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DESIGN YOUR PLAN, PART 2 - CHARTER OAK STATE COLLEGE
STANDARD DISCLAIMER: BEFORE FOLLOWING ANY DEGREE PLAN, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE COMPARED IT TO CURRENT DEGREE REQUIREMENTS THROUGH THE SCHOOL. HOMESCHOOL COLLEGE USA CANNOT GUARANTEE ANY PLAN WILL BE ACCEPTED. (Speaking with an Academic Advisor at your school of choice is ALWAYS recommended.)
8/10/2013: I say all the time: THINGS CHANGE. And they do. COSC has changed their science requirement from 4 - 6 credits to 7 - 8 credits, 4 of which must come from a course with lab. Thanks to StraighterLine, this is not as difficult to accomplish as might first seem, but you should be aware of this significant change.
8/10/2013: I say all the time: THINGS CHANGE. And they do. COSC has changed their science requirement from 4 - 6 credits to 7 - 8 credits, 4 of which must come from a course with lab. Thanks to StraighterLine, this is not as difficult to accomplish as might first seem, but you should be aware of this significant change.
The first thing to make note of - COSC has some general education requirements. These are pretty simple and typical of colleges and universities today.
1. Literature and Fine Arts - 3 credits
2. Social/Behavioral Science - 3 credits
3. Ethical Decision Making - 3 credits
4. Information Literacy - 1-3 credits*
5. Communication - 6 credits written, 3 credits oral
6. US History/Government - 3 credits
7. Non-US History or Culture - 3 credits
8. Global Understanding - 3 credits
9. Mathematics (college algebra or higher) - 3 credits
10. Natural Sciences - 4 - 6 credits: 4 credits as one science course that includes a credit hour of lab, or two non-lab, 3-credit courses
*This is met by way of the required Cornerstone course. (Don't worry. We'll talk more about the Cornerstone in a bit.)
Now, the interesting thing is, some of these requirements may be met by something you take and apply to another area. What I mean by that is, suppose you are majoring in Psychology. Any one of your area of study credits will fulfill the Social/Behavioral Science requirement. That does NOT mean you get to double your credits. You can't say, Well, I'm taking the Abnormal Psychology ECE exam, so there's 3 credits in my general education requirements and 3 credits toward my concentration. It doesn't work that way. You still only get 3 credits for the test and you will still need 120 total for a BA or BS degree. This simply means you can cover certain bases without taking another course in that area. If you've got 36 credits in psychology for your major, you don't also have to get 3 more in "Social/Behavioral Science" just to fill in that category in general education requirements.
COSC has another interesting policy. You can decide if you want your degree to be a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science. The difference is in how many courses you take that are designated "liberal arts." You MUST take at least 60 credits worth. This will qualify you for a BS. If you want a BA instead, you need 90 credits in liberal arts courses.
And there's one more thing to keep in mind. All degrees require 30 upper-level (300 or 400 level) credits, which do not all have to be in your area of study/concentration.
The first question you probably have is, "How do I know what course or exam qualifies as what in the general education requirements?" This is likely followed up with, "And how do I know if it qualifies as a liberal arts course and/or upper level?" Plus, you may be thinking, "Well, which one do I want? A BA or a BS?" And I'm sure somewhere in there is also, "She said this isn't too complicated? Huh. I think her pants are on fire now."
No, really. Stay with me here. I promise it's not going to fry your brain and leave you humming Oh, Where is My Hairbrush? as you stand outside in your Spider-Man jammies painting your garage door a lovely shade of mauve. We're going to take this one step at a time.
Check this out. COSC has a "master exam list" that will actually partially answer all those questions. It tells you the name of the exam, what score you need to pass, where it fits in the general education requirements, how many credits you'll earn and whether those credits are upper- or lower-level, and even if the exam qualifies for the liberal arts designation. Look this over carefully and you'll see you have a lot of choices to meet your requirements.
Oh, go ahead and hum a few bars of the Hairbrush song anyway. You know you want to.
1. Literature and Fine Arts - 3 credits
2. Social/Behavioral Science - 3 credits
3. Ethical Decision Making - 3 credits
4. Information Literacy - 1-3 credits*
5. Communication - 6 credits written, 3 credits oral
6. US History/Government - 3 credits
7. Non-US History or Culture - 3 credits
8. Global Understanding - 3 credits
9. Mathematics (college algebra or higher) - 3 credits
10. Natural Sciences - 4 - 6 credits: 4 credits as one science course that includes a credit hour of lab, or two non-lab, 3-credit courses
*This is met by way of the required Cornerstone course. (Don't worry. We'll talk more about the Cornerstone in a bit.)
Now, the interesting thing is, some of these requirements may be met by something you take and apply to another area. What I mean by that is, suppose you are majoring in Psychology. Any one of your area of study credits will fulfill the Social/Behavioral Science requirement. That does NOT mean you get to double your credits. You can't say, Well, I'm taking the Abnormal Psychology ECE exam, so there's 3 credits in my general education requirements and 3 credits toward my concentration. It doesn't work that way. You still only get 3 credits for the test and you will still need 120 total for a BA or BS degree. This simply means you can cover certain bases without taking another course in that area. If you've got 36 credits in psychology for your major, you don't also have to get 3 more in "Social/Behavioral Science" just to fill in that category in general education requirements.
