Student Experiences at Western Governors University (WGU)

erpadmin

TomAtkins wrote: »

Thanks!

Also how transfer friendly are there?

I have a good 60+ credits (about 2 years worth) from community colleges, programming/IT as well as general electives (no associates degrees), plus a Network+, Security+ and CCNA (working on CCNA-S) now. Will they #1 accept most of my CC credits? and #2 how much time might that shave off the 4-5 years they say it will take?

Some of my GE classes came from a small Catholic college no one outside of Jersey has heard of, and community college back in the late 90s. I only transferred 22 CUs Plus 6 credits for A+ and Network+. I was able to finish WGU in a year and a half. With that logic, if most of your classes/certs transfer, you could very well complete WGU in 6 months to 1 year (tops.)

Much of the information to do that is contained in this very thread, which I spent a lot of time reading before I even did EWB. I found that by completing the GEs first (plus the management classes), I was able to accomplish that.

CompuTron99

Hypntick wrote: »

And passed BOV1, a lot easier having had a few years C++ experience (previous college work), just minimal study. Also CIW tests are easy as a rule it seems. If you can recognize functions, if then statements, and arrays, you've got this one passed. I'm about to request INC1, which puts me at 26 CU for this term once that's passed. Leaving me with 36 for the final term, having done 35 first term I know I can knock that out and be done by the end of August. Finish line in sight!

Does anyone know if the questions in the Certification-Partners WGU text and uCertify are harder than the actual exam?

petedude

Lemonade727 wrote: »

. . .Just out of curiosity though, which book did you end up running across that you would recommend? Just in case I do need some more interpretations to help let the information sink in. Hoping to be done with both of these courses within the next month and a half or so so I can still finish Tech Writing and Capstone this term.

Let me start with the OOP book:
Beginning Java Objects: From Concepts to Code, Second Edition
by Jacquie Barker
Apress © 2005 (958 pages) Citation
ISBN:9781590594575
Liked it so much, I ended up buying the PDF from Apress (my E-mail address is coded into it, so don't ask). The book focuses on a sample project similar to one of the tasks, and covers OOP from a Java perspective very well. The author occasionally slips into techno-speak but is usually quite clear and detailed. I've only needed to read the first 7 chapters thus far for the OOP course.

For the early Java course, I liked:
the Java Demystified book
Introduction to Programming Using Java, Sixth Edition (free book at Javanotes 6.0 -- Title Page)

Java 7: A Beginner’s Tutorial, Third Edition
by Budi Kurniawan
Brainy Software Corp. © 2011 (716 pages) Citation
ISBN:9780980839616

There are helpful articles at JavaWorld and Java Ranch.

Java Demystified is better for a Java overview, but it is strangely helpful for the database programming activities in the OOP course. The Java 7 book from Brainy is best when looking up syntax and examples.

I should eventually start piling up links I've used and post them-- when books failed me, I'd hit the 'net for insight. Somebody would eventually explain something in a matter that would click.

Lemonade727

petedude wrote: »

Let me start with the OOP book:
Beginning Java Objects: From Concepts to Code, Second Edition
by Jacquie Barker
Apress © 2005 (958 pages) Citation
ISBN:9781590594575
Liked it so much, I ended up buying the PDF from Apress (my E-mail address is coded into it, so don't ask). The book focuses on a sample project similar to one of the tasks, and covers OOP from a Java perspective very well. The author occasionally slips into techno-speak but is usually quite clear and detailed. I've only needed to read the first 7 chapters thus far for the OOP course.

For the early Java course, I liked:
the Java Demystified book
Introduction to Programming Using Java, Sixth Edition (free book at Javanotes 6.0 -- Title Page)

Java 7: A Beginner’s Tutorial, Third Edition
by Budi Kurniawan
Brainy Software Corp. © 2011 (716 pages) Citation
ISBN:9780980839616

There are helpful articles at JavaWorld and Java Ranch.

Java Demystified is better for a Java overview, but it is strangely helpful for the database programming activities in the OOP course. The Java 7 book from Brainy is best when looking up syntax and examples.

I should eventually start piling up links I've used and post them-- when books failed me, I'd hit the 'net for insight. Somebody would eventually explain something in a matter that would click.

Thanks for the book recommendations. Received my copy of Head First Java and will start that this weekend, will look at the other sources as well if needed.

