College Advice, please.

Glad I found this site / forums! Anyway, my names Josh, nice to meet everyone.

I was wondering if anybody had any Colleges that they recommend? You see, I have stomach and nerve problems so can not go to a Brick & Mortar College, so would have to go online.

I was considering WGU but I have no prior College experience. This will be my first time going to college. Would need it to be 100%

I want to get better and hope that pursuing a degree will give me a push.

Hoping to find a relatively cheap college, one that Financial Aid can pay for, to tell the truth.

Hope this was the right place to post this. =D

Degrees I am interested in:
IT
Networking
Cyber Security
Web Design
Game Design

Basically anything dealing with computers. =D

Sincerely,
Josh

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Comments

Ivanjam

You can get into WGU with a high school diploma or GED and a minimum of one IT certification, such as:
CIW Web Foundations Associate
CompTIA A+

Danielm7

Welcome, Josh. Not to get overly personal, but since you mentioned stomach and nerve problems, do you mean anxiety? If it is that and you can't go to a B&M college have you considered how you're going to get past that to work after school?

gbdavidx

he will have to find a wfh job if thats the case

BluePhoenixHD

Ivanjam wrote: »

You can get into WGU with a high school diploma or GED and a minimum of one IT certification, such as:
CIW Web Foundations Associate
CompTIA A+

Did not know that was an option. Have also read that WGU has high transfer costs.

Danielm7 wrote: »

Welcome, Josh. Not to get overly personal, but since you mentioned stomach and nerve problems, do you mean anxiety? If it is that and you can't go to a B&M college have you considered how you're going to get past that to work after school?

Kind of. Kind of difficult to explain. I am trying to get better and wanting to actually go to work, etc.

gbdavidx wrote: »

he will have to find a wfh job if thats the case

Yeah, that is an option, although not sure which jobs would work. Besides Telemarketing, I believe.

BluePhoenixHD

Ivan,

Did not know about that. What would that consist of, which study materials and how to do it online? Is it true WGU has high transfer costs? Also, how much does it cost to get the certificate?

Daniel,

Kind of hard to explain actually. I want a degree to push myself to be able to go a work place. Oh and thanks for welcoming me. =D

Gbdavidx,

That is certainly an option, not sure what type of job it would consist of though. Telemarketing comes to mind as well as Web Design possible.

Everybody,

This is all new to me, including using and navigating through the Command Prompt, etc. Willing to learn. =D

Ivanjam

@BluePhoenixHD - StraighterLine.com also offers introductory college courses accepted by WGU and a number of other online colleges: Online Colleges and Universities - Partner Colleges | StraighterLine

Their WGU-related offerings are here: Online College Courses - Distance Learning Courses | StraighterLine
Boot Up Your Information Technology Degree - IT Careers | StraighterLine

BluePhoenixHD

Ivanjam wrote: »

@BluePhoenixHD - StraighterLine.com also offers introductory college courses accepted by WGU and a number of other online colleges: Online Colleges and Universities - Partner Colleges | StraighterLine

Their WGU-related offerings are here: Online College Courses - Distance Learning Courses | StraighterLine
Boot Up Your Information Technology Degree - IT Careers | StraighterLine

Thanks for the links, checked them out. Is $149 worth it for 3 credits, if I finish the assigned course in a month?
Any other colleges that you recommend besides WGU?

BluePhoenixHD

Ivanjam,

Thanks, checked it out. Is $149 for 3 credits worth it? If I finish the assigned course in a month?

Also, does anybody have any other colleges to recommend, besides WGU? Trying to compare colleges, etc.

cyberguypr

I did the Fort Hays State University program through the Virtual College. It is more of a traditional program in the sense that the whole class moves at oen pace, you can't get ahead. They have two IT programs: Networking & Telecommunications and Web Development. In my particular case this worked better than WGU for the sole reason that due to work/family/etc, some semesters I could only take one class. A few semesters I was unable to take classes at all. It was definitely more cost effective than paying over $3000 per semester at WGU for just one class.

Now, if you have a lot of free time and push yourself, then something like WGU is a great option as you can pack a boatload of classes per semester and finish your degree quicker. You can get ahead as your abilities and desire permit.