COSC has another interesting policy. You can decide if you want your degree to be a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science. The difference is in how many courses you take that are designated "liberal arts." You MUST take at least 60 credits worth. This will qualify you for a BS. If you want a BA instead, you need 90 credits in liberal arts courses.
And there's one more thing to keep in mind. All degrees require 30 upper-level (300 or 400 level) credits, which do not all have to be in your area of study/concentration.
The first question you probably have is, "How do I know what course or exam qualifies as what in the general education requirements?" This is likely followed up with, "And how do I know if it qualifies as a liberal arts course and/or upper level?" Plus, you may be thinking, "Well, which one do I want? A BA or a BS?" And I'm sure somewhere in there is also, "She said this isn't too complicated? Huh. I think her pants are on fire now."
No, really. Stay with me here. I promise it's not going to fry your brain and leave you humming Oh, Where is My Hairbrush? as you stand outside in your Spider-Man jammies painting your garage door a lovely shade of mauve. We're going to take this one step at a time.
Check this out. COSC has a "master exam list" that will actually partially answer all those questions. It tells you the name of the exam, what score you need to pass, where it fits in the general education requirements, how many credits you'll earn and whether those credits are upper- or lower-level, and even if the exam qualifies for the liberal arts designation. Look this over carefully and you'll see you have a lot of choices to meet your requirements.
Oh, go ahead and hum a few bars of the Hairbrush song anyway. You know you want to.
Quick recap here. Right now, we're looking at putting together a degree plan for Charter Oak State College. We know we have some general education requirements to meet, we know we need at least 60 liberal arts credits (or 90, for a BA degree), we know we also need 30 upper-level credits, and that (at least eventually), we'll have to determine a major, aka "concentration," so we can plan those credits, too.
Let's begin with looking at those general education requirements, tentatively. Why tentatively? Because, as I mentioned before, it's possible that some of your area of concentration credits will cover those gen ed requirements. This means, we'll tentatively plan out a gen ed schedule, but we may tweak it when it comes to your particular major.
You know how when you were going through the GET STARTED portion of this site, I said to grab a notebook and pen? You still have that with you, right? You're going to want to start writing things down again.
First up: Literature and Fine Arts - 3 credits. If you're thinking, "Hmmm. That one seems pretty self explanatory." - you're right! Obviously, you won't be applying credits for physical geology here. If we look at the master exam list, we find the following choices to meet this requirement.
Let's begin with looking at those general education requirements, tentatively. Why tentatively? Because, as I mentioned before, it's possible that some of your area of concentration credits will cover those gen ed requirements. This means, we'll tentatively plan out a gen ed schedule, but we may tweak it when it comes to your particular major.
You know how when you were going through the GET STARTED portion of this site, I said to grab a notebook and pen? You still have that with you, right? You're going to want to start writing things down again.
First up: Literature and Fine Arts - 3 credits. If you're thinking, "Hmmm. That one seems pretty self explanatory." - you're right! Obviously, you won't be applying credits for physical geology here. If we look at the master exam list, we find the following choices to meet this requirement.
- DSST Art of the Western World (3 credits)
- AP Studio Art/Portfolio (6 credits)
- AP Art History (6 credits)
- CLEP American Literature (6 credits)
- CLEP Analyzing & Interpreting Literature (6 credits)
- CLEP English Literature (6 credits)
- GRE Literature in English (an exam worth 18 credits with a passing score!)
- CLEP Humanities (6 credits)
- ECE Introduction to Music (3 credits)
- AP Music Theory (6 credits)
- AP Spanish Literature (6 credits)
- Penn Foster Art Appreciation (3 credits)
- Penn Foster Music Appreciation (3 credits)
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the arts and literature, and gain an appreciation of their impact on our heritage and culture. Examples: Music Appreciation, Art Appreciation, Art History, Music History, Theatre, Dance, Creative Writing, Drawing, Literature.
Go ahead and in your notebook, jot down a few exams or possible courses you think you might be interested in, to meet this requirement. Make a note that these exams do count toward your liberal arts credits total. Also, they are all lower-level credits. The GRE is an exception to that, as it awards 15 lower-level credits and 3 upper-level.
Next we have Social/Behavioral Science - 3 credits. The list of possible exams and courses here is a fairly long one, so you have plenty of choices.
And again, you may also want to take an online course from any accredited college or university or course through a school near you for this requirement. It needs to meet the following definition:
Next we have Social/Behavioral Science - 3 credits. The list of possible exams and courses here is a fairly long one, so you have plenty of choices.
