Going back to college?

[Walking-Iris]

I'm not really sure where to put this thread. I thought about the chat board, but maybe I'll cross post.

 

I've recently begun to think about finishing my degree. I attended a state university as a psych major.

 

A friend recently clued me to Oregon State University's ecampus program. I live in a rural area and commuting to the nearest university would not be sustainable financially (it barely worked when my DH commuted for 1 class a few years ago) and obviously neither would relocating and moving to be near a school.

 

So I believe I have decided to try the ecampus. I really would like to take the iblce exam one day and it requires a specific credited course load as well as some CAE courses. I don't have the science course requirements (biology, anatomy, nutrition and medical terminology) for the exam. Those (except for anatomy, which I was taking before I withdrew) aren't usually high on most psych majors priority list.

 

I thought I may take those at the local CC, but unless I am degree seeking I wouldn't be eligible for aid. So I wonder if I transferred to the local CC and did get an associates then transferred to OSU later... if that would help? Or if that's a terrible idea?

 

Honestly though, my dh feels, and so do I, that it seems like I would be going backward. People usually go from community college to university, not usually from university to community college, right?

 

Also I was informed yesterday that I may have to take a COMPASS math and reading placement test at the CC, even though I have enough math and english credits (from a university!!) and grades (As and Bs) to be accepted at OSU? I don't even want to take (nor do I even *need*) a math or english course at the CC. I'm way beyond that point. I do however believe there are ways around that test. I would definitely find ways around that. It just seemed sort of silly that a local CC would even ask that. It's just what they ask of transfer students. In my case it seems like an insult to intelligence and whoever I was talking to was just quoting policy.

 

My dh feels that we could take the financial crunch of paying out of pocket for a few classes offered there to prevent more student loan debt. Even with financial aid, a class online at OSU is more than an out of pocket expense for a few credits at the CC. So if I could reduce the amount of online classes I would take at OSU, it may help as far as reducing any more student loan debt. I would then only focus on any upper level psych courses.

 

These credits I don't need for my psych major, but do need to one day take the iblce exam.

 

My question? Would it *not* be in my best interest to transfer from a college to a CC to get an associates and then transfer back to an online university? Does that seem like the wrong way to go about this?

[G5052]

I'm a community college professor, and it is *very* common for people to take seemingly odd paths on the way to a degree. Particularly because the college I work for has very strong transfer agreements with the 4-year schools including many guaranteed admissions agreements. So I've taught students who went away to a 4-year, then came back for various reasons to live at home and finish their 2-year, and then they went to a different 4-year to finish up. And when I teach in the summer, it isn't uncommon to have 1/2 of my class or more be 4-year students who are taking one summer class closer their jobs and home. The key though is to talk to the colleges ahead of time to see what they think. Here the community college courses on the transfer agreements are *not* considered inferior at all. We are held to the same state-wide standards as the 4-year professors are.

 

On the math, you have to accept that every college handles it differently. The college I work for requires a placement test in English and math unless you are transferring in those subjects at a certain level. If a math course is below the level they set, you have to take a placement test. Also if you aren't transferring in all of the math your program requires, they want a placement test to make sure that you're ready to take whatever math you need.

[Dana]

I agree with G5052 :)

 

The placement test is required because we do see students come in from all levels. If you took calculus 15 years ago, you may be rusty enough with it that you need a refresher course before taking a course that had calculus as a prerequisite. So that's one of the reasons the COMPASS would be required.

 

At our local university, you would look up "articulation agreements" to see what courses transferred in and with what course numbering. That may give you some good ideas. Some college websites really don't have have much useful information & I've found certain terms work better for searches.

 

For our nursing program, coursework also has to be done within a certain window of time or else the courses must be retaken. That's been an issue for some students I've taught. Anatomy & physiology is a course that's very in demand!

 

Good luck to you!