Excellent1

Excellent1 wrote: »

Well, sat my last cert exam today (CCNA Sec). My term ends at the end of next month, so that should give me plenty of time to finish up tech writing/capstone. I'm at 120 CU's so far, 13 to go to finish up my 3rd term and the degree. Ready for a break, as probably most of us are. Good luck to those getting close.

Tech writing is finished. Should be able to get capstone buttoned up this weekend. Good times.

erpadmin

Excellent1 wrote: »

Tech writing is finished. Should be able to get capstone buttoned up this weekend. Good times.

Well done Your Excellency!!! You are pretty much all but done.

When you get the degree, folks really will have to "come and take it" when you have the degree in your hands....(as per your motto...)

What's gonna be next for you?

Excellent1

erpadmin wrote: »

Well done Your Excellency!!! You are pretty much all but done.

When you get the degree, folks really will have to "come and take it" when you have the degree in your hands....(as per your motto...)

What's gonna be next for you?

Thanks, man. It's sort of surreal to be coming down the backstretch, but it's coming together. Really glad I switched to the security track though, as I'm loving Cisco. I need to find a big enough floral throw to cover my rack in the living room, because I'm not giving it up any time soon. Maybe I can pass it off as a couch or something...

Really, in reflecting on the whole thing, I'm just kind of blown away by how much can change in a couple of years. In August of 2009 I was unemployed (I had just left my previous employer of 12+ years), in extremely poor health (348 lbs) and college was no more of an option than running a marathon. Now I've been with my current employer for over 2 years, my weight has been under 200 for over a year now, and I'm about 5 days away from having my degree. The only thing that changed was my attitude. For me, that came from going back to church and discovering a purpose for my life in the midst of all the madness. I gotta give God the credit, because the first 30+ years are a testament to how badly I screwed it up on my own.

As for what's next, I think the first thing I'll do is rejoin the forum under a different name, maybe taterdigger or hummusdevourer. Nah, I'm thinking about where I want to go for my Master's. I am also considering timing. I may wait until afer I complete my CCNP before I enroll, but I sort of like your plan of rolling right into the next chapter. Keeping that momentum going is probably the smartest way to go about it. Anyway, back to Visio for an updated diagram for my capstone. Hope your new school endeavor is going well.

erpadmin

Excellent1 wrote: »

Thanks, man. It's sort of surreal to be coming down the backstretch, but it's coming together. Really glad I switched to the security track though, as I'm loving Cisco. I need to find a big enough floral throw to cover my rack in the living room, because I'm not giving it up any time soon. Maybe I can pass it off as a couch or something...

Really, in reflecting on the whole thing, I'm just kind of blown away by how much can change in a couple of years. In August of 2009 I was unemployed (I had just left my previous employer of 12+ years), in extremely poor health (348 lbs) and college was no more of an option than running a marathon. Now I've been with my current employer for over 2 years, my weight has been under 200 for over a year now, and I'm about 5 days away from having my degree. The only thing that changed was my attitude. For me, that came from going back to church and discovering a purpose for my life in the midst of all the madness. I gotta give God the credit, because the first 30+ years are a testament to how badly I screwed it up on my own.

As for what's next, I think the first thing I'll do is rejoin the forum under a different name, maybe taterdigger or hummusdevourer. Nah, I'm thinking about where I want to go for my Master's. I am also considering timing. I may wait until afer I complete my CCNP before I enroll, but I sort of like your plan of rolling right into the next chapter. Keeping that momentum going is probably the smartest way to go about it. Anyway, back to Visio for an updated diagram for my capstone. Hope your new school endeavor is going well.

Seriously, well done, brother. In truth, I really did want to start in either the summer or the fall, but I wasn't given the option for summer AND I wasn't sure how I could start in the summer. I really did want a break, but when I saw that my MS could be done online (even when I travel to Atlanta) I decided what the hey. So far, I'm having a blast...I'm about to wrap up a paper on Net Neutrality and submit that tonight (at the latest tomorrow morning.) It's due on Super Bowl Sunday, and with my Giants in it, there's no work or school getting done that day. LOL.