- DSST General Anthropology (3 credits)
- DSST Criminal Justice (3 credits)
- DSST Foundations of Education (3 credits)
- AP Macroeconomics (3 credits)
- AP Microeconomics (3 credits)
- ECE Introduction to Macroeconomics (3 credits)
- ECE Introduction to Microeconomics (3 credits)
- DSST Money and Banking (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP Principles of Macroeconomics (3 credits)
- CLEP Principles of Microeconomics (3 credits)
- AP Human Geography (3 credits)
- DSST Human/Cultural Geography (3 credits)
- ECE Foundations of Gerontology (3 upper-level credits)
- DSST Organizational Behavior (3 credits)
- ECE Organizational Behavior (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP American Government (3 credits)
- AP Comparative Government and Politics (3 credits)
- AP US Government and Politics (3 credits)
- ECE/UExcel Political Science (3 credits)
- ECE Abnormal Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
- COSC Child Developmental Psychology exam (3 credits)
- DSST Fundamentals of Counseling (3 credits)
- CLEP Human Growth and Development (3 credits)
- CLEP Introduction to Educational Psychology (3 credits)
- ECE/UExcel Introduction to Psychology (3 credits)
- CLEP Introductory Psychology (3 credits)
- DSST Lifespan Developmental Psychology (3 credits)
- ECE Lifespan Developmental Psychology (3 credits)
- AP Psychology (3 credits)
- GRE Psychology (3 upper-level credits, 15 lower-level)
- ECE Psychology of Adulthood and Aging (3 upper-level credits)
- TECEP Psychology of Women (3 credits)
- ECE Research Methods in Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
- ECE Social Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP Social Sciences and History (6 credits)
- ECE Cultural Diversity (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP Introductory Sociology (3 credits)
- ECE Juvenile Delinquency (3 upper-level credits)
- TECEP Marriage and Family (3 credits)
- ECE World Conflicts Since 1900 (3 upper-level credits)
- ECE World Population (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Microeconomics (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Macroeconomics (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Introduction to Psychology (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Introduction to Sociology (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Organizational Behavior (3 upper-level credits)
- StraighterLine Cultural Anthropology (3 credits)
- Saylor Introduction to Western Political Thought (3 credits)
- Saylor Corporate Communication (3 credits)
And again, you may also want to take an online course from any accredited college or university or course through a school near you for this requirement. It needs to meet the following definition:
Students will gain an understanding of self and the world, of social and cultural institutions, and the interdependent influences of the individual, family, and society in shaping behavior. - Examples: Anthropology, criminal justice, communications, economics, education (not Subject Methods or Student Teaching), gerontology, psychology, sociology, political science, communications (not Basic Speech).
Like with your Literature and Fine Arts requirement, take some time now to write down a few exams or courses you might like to take, that would qualify as a Social/Behavioral Science. These, too, all qualify as liberal arts credits.
Our third category is Ethical Decision Making - 3 credits. The choices here are more limited than in most of the other categories.
Charter Oak says this about Ethical Decision Making:
- DSST Business Ethics and Society (3 upper-level credits)
- TECEP Business in Society (3 upper-level credits)
- ECE Bioethics: Philosophical Issues (3 upper-level credits)
- DSST Ethics in America (3 credits)
- ECE Ethics Theory and Practice (3 upper-level credits)
- StraighterLine Business Ethics (3 upper-level credits)
Charter Oak says this about Ethical Decision Making:
Student will be able to use critical thinking skills to make ethical decisions. May be met by taking a course that has a significant ethics component, by taking a series of courses that have an ethical component, or by taking courses such as Principles of Ethics, Business Ethics, Health Care Ethics, or Computer Ethics.
Pick a course to meet this requirement. If you are planning on majoring in business, choose one of the courses with "business" in the name, so you can also apply it to your concentration. And yes, these are liberal arts credits, too.
So, the fourth category is called "Information Literacy," and we're going to ignore it. Yep. Ignore it. Since COSC made the Cornerstone course a requirement for all degrees, you will automatically earn what you need here, as the Cornerstone covers it. (Pssst. Do click on that link and read over the info about the cornerstone, so you understand what that's all about.)
So, the fourth category is called "Information Literacy," and we're going to ignore it. Yep. Ignore it. Since COSC made the Cornerstone course a requirement for all degrees, you will automatically earn what you need here, as the Cornerstone covers it. (Pssst. Do click on that link and read over the info about the cornerstone, so you understand what that's all about.)
This bring us to category 5. And being a Floridian, I'm suddenly thinking Hurricane! But really, it's not that bad. What Communication - 6 credits written, 3 credits oral basically boils down to is English Composition 101, English Composition 102, and Public Speaking. You can pick up part of this with a technical writing course, too. Here's the official version:
Students will communicate effectively using Standard English, read and listen critically, and write and speak thoughtfully, clearly, coherently and persuasively.
Written (e) - Examples: English Composition I and II, English Composition, plus Technical Writing course or two writing-intensive courses, CLEP exam with essay, AP English/Language and Composition.
Oral (o) - Example: Principles of Speech, Principles of Public Speaking
This means we have the following options here (and all qualify as liberal arts):
** These exams are listed as meeting the "second half of the written communication" requirement. Presumably that would apply to the Penn Foster course as well, but you can always check with COSC to confirm it.
