitescope) at work be a good Capstone Project?

echo465

I went through all the program information PDF's for BSIT degrees on WGU's site to try and distil the difference between the 6 specialties. I hope this information is helpful to someone:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Atq7-3_hxom0dDN5V0pFWGdWbkdQQ3BBRTZ1aHEydGc

XeeN

echo465 wrote: »

I went through all the program information PDF's for BSIT degrees on WGU's site to try and distil the difference between the 6 specialties. I hope this information is helpful to someone:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Atq7-3_hxom0dDN5V0pFWGdWbkdQQ3BBRTZ1aHEydGc

Nice work, echo. I also saw your update on the SA thread. This info is laid out nicely. I'm about to start the NDM path Nov 1st.

petedude

I remember there was talk of some new IT master's program being set up at WGU a few months back. Anyone know if it's still happening?

sheckler

My mentor mentioned that the masters in networking is still coming. Not sure when though.

rep21

echo465 wrote: »

I went through all the program information PDF's for BSIT degrees on WGU's site to try and distil the difference between the 6 specialties. I hope this information is helpful to someone:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Atq7-3_hxom0dDN5V0pFWGdWbkdQQ3BBRTZ1aHEydGc

I believe some of the items on the various PDFs and WGU site may be incorrect. I've talked with WGU enrollment counselors about there errors, but they never bother to update their site or pdfs. For the database degree, you do not take any Oracle Certifications. They are still the MCITP Database Developer 2008 courses. Just in case anyone else thinking about the database track was wondering.

ehnde

Hey guys, quick question: how do you see a score report for a preassessment taken through web assessor? I just took the ORC1 preassessment (pretty sure I bombed it) and never got to see my score.

erpadmin

Sign onto the portal, go to Degree Plan scroll down to ORC1, where it says Pre-Assessment there should be a "View Report" link right below it.

I know they were having problems yesterday processing assessments. You might have to clear browser cache before you sign in.

If you got 63% or better, you sound ready for the real exam. Remember, 63% or 100%, it's the same "B." thanks to Modified Angoff (use Google).

ehnde

erpadmin wrote: »

Sign onto the portal, go to Degree Plan scroll down to ORC1, where it says Pre-Assessment there should be a "View Report" link right below it.

I know they were having problems yesterday processing assessments. You might have to clear browser cache before you sign in.

If you got 63% or better, you sound ready for the real exam. Remember, 63% or 100%, it's the same "B." thanks to Modified Angoff (use Google).

Thanks erpadmin, that really helps! Thought I was doing something wrong. I've opened up a helpdesk ticket.

demonfurbie

has any one taken the ciw database cert yet

i was wondering how it stacked up to the other ciw certs

erpadmin

I wanted to give you a link to that announcement but I think they removed it; believing all was well. Sounds like you got lost in the shuffle (and as well all know in IT...sometimes that may happen to particular end-users.)

You should have a resolution sometime today...I'm willing to bet sometime this morning (somewhere in the US...)

On a different note, I am feeling so restless. I don't have anything WGU-related to do until I take and pass my final two MS exams. I'm putting myself to pass both the 643 and 647 within the month. The days are now slowly winding down for me. I just finished upgrading my development and production environments to SQL Server 2008 R2....so I'm looking forward to getting my MCITP in that while shooting for grad school. Plus, I have to seriously revamp my resume. I'm not looking to bounce from my job right now, but I have to do rewrite it at some point.

ehnde

erpadmin wrote: »

I wanted to give you a link to that announcement but I think they removed it; believing all was well. Sounds like you got lost in the shuffle (and as well all know in IT...sometimes that may happen to particular end-users.)

You should have a resolution sometime today...I'm willing to bet sometime this morning (somewhere in the US...)

On a different note, I am feeling so restless. I don't have anything WGU-related to do until I take and pass my final two MS exams. I'm putting myself to pass both the 643 and 647 within the month. The days are now slowly winding down for me. I just finished upgrading my development and production environments to SQL Server 2008 R2....so I'm looking forward to getting my MCITP in that while shooting for grad school. Plus, I have to seriously revamp my resume. I'm not looking to bounce from my job right now, but I have to do rewrite it at some point.

I found the announcement you mentioned. Once I knew to look for it I found it Oh, and I got my score report. Cut score is 51% and I got a.....51%. Lol. Going to study hard for a week and give it a shot.

Know how you feel waiting on your exams! Actually no, not really I don't. You're about to GRADUATE.

I'm full of questions today about WGU. How long do you have to wait in that 1st term to get your financial aid? I'm past the 1 month mark as of today and hoping they don't delay it too much longer.

petedude

erpadmin wrote: »

On a different note, I am feeling so restless. I don't have anything WGU-related to do until I take and pass my final two MS exams. I'm putting myself to pass both the 643 and 647 within the month. The days are now slowly winding down for me. I just finished upgrading my development and production environments to SQL Server 2008 R2....so I'm looking forward to getting my MCITP in that while shooting for grad school. Plus, I have to seriously revamp my resume. I'm not looking to bounce from my job right now, but I have to do rewrite it at some point.

