WGU in 6 Months Possible?

ZombieNo7

I'm considering starting a Bachelor's at WGU, but I'm on a very limited budget. Is getting through a degree in 6 months possible? I currently have no job, a Bachelor's in a different subject area to transfer, and (soon to be) A+ to transfer. What is the fastest that I could reasonably expect to graduate?

Iristheangel

Depends on how fast you can learn... Some people have gotten through it in 6 months but usually those are people with decent experience in IT so it was built on their current skillset. I guess the best and most honest answer is going to be "it depends"

ZombieNo7

Well, I don't have any professional experience, but I do know my way around Linux systems and hardware pretty well. I'm usually a quick learner, especially self-study. That's why I thought WGU would be perfect.

Iristheangel

If you have no professional experience, I'd give yourself at least a year to two years at WGU just so you really learn it all.

ZombieNo7

I wish I had a year. My budget is that limited. Don't get me wrong on the no experience thing. I may not have worked formally for a company, but I'm more than familiar with running both Linux and Windows systems, setting up servers, networks and whatnot. I just never had a job doing it.

Iristheangel

Well... there are some options. You don't necessarily have to pay all out of pocket immediately. You could try to find a job with tuition reimbursement. That's what I did and it worked out pretty well. You can also take out student loans with the Department of Education. The interest rates still relatively cheap in comparison to private loans.

The reality is that you're making an investment in your future. Sometimes you have to spend money to make money. As far as return on investment, WGU is not bad at all and if you work hard, you're getting more than just a degree. You'll actually get knowledge out of it and come certifications to show you actually can back it up.

SweenMachine

ZombieNo7 wrote: »

I wish I had a year. My budget is that limited.

I think if you were able to do it in 6 months, I would be suspect of the quality of the degree personally. Have you spoken to someone there about exactly what would transfer and how many courses you need to complete?

I think that is the real question. If you are an amazing self study student, and you can really push yourself, obviously anything is possible. But somethings are not physically possible no matter how great a student you might be.

-scott

ZombieNo7

I really wish that I could find a job like that, but where I am the job market is brutal, and entry level is almost not even a real thing. If I could find an entry level position the pay would be about on par with retail once the commute and everything are factored in. I can't take federal loans because I already have a degree, so that's not an option either. I would love to take my time and enjoy the learning experience, but I just don't have that kind of time. I'm looking for the "pressure cooker" approach, so to speak.

draught

I've been at WGU for 1 month I wouldn't call it easy by any means. From my limited expense it would be an enormous stretch to get all classes done in that time (Maybe if you aren't working or anything else). The only way I see it being possible is by bringing as much credit in to begin with and then only selecting the general IT degree. I brought in 60 units myself so my degree will probably take 8 or 9 months but again experience is key to really knowing.

Also WGU is extremely cheap, get a pell grant and take the time $3,000 in student loans(which you don't start to pay until after you finish the degree). This way at most you pay is $3,000 provided you can finish in a year. Even if it took you two years six thousand dollars in loans isn't bad.

eric281

I think it's definitely possible to do it in 6 months. I transferred in 59 cu, and I think I will be done in 3 months. I would go as far to say that if I had been completely focused in January, I could have come close to doing it in closer to 2 months. I might be kidding myself with that number, but 6 months is easily possible if that's your goal.

-hype

eric281 wrote: »

I think it's definitely possible to do it in 6 months. I transferred in 59 cu, and I think I will be done in 3 months. I would go as far to say that if I had been completely focused in January, I could have come close to doing it in closer to 2 months. I might be kidding myself with that number, but 6 months is easily possible if that's your goal.

But you transferred in a lot of classes. Especially those server 2008 classes, just those 3 would take even a knowledgeable IT guy 6 months to pass.

eric281

Well, I did kind of do it strategically. I downloaded the pdf that showed all of the certification equivalencies, and figured out what certs would give me the most credit. The company I was working for at the time paid for my certifications, and I figured out that if I took my CCDA and MCSA 2012 that I could clear a huge amount of CUs. That being said, I was able to pass all 5 tests I had to take in a relatively short time because I am very experienced in both.

draught

-hype wrote: »

But you transferred in a lot of classes. Especially those server 2008 classes, just those 3 would take even a knowledgeable IT guy 6 months to pass.

That's why it makes it a 9 month degree for me. What I haven't decided yet is if I will change majors to plain IT or go for the server/MCTIP courses. My belief is that it will benefit me in the long run with my career. I'm waiting to make that choice once I actually get started on those courses as I don't want to miss anything I might enjoy.

On the other hand in the real world I'm most interested in Cisco and Vmware.

mokaiba

It is possible to do it in six months, although, 12 months would be a more reasonable goal so that you don't burn yourself out.

mokaiba

draught wrote: »

That's why it makes it a 9 month degree for me. What I haven't decided yet is if I will change majors to plain IT or go for the server/MCTIP courses. My belief is that it will benefit me in the long run with my career. I'm waiting to make that choice once I actually get started on those courses as I don't want to miss anything I might enjoy.

On the other hand in the real world I'm most interested in Cisco and Vmware.

I've found doing BSIT no concentration then switching to BSIT security has been quite beneficial to me.

ZombieNo7

Thanks for all of the replies. I'm sorry I was so slow getting back. So, it might be reasonably possible to to in 6-9 months with a lot of transfer credit? Like I said before, I have a Bachelor's already in a different subject, so I was hoping all of the general classes would transfer. Then I was going to take at least one cert to transfer in with too. Is no concentration the easiest to get through also? As much as I like the idea of getting as many certs as possible, fast is my number one priority.