I Need Info On New WGU Networking Degrees

DoubleNNs

I've been talking w/ an Enrollment Counselor from WGU for the past 2-3 months now. I was set on an August 1st start date and was trying to figure out what I should do prior to starting and how the transfer process would go.

I told my Enrollment Counselor that the WGU security looked like a degree I was interested in - both the classes as well as certs offered appealed to me. However, after looking thru the Transfer Guidelines, none of the certs I already have would transfer in for that degree except for my A+. I've been studying Linux and Cisco for the past few months in preparation for starting this, but because of the lack of cert transferability, I'm thinking about choosing another degree. Unfortunately, the time spent studying linux could have been used more wiseley, but I still have time before my start date and I'm determined to do more research now so my entrance in August can go as smoothly as possible.

I'm now trying to decide between the Net Admin and the Net Deisgn/Management degrees. However, I believe the Microsoft Classes in those degrees have been changed to in-house exams instead (except for the MTAs).

It seems as if the Net Admin degree no longer requires the MCSA but you still take the 70-646 exam? (So you graduate w/ part of the cert but not the entire thing?)http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/prog_guide/BS_IT_NETW.pdf
It seems as if you don't take any MS exams (except for MTAs) in the Net Design/Management. http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/prog_guide/BS_IT_NTDM.pdf

Does anyone have info on the in-house exams? I'm assuming it's possible to transfer in the exams in those classes stead, but once you're enrolled you have to take their test and don't have the option of completing the cert for credit. Are their in-house exams designed to prepare you for the actual cert? (To then take on your own at a later date.)

Haunt

The new PDF's they put out are pretty confusing and the certifications you earn per program listed on the website are misleading. Here's what I know.

I believe there is one MTA class that is turning into an in-house exam instead of the cert, it actually shows this in the PDF's. The Network Admin track is staying the same with the MCSA: Server 2008 cert, nothing else changing other than that one MTA class.

Now it's the Network Design & Management track that is changing. This program is turning the MS: Applications Infrastructure and the MS: Enterprise Admin exams into WGU in-house exams. They're having to do this because Microsoft is retiring these certification exams on July 31, 2013, this means you will no longer be able to earn the MCITP: Enterprise Admin cert after July 31. You will still be able to take the classes for them, you just won't be able to take the exams for those 2 classes anymore. The AD and Network Infrastructure exams aren't expiring because they're still part of the MCSA: Server 2008 cert (along wither the 2008 Server Admin exam which you would have to take on your own). The Windows 7 exam is still part of this track too, but for some reason they don't have it listed on the web page for ND&M.

atl_libra

With the certs you have, it looks like you would transfer in 12 CU. Your network+ doesn't transfer into any classes, but the A+ and Sec+ do.

DoubleNNs

Thanks for the info Haunt. If you're sure the Net Admin track is keeping the MCSA, I think I'll do that emphasis instead of security then. I can always get my CCNA-Sec after graduation on my own.

atl_libra wrote: »

With the certs you have, it looks like you would transfer in 12 CU. Your network+ doesn't transfer into any classes, but the A+ and Sec+ do.

When I looked @ the transfer guidelines, it had an asterisk next to the Security Course in the Security Emphasis degree - it wouldn't accept credit unless I already had some sort of degree in security - i.e. an AAS. I have completed college credit, but I don't have a degree.

Besides, even if my Security+ did transfer into the Security program for 12 credits (tho I'm pretty sure I only get 8 for my A+), my same 3 certs give me 18 CU in the Net Admin emphasis and 21 CU in the Net Design/Management emphasis.

demonfurbie

have ya looked at straitliner for some of the basic classes

DoubleNNs

Yeah, I thought about StraighterLine, but it's too soon from entrance for that to be of any help. Plus I have some college credit completed.

Additionally, they never evaluated the school/cert transcripts I sent in (my enrollment counselor said he wouldn't do that until like 2 weeks before I started) so I don't even know which classes taken from StraighterLine would benefit me or not.

srabiee

Honestly, go with the program that interests you most. If you want to go the networking route to become a network engineer and obtain your CCNA, go with Network Administration. If, like me, you aren't too interested in networking and would rather concentrate on the server/Microsoft/sysadmin side if things, go ND&M

And honestly, if Security interests you the most, then by all means do that program. You're going to be stuck with the program for quite some time either way, and you want to make sure that you stay interested in the degree that you choose and that it's going to provide the max benefit to you and your chosen career path

Just my $.02

DoubleNNs

I'm interested in Networking.
It seems like the Security track is geared mostly to Network Security, it includes the CCNA and Linux, so it interested me.

I didn't exactly like the MS certs involved in the other Networking tracks, and the changing to in-house exams confused me so I steered away from those.. initially. However, now that I know that I can get nearly 2-3x as much cert credit transferred in, and those programs still emphasize my main interest, I want to switch to 1 of those now. My decision of which of the 2 at this point pretty much just rests on how exactly WGU is handling the MS certs.

I'm glad I found out and am making this decision before it was too late.

PurpleIT

I had a similar point of view when I started at WGU, the security track seemed interesting, but when I saw how much more I could transfer in with the Network Design & Management program my mind was made up. Of course, I was focused purely on getting my BS as fast as possible, so if your goals are different I would urge you to factor that in.

In my case, I ended up almost exclusively with classes I didn't like. After a little consideration, this made sense: I transferred in a lot of credits (90), so anything that I hadn't done up to this point was probably because I wasn't interested in it. This did make studying harder, but given MY goal it was worth it. If you are more interested in getting a degree and taking courses you are truly interested in than speeding through it you may want to consider this.

Just a thought...

Haunt

Hey, I thought I'd let you know that Microsoft extended the expiration date for the MCITP: EA on Windows Server 2008. It doesn't expire until January 31, 2014. MCITP: SA on Windows Server 2008 still expires on July 31, 2013.

This is great news for those of us on the ND&M track. Now I'll actually have time to complete the classes to earn the cert, just gotta get this damn JavaScript class done.