As with everything else, I was pretty much in a similar boat as you. While I was able to function well enough to do my job, I had no career-focus prior to earning my degree. I knew I needed one if I wanted to go to the next level. I just never imagined that a MS would be a part of my career plan (even when I initially enrolled in WGU.) But when I saw my colleagues adjunct teaching for beer money, I knew I wanted to jump on that. Between that, and seeing a bunch of "Master's preferred" in job postings for IT management, I knew that I wanted a MS as well. I really would have done a MBA, except that it's difficult to adjunct teach with one as it's considered too general (even with specializations.) However, I don't believe in coincidences...doing an online degree based in my hometown, plus having access to so many resources made my decision to pursue an MS at the time that I did a no-brainer for me. My focus is a lot clearer and the determination to get it done is strong. Prior to WGU, I was just going through the motions...I think God pretty much allowed me to do the messing up I did so that I could get back on track on my own and put people, and situations in my path to allow me to get back on track (even situations that I would have to learn from...)

I look forward to your post saying Capstone is ompleted. It will take a good couple of weeks before you get the degree in your hands. Capstone is literally a couple to a few hours to do....you're just changing tense and adding about one page more.

Psoasman

Excellent1 wrote: »

Tech writing is finished. Should be able to get capstone buttoned up this weekend. Good times.

Congrats! It's nice to see people successfully completing their programs.

Excellent1

Psoasman wrote: »

Congrats! It's nice to see people successfully completing their programs.

Thanks, Psoasman.

It's good to be done. Speaking of which, just submitted Capstone, so now it's wait time. Actually, it's time to take the family out, have a good evening, folks.

Psoasman

erpadmin wrote: »

Capstone is literally a couple to a few hours to do....you're just changing tense and adding about one page more.

Really? So, the technical writing paper is basically your proposal for what you want to do? The capstone describes how you actually implemented the proposal? This might be easier than I thought. I was thinking they are 2 separate papers.

erpadmin

Psoasman wrote: »

Really? So, the technical writing paper is basically your proposal for what you want to do? The capstone describes how you actually implemented the proposal? This might be easier than I thought. I was thinking they are 2 separate papers.

They are 2 separate papers, but everything else is true.

The only reason why it's not the same paper is that you do have to add some extra stuff to Capstone, as well as change tense throughout the proposal. Otherwise, everything else you stated is correct.

Psoasman

erpadmin wrote: »

They are 2 separate papers, but everything else is true.

The only reason why it's not the same paper is that you do have to add some extra stuff to Capstone, as well as change tense throughout the proposal. Otherwise, everything else you stated is correct.

Cool. That makes it a lot easier, then. Thanks!

petedude

Psoasman wrote: »

Cool. That makes it a lot easier, then. Thanks!

To add to what erp said. . .

Capstone is ideally where you strut your stuff. You want to be able to demonstrate the value of your WGU education, so to speak.

Think about it in terms of your Project Management studies. . . the report that you turn in at the end of a project explains how the project managed to achieve its ends (or didn't), what the value of it was and lessons learned along the way. The capstone paper is a similar effort, not just in terms of the project you did but whatever competencies you choose to demonstrate.

If you can, think of not just writing everything in past tense, but explaining and validating everything you did. It would be helpful to justify and substantiate it-- why did your approaches work? What contribution did they make to the organization you did them for? This is one of those places where charts & graphs can be of value, not to mention maybe other works (although you will quote others more in your proposal).

In a pass/fail competency environment, it's tough to get people to see the value of putting extra energy into something like a capstone. Yeah, it's another paper and you want to get it over with. But it's also something that you will get out of what you put into it. It doesn't have to be a book, but you might not want to treat it like a pamphlet.

Folks should also bear in mind that WGU likes getting solid papers they can show off to other students. If they aren't doing it already, I think they will eventually want papers they can show off to other schools.

TomAtkins

Do they have grades (A-F), and a GPA at WGU? Or is just pass/fail?

Lemonade727

TomAtkins wrote: »

Do they have grades (A-F), and a GPA at WGU? Or is just pass/fail?

Pass/Fail with a GPA equivalent of 3.0

TomAtkins

Lemonade727 wrote: »

Pass/Fail with a GPA equivalent of 3.0

So pass is a 3.0 and fail is a 0.0? Is there anything inbetween?

demonfurbie

TomAtkins wrote: »

So pass is a 3.0 and fail is a 0.0? Is there anything inbetween?

not really.. its totally pass fail the gpa of 3.0 is what they will give you on a transcript if asked

LinuxRacr

Any way to get a 4.0?

spiderjericho

My only comment or criticism is there is no way to differentiate between effort or quality if you're just going for a simple pass.