Side note: For those interested in earning some credits from Clovis Community College, they have an online public speaking course.
You need to decide how you will earn your 6 credits in written English and 3 credits in public speaking. Strictly speaking in costs, the CLEP College Composition exam plus the DSST Principles of Public Speaking exam would be the least expensive options.
- CLEP College Composition (6 credits)
- ECE/UExcel College Writing (3 credits)
- ECE English Composition - Essay Format (6 credits)
- TECEP English Composition 1 (3 credits)
- TECEP English Composition 2 (3 credits)
- AP English Language and Composition (6 credits)
- AP English Literature and Composition (6 credits)
- DSST Technical Writing (3 credits)**
- TECEP Technical Writing (3 credits)**
- DSST Principles of Public Speaking (3 credits)
- StraighterLine English Composition 1 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine English Composition 2 (3 credits)
- Penn Foster English Composition (3 credits)
- Penn Foster Business and Technical Writing (3 credits)
** These exams are listed as meeting the "second half of the written communication" requirement. Presumably that would apply to the Penn Foster course as well, but you can always check with COSC to confirm it.
Side note: For those interested in earning some credits from Clovis Community College, they have an online public speaking course.
You need to decide how you will earn your 6 credits in written English and 3 credits in public speaking. Strictly speaking in costs, the CLEP College Composition exam plus the DSST Principles of Public Speaking exam would be the least expensive options.
Next, we want to look at US History/Government - 3 credits. This is another self-explanatory one. You can get these credits through a US History exam or course, or an American Government exam or course.
From COSC:
- DSST Civil War and Reconstruction (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP History of the United States 1 (3 credits)
- CLEP History of the United States 2 (3 credits)
- AP History of the United States (6 credits)
- CLEP American Government (3 credits)
- AP U.S. Government and Politics (3 credits)
- StraighterLine U.S. History 1 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine U.S. History 2 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine American Government (3 credits)
From COSC:
Students will have an understanding of the ideas and processes that shaped the history of the United States. Examples: American Government, American History, History of the United States, The Civil War.
Make a note of which 3-credits exam or course you want to complete for this category, and that this, too, will count as a liberal arts course.
The seventh category of general education requirements is Non-US History or Culture - 3 credits. Before I even start listing possible ways to earn these credits, I want you to look at the general description, so you can see how broad this one really is.
The seventh category of general education requirements is Non-US History or Culture - 3 credits. Before I even start listing possible ways to earn these credits, I want you to look at the general description, so you can see how broad this one really is.
Students will have an understanding of major developments in the history and culture of other countries. Examples: any art, literature, history, foreign language or religion course, Western Civilization I or II.
So, you can see this one's rather all over the map, pardon the pun.
These are, as I'm sure you already figured out, all liberal arts credits. Make a note of some that interest you. (And, of course, again, you can also look at other avenues such as local colleges.)
- DSST Art of the Western World (3 credits)
- AP Art History (6 credits)
- AP Chinese Language and Culture (6 credits)
- CLEP English Literature (6 credits)
- GRE Literature in English (15 lower-level credits and 3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP French (6 credits with a score of at least 50, or 12 credits for a score of 59 or above)
- AP French (6 credits)
- AP Human Geography (3 credits)
- DSST Human/Cultural Geography (3 credits)
- CLEP German (6 credits with a score of at least 50, or 12 credits for a score of 60 or above)
- AP German Language (6 credits)
- DSST A History of the Vietnam War (3 credits)
- DSST Introduction to the Modern Middle East (3 credits)
- DSST Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP Western Civilization 1 (3 credits)
- CLEP Western Civilization 2 (3 credits)
- DSST Western Europe Since 1945 (3 credits)
- AP European History (6 credits)
- AP World History (6 credits)
- CLEP Humanities (6 credits)
- AP Italian Language and Culture (6 credits)
- AP Japanese Language and Culture (6 credits)
- AP Latin (6 credits)
- AP Comparative Government and Politics (3 credits)
- DSST Introduction to World Religions (3 credits)
- CLEP Social Sciences and History (6 credits)
- ECE World Conflicts Since 1900 (3 upper-level credits)
- ECE World Population (3 credits)
- CLEP Spanish (6 credits with a score of at least 50, 12 credits for a score of 63 or above)
- AP Spanish Literature (6 credits)
- StraighterLine Western Civilization 1 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Western Civilization 2 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Introduction to Religions (3 credits)
- Penn Foster Art Appreciation (3 credits)
These are, as I'm sure you already figured out, all liberal arts credits. Make a note of some that interest you. (And, of course, again, you can also look at other avenues such as local colleges.)
Right. So we've made it to category 8, and this is another one of those that maybe isn't quite so obvious. Just what is Global Understanding - 3 credits, anyway? COSC describes it as thus:
Students will have an understanding of the impact of nations, regions and cultures upon other nations, regions and cultures and the impact of these interactions upon individuals. Examples: Religions of the World, Comparative Economic Systems, Comparative Political Systems, Intercultural Communications (focus must be on communication among specific cultures), International Business, International Economics, International Marketing, Introduction to Modern Middle East.