If you want to get a feeling for online classes before committing to anything, you can check out MOOCs such as edX or Coursera.

Danielm7

You should check out this sticky post at the top of the forum.

http://www.techexams.net/forums/jobs-degrees/53985-master-list-b-m-colleges-offering-online-degrees.html

CCNTrainee

Ivanjam wrote: »

@BluePhoenixHD - StraighterLine.com also offers introductory college courses accepted by WGU and a number of other online colleges: Online Colleges and Universities - Partner Colleges | StraighterLine

Their WGU-related offerings are here: Online College Courses - Distance Learning Courses | StraighterLine
Boot Up Your Information Technology Degree - IT Careers | StraighterLine

If you don't mind, how does StraighterLine work?? Do you have a certian amount of time to complete the cousres or is it actually at your own pace??

Xonis1

check out SNHU - Online Degree | Undergraduate Programs | SNHU

Not too expansive and they have a couple of the majors you mentioned and is fully online. I believe they are regionally accredited.

full sail is another option but they are nationally accredited so may not have as much clout. I do know people and read about people there and though expensive , is a pretty good school.

I personally just started at WGU and like it for the most part. If you got your A+ that's 8 credits.

BluePhoenixHD

Cyberguypr,

Yeah, Fort Hays has been helpful and responsive to e-mail.s Not sure if I am that creative towards Web Development though. I used to make websites, not great ones or anything, in High School.

Danielm7,

Thanks, I did! Problem is, a good amount of them offers Master Degrees. Some colleges I got in contact with said that I would need a Bachelor's to even be able to apply.

Xonis1,

Checked them out and sent them a message for more information, etc.

NinjaBoy

BluePhoenixHD wrote: »

...Also, does anybody have any other colleges to recommend, besides WGU? Trying to compare colleges, etc.

If you're not fussed about whether or not it's a US college, you could look at the Open University, it an accredited University in the UK (this is the link for their international site - outside the EU). Here's the link for further info.

Depending on what modules you choose, there is either an exam or an assessment (eg a large assignment) at the end that's worth 50% of the course marks and the other 50% is based on anywhere from 2-4 assignments.

Currently studying my post-grad with them, hoping to end up with my Masters (if I don't the PGCert or the PGDip will be ok too

)

There is also the Charles Sturt University in Oz. They have partnered up with Microsoft to offer the IT Masters program.

BluePhoenixHD

NinjaBoy,

Not sure if UK degrees are accepted in the US? I mean, other then big name schools, etc. Looked it up though, like if they were, the answer's and question's was pretty mixed.

ajs1976

look into your local community and see if they have any online degrees or even just courses. You can use that to get you started.

Also Dakota State University has an online IT program that is reasonably priced.

NinjaBoy

BluePhoenixHD wrote: »

NinjaBoy,

Not sure if UK degrees are accepted in the US? I mean, other then big name schools, etc. Looked it up though, like if they were, the answer's and question's was pretty mixed.

It fuzzy in the US, I mean even if you gain your degree in one part of the US it may not be recognised in another part (depending on College or University) as, I believe, the US has regional accreditation rather than national accreditation (like the UK) and in some parts College's or Universities don't even have to be accredited or there is no accreditation process. For example Oregon and Michigan used to keep a list of Universities in the US that they didn't accept, however now a days they use organisations such as Chea.

Anyway, individual Universities outside of the US have to apply to get accredited in the US and the Open University is currently one of two UK Universities that have gained this:

USA Accreditation: Middle States Commission on Higher Education

The Open University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104. (267-284-5000). The Middle States Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. The Open University is one of only two UK higher education institutions to gain MSCHE accreditation.

See here.

Apart from that, if one did get a degree from a UK university (or from an education organisation from another country) that didn't have the US accreditation, then I believe you would have to get it evaluated by NACES (the US equivalent of UK NARIC).

Then after all of that, it's down to the prospective employer on whether or not they will accept your degree, but then again, that's the same thing with a degree gained in the US.

ptilsen

NinjaBoy wrote: »

It fuzzy in the US, I mean even if you gain your degree in one part of the US it may not be recognised in another part (depending on College or University) as, I believe, the US has regional accreditation rather than national accreditation (like the UK) and in some parts College's or Universities don't even have to be accredited or there is no accreditation process.