I normally tend to be a perfectionist or try to put in as much effort as I can into work. But if I'm given six months, and all I need is to pass, I'm going to try to "pass" as many classes as I can within a term.

And it also doesn't really help when you're transferring. Not to say 3.0 is bad, but it's not great either.

erpadmin

spiderjericho wrote: »

My only comment or criticism is there is no way to differentiate between effort or quality if you're just going for a simple pass.

I normally tend to be a perfectionist or try to put in as much effort as I can into work. But if I'm given six months, and all I need is to pass, I'm going to try to "pass" as many classes as I can within a term.

And it also doesn't really help when you're transferring. Not to say 3.0 is bad, but it's not great either.

As a Virgo, I can't find fault with that argument. Initially, I had the same sort of issues.

However, also as a Virgo, I'm also a pragmatist. Why would I spend all that time on one particular doing "A" work if all I'm gonna get is a "B"?

Keep in mind though that most schools grade on a bell curve anyway. A "B" might have really been a "C" but other factors come into play like attendance, participation, etc., etc.

If you passed a course at WGU, it was because you really knew enough to pass. The argument can then be "what's considered enough?" I can only speculate that whatever WGU does satisfies the requirements of the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU).

Which, if we're gonna then split hairs, compare that same level of effort vs. quality to a community college or traditional small, four-year college.

One other thing...WGU is not the only college that does a pass/fail. Brown University, an Ivy League school, also uses a pass/fail system. (As an option)

Brown University Overview - CollegeData College Profile

bryanthetechie

I am not concerned with the pass/fail grading at WGU. The point of WGU's model is to show competency. Don't over-study and over-think these courses. Are you a professional student, or an IT professional? Pass the exams, get the degree, and then spend the extra effort on your career instead of getting an 860 instead of an 820 on that exam.

What do you call a doctor who finished last in their class in medical school? Doctor.
What do you call someone who graduated with a BSIT degree from most school? A college graduate.
What do you call someone who graduated from a BSIT degree at WGU? A college graduate with several solid certs who is ready to rock their careers because of the rigor they developed to study for and pass their competency-based certification exams.

petedude

bryanthetechie wrote: »

I am not concerned with the pass/fail grading at WGU. The point of WGU's model is to show competency. Don't over-study and over-think these courses. Are you a professional student, or an IT professional? Pass the exams, get the degree, and then spend the extra effort on your career instead of getting an 860 instead of an 820 on that exam.

What do you call a doctor who finished last in their class in medical school? Doctor.
What do you call someone who graduated with a BSIT degree from most school? A college graduate.
What do you call someone who graduated from a BSIT degree at WGU? A college graduate with several solid certs who is ready to rock their careers because of the rigor they developed to study for and pass their competency-based certification exams.

Amen to all this.

One of the things that drew me to WGU was the competency model-- can you do it, or not? If you can step up to the plate, you move forward. If you can't. . . well, maybe you can take underwater basket weaving somewhere else.

veritas_libertas

Another point needs to be made. The further you progress in IT the degree is just a check box. I have never been asked what my GPA was, and I imagine that it only comes up when you are fresh out of college looking for a job.

bryanthetechie

veritas_libertas wrote: »

Another point needs to be made. The further you progress in IT the degree is just a check box. I have never been asked what my GPA was, and I imagine that it only comes up when you are fresh out of college looking for a job.

This x2. I have a BA in History and nobody has ever cared about what I studied during my 15 years in IT... other than the fact that I have a degree.

LinuxRacr

bryanthetechie wrote: »

I am not concerned with the pass/fail grading at WGU. The point of WGU's model is to show competency. Don't over-study and over-think these courses. Are you a professional student, or an IT professional? Pass the exams, get the degree, and then spend the extra effort on your career instead of getting an 860 instead of an 820 on that exam.

What do you call a doctor who finished last in their class in medical school? Doctor.
What do you call someone who graduated with a BSIT degree from most school? A college graduate.
What do you call someone who graduated from a BSIT degree at WGU? A college graduate with several solid certs who is ready to rock their careers because of the rigor they developed to study for and pass their competency-based certification exams.