These are exams and courses you can take for this requirement:
*** This course should be first confirmed with a COSC advisor if you are looking to apply it here as well as a natural science.
By now, you are probably seeing how many courses and exams cross-apply to two or more categories. Just remember that your total number of credits for your degree needs to be 120, regardless of how many you actually pick up here, meeting your general education requirements. Choose something for this category (it will be a liberal arts course, too) and we'll move on to the next.
We're up to Mathematics (college algebra or higher) - 3 credits. I'm about to list some options here, but I want to start with saying I highly recommend you take care of these credits by using ALEKS. It's really hard to beat the $20 a month price. You can take Intermediate Algebra first, if you need the lower-level math, and use it as an elective, then take the College Algebra course to meet this specific requirement. Remember, with ALEKS, the price is the course. There are no additional fees for exams or books or anything else.
Here's COSC's explanation for their math requirement:
- AP Human Geography (3 credits)
- DSST Human/Cultural Geography (3 credits)
- DSST A History of the Vietnam War (3 credits)
- DSST Introduction to the Modern Middle East (3 credits)
- DSST Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union (3 upper-level credits)
- DSST Western Europe Since 1945 (3 credits)
- AP Comparative Government and Politics (3 credits)
- DSST Introduction to World Religions (3 credits)
- DSST Environment and Humanity (3 credits)
- AP Environmental Science (4 credits)
- ECE World Conflicts Since 1900 (3 upper-level credits)
- ECE World Population (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Introduction to Religion (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Environmental Science (3 credits)***
*** This course should be first confirmed with a COSC advisor if you are looking to apply it here as well as a natural science.
By now, you are probably seeing how many courses and exams cross-apply to two or more categories. Just remember that your total number of credits for your degree needs to be 120, regardless of how many you actually pick up here, meeting your general education requirements. Choose something for this category (it will be a liberal arts course, too) and we'll move on to the next.
We're up to Mathematics (college algebra or higher) - 3 credits. I'm about to list some options here, but I want to start with saying I highly recommend you take care of these credits by using ALEKS. It's really hard to beat the $20 a month price. You can take Intermediate Algebra first, if you need the lower-level math, and use it as an elective, then take the College Algebra course to meet this specific requirement. Remember, with ALEKS, the price is the course. There are no additional fees for exams or books or anything else.
Here's COSC's explanation for their math requirement:
Students will have an understanding of mathematics beyond the entry-level requirements for college. Examples: College-level algebra or higher.
Give ALEKS a try. You really don't have that much to lose. (Homeschoolers, get your free two-month trial here.) If you are struggling with the learning format, check out the free math resources here to use as study aids. You can always drop it and try something else if it really isn't working for you at all, but give it a shot first.
Did I mention trying ALEKS first? Yeah. Go with that. Your math credits will count as Liberal Arts.
And that brings us to the final category - Natural Sciences - 7 - 8 credits. (Changed as of the 2013 - 2014 school year)
- COSC Business Statistics exam (6 credits, 3 of which will count as Liberal Arts)
- CLEP Calculus (3 credits)
- ECE/UExcel Calculus (4 credits)
- AP Calculus AB (3 credits)
- AP Calculus BC (6 credits)
- CLEP College Algebra (3 credits)
- CLEP College Mathematics (6 credits)
- DSST Fundamentals of College Algebra (3 credits)
- GRE Mathematics (24 credits, some upper and some lower, amount not specified)
- CLEP PreCalculus (3 credits)
- DSST Principles of Statistics (3 credits)
- AP Statistics (3 credits)
- ECE/UExcel Statistics (3 credits)
- ALEKS College Algebra (3 credits)
- ALEKS PreCalculus (3 credits)
- ALEKS Statistics (3 credits)
- Udacity Introduction to Statistics (3 credits)
- StraighterLine College Algebra (3 credits)
- StraighterLine PreCalculus (3 credits)
- StraighterLine General Calculus 1 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine General Calculus 2 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Business Statistics (3 credits)
Did I mention trying ALEKS first? Yeah. Go with that. Your math credits will count as Liberal Arts.
And that brings us to the final category - Natural Sciences - 7 - 8 credits. (Changed as of the 2013 - 2014 school year)
Students will understand the basic scientific process and theories and be able to apply scientific inquiry. One 4-credit course that includes a lab must be taken. The second course can be either a 4-credit lab or a 3-credit course without a lab.
Yes, it is possible to take a science course with a lab component from home. StraighterLine offers them in a handful of subjects. You do have to pay an extra $120ish for the lab kit for these courses. You will need to choose one of these courses, or take another course either online or through a local college, to meet the lab requirement.
So, pick two sciences, including one with a lab (and possibly some alternatives if you are interested), and there you have it. You've selected some options for all your general education requirements. Yay, you! Now we just have to work out the rest of your degree.