Congrats on the progress.

It's getting quiet on my end, too-- I just have the last two tasks in GUT1, and I'm done. Getting ready to dive into the next educational thing, too, already, but not sure if that will be right after WGU or out a couple months further. Would be best to get started soon, though, it seems.

veritas_libertas

ehnde wrote: »

I found the announcement you mentioned. Once I knew to look for it I found it Oh, and I got my score report. Cut score is 51% and I got a.....51%. Lol. Going to study hard for a week and give it a shot.

Know how you feel waiting on your exams! Actually no, not really I don't. You're about to GRADUATE.

I'm full of questions today about WGU. How long do you have to wait in that 1st term to get your financial aid? I'm past the 1 month mark as of today and hoping they don't delay it too much longer.

Financial Aid can be a pain. Be sure to stay on top of that.

erpadmin

petedude wrote: »

Congrats on the progress.

It's getting quiet on my end, too-- I just have the last two tasks in GUT1, and I'm done. Getting ready to dive into the next educational thing, too, already, but not sure if that will be right after WGU or out a couple months further. Would be best to get started soon, though, it seems.

I've been accepted into NJIT's Graduate Certificate program as of yesterday. What was weird is that I didn't have to pay a fee for it. I already have an e-mail account with them, and they use Sungard Banner (like WGU does) for their Student Information System (SIS). Registration starts the 18th of this month if I want to start in the Spring. I would have welcomed a break, but I figure I can use the 12 credits to see if I can hack their program. It will make things a lot easier when I formally enroll in their MS program. The good news is that I can do the spring semester online. Which means I can (still) attend commencement in February. A year at NJIT will only run me ~$12k.

Psoasman

Congrats! Good for you!

veritas_libertas

erpadmin wrote: »

I've been accepted into NJIT's Graduate Certificate program as of yesterday. What was weird is that I didn't have to pay a fee for it. I already have an e-mail account with them, and they use Sungard Banner (like WGU does) for their Student Information System (SIS). Registration starts the 18th of this month if I want to start in the Spring. I would have welcomed a break, but I figure I can use the 12 credits to see if I can hack their program. It will make things a lot easier when I formally enroll in their MS program. The good news is that I can do the spring semester online. Which means I can (still) attend commencement in February. A year at NJIT will only run me ~$12k.

Congratulations!

erpadmin

Thanks guys. It's a conditional acceptance...with the one condition being that I graduate. Since it's a certificate program, I don't have to bother with the GRE or GMAT until I formally apply to the MS program; I can just take the classes. When I do formally apply, I can't see them denying me.

Getting a graduate certificate is great if you want to keep your options open (and I do.) It also is proof that a WGU BS degree does count. New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) is a AACSB-accredited school. While an MBA may/may not be in my future, the fact that I'm in a AACSB school with a WGU degree is very gratifying!

I didn't apply to DSU yet, but I'm leaning towards not doing it. I may pursue them later for the D.Sc. NJIT offers a doctoral program in IS, but DSU wins for the simple fact that it's geared for distance learning students. NJIT's Ph.D program requires one to not work for a whole year (at a minimum.) I can't afford to live off a stipend.

Thxlbx

Congrats erpadmin!

drew726

Congrats Erpadmin! You and Veritas really keep the WGU awareness active. I know I wouldn't be a college graduate soon without this sticky thread.

erpadmin

Thxlbx wrote: »

Congrats erpadmin!

drew726 wrote: »

Congrats Erpadmin! You and Veritas really keep the WGU awareness active. I know I wouldn't be a college graduate soon without this sticky thread.

Thanks guys!

Drew, I know exactly what you mean. I do not believe I could have gotten through WGU without the support of my fellow TE brethren. (At least, I don't want to believe I could have... ) TechExams really made me feel that I wasn't alone in my journey to obtain a Bachelor's.

I can never be grateful enough for that.

Hypntick

erpadmin wrote: »

I've been accepted into NJIT's Graduate Certificate program as of yesterday. What was weird is that I didn't have to pay a fee for it. I already have an e-mail account with them, and they use Sungard Banner (like WGU does) for their Student Information System (SIS). Registration starts the 18th of this month if I want to start in the Spring. I would have welcomed a break, but I figure I can use the 12 credits to see if I can hack their program. It will make things a lot easier when I formally enroll in their MS program. The good news is that I can do the spring semester online. Which means I can (still) attend commencement in February. A year at NJIT will only run me ~$12k.

Congrats on this sir, i've always held you in high regard when it comes to matters relating to school. You show a level of motivation and dedication that I strive to emulate. I have no doubts that you're going to do amazingly with this.

someuser23

I know I've been a major ***** at times and I've came out with some weird posts but after speaking to family and friends and already having almost 30k in school loans that need to be paid back, I was advised to make something of my degree and get more certs before I take out more loans.

So I think that's a smarter idea than to get into more debt, a bachelors would help and I was going to go for health Informatics which isn't a high paying field, it's not worth it at this time to take out more loans...