Agreed. It is more about the destination (degree), and then the next journey (career).

erpadmin

bryanthetechie wrote: »

What do you call someone who graduated from a BSIT degree at WGU? A college graduate with several solid certs who is ready to rock their careers because of the rigor they developed to study for and pass their competency-based certification exams.

I get what you're saying.....but I'm starting to find out that as one wishes to proceed further in academia, certs become less relevant. The only reason I even got the NDM was personal pride in earning a MCSE-like cert, but if I had to make that choice over again, I'd have gone with just regular IT.

I see based on your certifications, you probably started in the IT field maybe a few hairs before I did. (CNE, i-Net+....) I will keep pushing this point, even with the certs I do have...certs will not get folks a job by themselves (of course neither will a degree.)

The only reason I answer this is because I don't want someone reading this thinking WGU will give him certs, which will then give him a job. For someone who either has little experience in IT OR wants to gain a degree a lot quicker and perhaps a little stress free, the general IT degree (which will still have a couple of certs) will be most beneficial.

bryanthetechie

erpadmin wrote: »

I get what you're saying.....but I'm starting to find out that as one wishes to proceed further in academia, certs become less relevant. The only reason I even got the NDM was personal pride in earning a MCSE-like cert, but if I had to make that choice over again, I'd have gone with just regular IT.

I see based on your certifications, you probably started in the IT field maybe a few hairs before I did. (CNE, i-Net+....) I will keep pushing this point, even with the certs I do have...certs will not get folks a job by themselves (of course neither will a degree.)

The only reason I answer this is because I don't want someone reading this thinking WGU will give him certs, which will then give him a job. For someone who either has little experience in IT OR wants to gain a degree a lot quicker and perhaps a little stress free, the general IT degree (which will still have a couple of certs) will be most beneficial.

I agree on every point.

Certs are academically irrelevant unless you are getting credit for them from a program like WGU, Excelsior College, etc.

I worked my way into IT by first getting a job in the foreign language lab in college helping students with the language software for 1.5 years (Mac and PCs). After college I worked in a warehouse stocking shelves and talked them into cross-training me on everything... which lead to learning to batch process orders on and AIX system and supporting Lotus Notes running in a NetWare environment. From there got a job building PCs for Compaq as a temp through ManPower. Wtih all that experience I was able to get a sweet desktop support job for a Fortune 500 company, which really started my career. No certs and no degree yet. Certs came later, then the degree. The best way to break into the IT world is by hard work and looking for opportunities everywhere.

Yea, man... CNE in NetWare 4. Ahh, the good ole days.

Psoasman

erpadmin wrote: »

I get what you're saying.....but I'm starting to find out that as one wishes to proceed further in academia, certs become less relevant. The only reason I even got the NDM was personal pride in earning a MCSE-like cert, but if I had to make that choice over again, I'd have gone with just regular IT.

I see based on your certifications, you probably started in the IT field maybe a few hairs before I did. (CNE, i-Net+....) I will keep pushing this point, even with the certs I do have...certs will not get folks a job by themselves (of course neither will a degree.)

The only reason I answer this is because I don't want someone reading this thinking WGU will give him certs, which will then give him a job. For someone who either has little experience in IT OR wants to gain a degree a lot quicker and perhaps a little stress free, the general IT degree (which will still have a couple of certs) will be most beneficial.

I agree here. Of course, having the certs / degree on your resume will open doors for you. I've applied for jobs in the past and the main reason for disqualification was no degree. I have plenty of certs, but getting a B.S. will allow me to apply for those jobs, who are strict on requirements.
For the person who is new to IT and wanting to get their IT degree, then the basic IT degree is the best route. It would be frustrating and expensive to take a term to earn 2 certs.

Excellent1

Capstone graded, 4.0/4.0, I'm done. 133 CU's in 17 months (last month of my 3rd term wasn't needed), while working full time. As many others have said and shown here, it can be done.

Thank you to everyone who has shared their experiences in this thread and on this site. It's a huge help to compare strategies and ideas for tackling the various courses and I've definitely benefited from the different perspectives shared here.

Glad to be done, still deciding what comes next. Good luck to all of you.