- ECE Anatomy & Physiology (6 credits)
- GRE Biology (15 lower-level credits, 9 upper-level)
- AP Biology (8 credits)
- CLEP Biology (6 credits)
- ECE Microbiology (3 credits)
- ECE Pathophysiology (3 upper-level credits)
- GRE Chemistry (15 lower-level credits, 9 upper-level)
- AP Chemistry (8 credits)
- CLEP Chemistry (6 credits)
- DSST Astronomy (3 credits)
- ECE Earth Science (3 credits)
- DSST Physical Geology (3 credits)
- GRE Physics (24 credits, some upper and some lower, amounts not specified)
- ECE/UExcel Physics (6 credits)
- AP Physics B (8 credits)
- AP Physics C - Electricity and Magnetism (4 credits)
- AP Physics C - Mechanics (4 credits)
- DSST Environment and Humanity (3 credits)
- AP Environmental Science (4 credits)
- CLEP Natural Sciences (6 credits)
- DSST Principles of Physical Science 1 (3 credits)
- TECEP The Science of Nutrition (3 credits)
- Udacity Introduction to Physics (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Biology with Lab (4 credits)
- StraighterLine Biology (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Anatomy and Physiology 1 with Lab (4 credits)
- StraighterLine Anatomy and Physiology (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Anatomy and Physiology 2 with Lab (4 credits)
- StraighterLine Anatormy and Physiology 2 (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Chemistry with Lab (4 credits)
- StraighterLine Chemistry (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Introduction to Nutrition (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Physics with Lab (4 credits)
- StraighterLine Physics (3 credits)
- StraighterLine Environmental Science (3 credits)
So, pick two sciences, including one with a lab (and possibly some alternatives if you are interested), and there you have it. You've selected some options for all your general education requirements. Yay, you! Now we just have to work out the rest of your degree.
You know what? Let's just take a break here for a minute. Stand up. No, really. Stand up. Uh, huh. And.... stretch. Reach up as high as you can, bend down and touch your toes, and work all those kinks out.
There. Good. Moving on.
There. Good. Moving on.
Now, what you've got so far is a list of exams and/or courses that can potentially meet all the required general education credits. This is, of course, only a part of all the credits you will need. Here is where things get a bit more tricky. If you do have a major in mind, it's a little easier to plan the remaining non-area of concentration credits, because you will know exactly how many upper-level credits you still need to make the full 30, and how many liberal arts credits you will still need to reach 60 or 90 credits. If you don't know what you want your degree in, though, that's okay.
We're right now going to take a look at some of the degree options, if you haven't already done so. This is so you can get an idea of what is typically needed for areas of concentration. Start on this page. Read it over, and then pick four or five specific degrees to look at.
Generally, you will see that you need 36 credits in your area of study. Typically, at least 15 of these will be required upper-level. Also, depending on your major, it's likely that at least some of the electives you choose will be, by their nature, upper-level as well.
Let's break down the psychology major. This is one where students have many options in the testing department. These are the requirements:
We're right now going to take a look at some of the degree options, if you haven't already done so. This is so you can get an idea of what is typically needed for areas of concentration. Start on this page. Read it over, and then pick four or five specific degrees to look at.
Generally, you will see that you need 36 credits in your area of study. Typically, at least 15 of these will be required upper-level. Also, depending on your major, it's likely that at least some of the electives you choose will be, by their nature, upper-level as well.
Let's break down the psychology major. This is one where students have many options in the testing department. These are the requirements:
Students can go about meeting these requirements in a variety of ways. First, there's the Psychology GRE exam. This exam could be used to cover 18 of the 21 elective credits needed. If the idea of taking a graduate-level exam is overwhelming, there are other options.
Going back to consult the COSC master exam list, we can come up with a plan for the individual requirements.
1. Research Methods or Experimental Design: ECE Research Methods (3 upper-level credits)
2. Theory: DSST Lifespan Developmental Psychology (3 credits), and CLEP Introduction to Educational Psychology (3 credits)
3. Applied: ECE Social Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
4. Electives: Psychology GRE (3 upper-level credits, 15 lower-level credits) and ECE Abnormal Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
5. Capstone: Taken online through COSC (3 upper-level credits)
Now we have all the area of concentration requirements met, along with 15 upper-level credits. Because this is psychology, we also have 36 liberal arts credits.
Supposing someone doesn't want to take the GRE. He can earn those other 18 credits this way:
Depending on the chosen online course, this may equate to 3 additional upper-level credits.
Keep in mind, the two plans above are just examples! A student could also take online courses through another regionally accredited school, mix-and-match between courses and exams, and take several courses directly through COSC. The goal in taking a moment to look at this was so that you could see where the potential is for upper-level credits and liberal arts credits, even if you haven't actually settled on a major yet.
Let's now backtrack and look at your tentative general education requirements plan. How many credits do you have right now? How many of them qualify as liberal arts? Are any of them upper-level? Make a note of each of these things. Remember, too, that there's a good chance at least one of your area of concentration courses will also serve to meet one or more of the categories of the general education needs.