That's more or less the opposite of how it works, actually. Don't let the terminology confuse you; regionally accredited degrees (and their credits) are recognized almost universally within the country. Some schools receive only national accreditation, which is less widely accepted, and often these schools are considered inferior or sub-par. All degree-granted institutions must additionally be accredited by a state, the federal, or a tribal government in order to grant degrees at all. There is no such thing as a legal unaccredited degree in the US. Unaccredited programs generally grant certificates or diplomas, if anything.

Employers are certainly at their own discretion to accept a degree as meeting a requirement. Some will only accept regionally accredited degrees or (in some professions) degrees with certain national accreditation, but more commonly it will come down to the subjective analysis of HR and others involved in the hiring process as to how favorably to look upon a degree.

In general, WGU (from numerous anecdotal reports, mind you) is widely enough accepted by employers that it will certainly provide value as a credential. For OP, based on the situation, I think WGU would make a lot of sense.

NinjaBoy

Thanks for that, didn't know that info re national accreditation

I don't doubt that WGU would make more sense as the OP is in the US, however the OP did want alternatives.

The main point I was trying to get across (without saying it as people get touchy) was about degree mills (abeit maybe poorly) - institutes whose qualifications aren't worth the paper they're printed on...

instant000

BluePhoenixHD:

You received some decent advice in this thread.

One thing that I would add is that you should consider going to a community college to start, as that may be one of the most cost effective methods available to get your lower level credits knocked out. You would want to consider a community college that has an articulation agreement with the four-year school that you are targeting. (An articulation agreement means that they have agreed in advance to accept that community college's credits for certain courses. In some cases, the articulation agreement means that the Associates degree will be good for the entire two year block of general education for certain majors. You would need to research your target schools, for clarification.)

Also, I would recommend checking out these websites:
CLEP Forum - CLEP Study - CLEP Testing - Study Guide and Strategies
DegreeInfo Distance Learning - online degree forum - The Front Page

They may help you with some ideas about alternative routes to credentials, especially via distance learning.

CCNTrainee

Anyone has experiance with StraighterLine?? I would like to know how that problem works...

Also OP, around good one is University of Maryland University College, especially if you are looking into Cyber Security...

BluePhoenixHD

Sorry that it's been so long. I have been doing a lot of research actually. =P

CCNTrainee,
I actually talked to a UMUC representative plus a program adviser for their Cyber Security. Just back to the cost, doubt if I can pay for it.

Instant,
Was thinking of that but don't actually have a community college in my town. It's rather small. XD Anyhow, the only one that is close enough has to have you go to the College some times, so not able to do that.

Is Web Development a good field?

Polynomial

BluePhoenixHD wrote: »

I was wondering if anybody had any Colleges that they recommend? You see, I have stomach and nerve problems so can not go to a Brick & Mortar College, so would have to go online.

Have you ever worked anywhere before? I am very confused.

IT far from sitting in front of a computer every day. People skills are actually the most important whether you're dealing with a customer or selling something to the CIO/CTO. I would not recommend to ANYONE who has had no prior physical college experience to do stuff online as a replacement.

BluePhoenixHD

Polynomial,

No, I have not worked anywhere. Although, I did sell stuff in High School for the Camera / class. XD I'm trying to get better with my nerves and things to actually go out and get a job.

Polynomial

You need to go out there and interact with people. Do not do an online degree sitting at home.

Everyone in every role in IT needs people skills.

BluePhoenixHD

Polynomial,

Going to try.

---

Anyone know if Bismark College is more recognized / recommended then Fort Hays? Both offers a Web Development degree. Still searching. =D

BluePhoenixHD

Been e-mailing colleges, a lot of them. XD Anyhow, got a reply from Fort Hays and SNHU. Tried e-mailing others but not sure if they are sent out an e-mail to the wrong place. =P Anyhow, anyone have any more suggestions on colleges? I do not want to rush in it or anything, just wanting a good degree to get a good job. =D