I have a recommendation. In planning your degree, unless you are SURE it won't matter to you, aim for the 90 liberal arts credits. You can always still decide to get a BS degree, but this leaves the option open to you for the BA.
So, you have a certain number of credits already mapped out. You also know you will probably need 36 credits in your area of concentration. (I say probably, because there are a few exceptions, such as Child Studies, which requires 39, but it's a good number to work from to start.) The next step is to fill in the gaps so that you have 120 credits total planned.
There's no real trick to determining what is or isn't considered a liberal arts course. Look over this list.
Going back to consult the COSC master exam list, we can come up with a plan for the individual requirements.
1. Research Methods or Experimental Design: ECE Research Methods (3 upper-level credits)
2. Theory: DSST Lifespan Developmental Psychology (3 credits), and CLEP Introduction to Educational Psychology (3 credits)
3. Applied: ECE Social Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
4. Electives: Psychology GRE (3 upper-level credits, 15 lower-level credits) and ECE Abnormal Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
5. Capstone: Taken online through COSC (3 upper-level credits)
Now we have all the area of concentration requirements met, along with 15 upper-level credits. Because this is psychology, we also have 36 liberal arts credits.
Supposing someone doesn't want to take the GRE. He can earn those other 18 credits this way:
- CLEP Introductory Psychology (3 credits)
- DSST Fundamentals of Counseling (3 credits)
- TECEP Psychology of Women (3 credits)
- ECE Psychology of Adulthood and Aging (3 upper-level credits)
- COSC Child Developmental Psychology exam (3 credits)
- 1 online psychology course through COSC, taken alongside the capstone course, that does not duplicate any credits already earned (3 credits)
Depending on the chosen online course, this may equate to 3 additional upper-level credits.
Keep in mind, the two plans above are just examples! A student could also take online courses through another regionally accredited school, mix-and-match between courses and exams, and take several courses directly through COSC. The goal in taking a moment to look at this was so that you could see where the potential is for upper-level credits and liberal arts credits, even if you haven't actually settled on a major yet.
Let's now backtrack and look at your tentative general education requirements plan. How many credits do you have right now? How many of them qualify as liberal arts? Are any of them upper-level? Make a note of each of these things. Remember, too, that there's a good chance at least one of your area of concentration courses will also serve to meet one or more of the categories of the general education needs.
I have a recommendation. In planning your degree, unless you are SURE it won't matter to you, aim for the 90 liberal arts credits. You can always still decide to get a BS degree, but this leaves the option open to you for the BA.
So, you have a certain number of credits already mapped out. You also know you will probably need 36 credits in your area of concentration. (I say probably, because there are a few exceptions, such as Child Studies, which requires 39, but it's a good number to work from to start.) The next step is to fill in the gaps so that you have 120 credits total planned.
There's no real trick to determining what is or isn't considered a liberal arts course. Look over this list.
Add up the number of liberal arts credits you already have from your general education list. (If you tentatively put down more than one choice per category, count only one for now.) If you plan to major in a liberal arts field, such as psychology or English, you can add 36 to that number.
Next, looking over the master exam list again, choose exams that interest you, that will allow you to complete 60 - 90 credits in liberal arts courses. Don't forget, the cornerstone and capstone courses count in the total.
Once you've got a total of 60 - 90 liberal arts credits, and you are sure every general education requirement is met, whatever you have left can be any electives you choose, including the free FEMA independent study courses.
Did I lose you here? Don't worry. We're now going to put together an sample Psychology degree plan. Having an example should help make this easier to understand.
Next, looking over the master exam list again, choose exams that interest you, that will allow you to complete 60 - 90 credits in liberal arts courses. Don't forget, the cornerstone and capstone courses count in the total.
Once you've got a total of 60 - 90 liberal arts credits, and you are sure every general education requirement is met, whatever you have left can be any electives you choose, including the free FEMA independent study courses.
Did I lose you here? Don't worry. We're now going to put together an sample Psychology degree plan. Having an example should help make this easier to understand.
CHARTER OAK - BA IN PSYCHOLOGY PLAN
General Education - Liberal Arts credits
Area of Concentration
Let's stop for a minute and evaluate what we have so far.
1. Do we have at least 90 liberal arts credits? Check! We have exactly 90 at the moment.
2. Have we covered the area of concentration requirements? Check!
3. Do we have at least 30 upper-level credits? Check!
4. Have we met all the general education requirements? Let's make sure.
What does this mean? We currently have 91 credits, and we've met all our requirements. This leaves us with 29 credits to fill in, any way we want. These could come from any exams from the master exam list (that don't duplicate any credits already listed), ALEKS Intermediate Algebra, PreCalculus, and Statistics, any online courses (also that don't duplicate) that have approval of some form such as ACE or are taken through a regionally accredited school, any regionally accredited college courses taken on a campus, and/or FEMA Independent Study courses.
If we want to go the free route (Yay! Free!), we can do the following:
And there we have it! A COSC BA in Psychology degree plan. You can take the same steps we just used here in our example, and apply them to planning a degree with the major of your choice. Now, one of the things that made this particular plan so easy to put together was the availability of so many psychology exams. This is true, too, of the history degree, and the business administration degree. It does get a bit more complicated when you pick a major that doesn't have much by way of concentration equivalencies with exams. Complicated, but not impossible by any means. One thing to remember about your area of concentration is that even if you can't find any exams to cover what you need and there aren't any online courses you can find, you still have the option of earning your credits through portfolio assessments, as we already discussed.
So... you're looking at all your scribbles on your notepad and thinking, "Nope. She said this was easy. She's crazy. That's the only explanation." Or maybe you're thinking, "She still hasn't answered whether or not I should get a BA or a BS degree." Or you might just be thinking, "What's for dinner? I'm hungry."
I might be crazy. If you decide to major in psychology, maybe I can be a case study for you! Aside from that, give yourself a day or two to really absorb this. Before you even start asking yourself things like, "Should I take a CLEP, or would I be better off with something like a StraighterLine course?" or "Where am I going to find the materials to study for all these tests?" or "What order should I do all these courses and/or exams in?" - just take a breather. Look over the names of the exams/courses you wrote down. Which ones really appeal to you? Which ones are in subjects for which you have a natural aptitude? Whatever is prompting you to work on earning a college degree, you should make it something that you enjoy as much as possible, or you run the risk of eventually giving up and abandoning your goals. So take some time to really consider what subjects you would like to study, before you even decide if you want to do so through some type of formal course, or by studying independently and taking an exam. Then come back and read over this again. After you've had time to think about it, it will make it easier to digest all the information the second time through.
As for the BA vs BS degree? That's open to debate. Google it and you'll see what I mean. Generally speaking, it probably makes little difference in the grand scheme of things, unless you plan to enter a field that requires one over the other. (You'll have to do some research to determine that.) I have on occasion come across someone claiming that a BS degree is somehow considered "lesser" than a BA, but frankly, I don't put a lot of merit in that argument, since I've never seen anyone provide a solid reason for why this would be true.
And dinner? That's entirely up to you. We're having pasta and a spinach salad.
General Education - Liberal Arts credits
- CLEP College Composition (6 credits)
- DSST Principles of Public Speaking (3 credits)
- ECE Organizational Behavior (3 upper-level credits)
- ALEKS College Algebra (3 credits)
- ECE Juvenile Delinquency (3 upper-level credits)
- CLEP Spanish (6 - 12 credits)*
- CLEP Analyzing & Interpreting Literature (6 credits)
- DSST Business Ethics and Society (3 upper-level credits) or Saylor Business Law and Ethics (only if it is confirmed as upper-level)
- DSST Civil War and Reconstruction (3 upper-level credits)
- ECE World Conflicts Since 1900 (3 upper-level credits)
- StraighterLine Biology with lab (4 credits)
- DSST Environment and Humanity: The Race to Save the Planet (3 credits)
- COSC Cornerstone course (3 credits)
- *CLEP English Literature (6 credits, only if 12 credits aren't earned through the Spanish CLEP)
Area of Concentration
- Research Methods or Experimental Design: ECE Research Methods (3 upper-level credits)
- Theory: DSST Lifespan Developmental Psychology (3 credits), and CLEP Introduction to Educational Psychology (3 credits)
- Applied: ECE Social Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
- Electives: Psychology GRE (3 upper-level credits, 15 lower-level credits) and ECE Abnormal Psychology (3 upper-level credits)
- Capstone: Taken online through COSC (3 upper-level credits)
Let's stop for a minute and evaluate what we have so far.
1. Do we have at least 90 liberal arts credits? Check! We have exactly 90 at the moment.
2. Have we covered the area of concentration requirements? Check!
3. Do we have at least 30 upper-level credits? Check!
4. Have we met all the general education requirements? Let's make sure.
- Literature & Fine Arts (3) - CLEP Analyzing and Interpreting Literature
- Social/Behavioral Science (3) - any from the area of concentration
- Ethical Decision Making (3) - DSST Business Ethics and Society
- Informational Literacy (1 - 3) - Cornerstone
- Communication (6 written, 3 oral) - CLEP College Composition, DSST Principles of Public Speaking
- US History/Government (3) - DSST Civil War and Reconstruction
- Non-US History or Culture (3) - CLEP Spanish
- Global Understanding (3) - ECE World Conflicts Since 1900
- Mathematics (3) - ALEKS College Algebra
- Natural Sciences (7 - 8, including one 4-credit lab course) - StraighterLine Biology with Lab, DSST Environmental Science
What does this mean? We currently have 91 credits, and we've met all our requirements. This leaves us with 29 credits to fill in, any way we want. These could come from any exams from the master exam list (that don't duplicate any credits already listed), ALEKS Intermediate Algebra, PreCalculus, and Statistics, any online courses (also that don't duplicate) that have approval of some form such as ACE or are taken through a regionally accredited school, any regionally accredited college courses taken on a campus, and/or FEMA Independent Study courses.
If we want to go the free route (Yay! Free!), we can do the following:
- Saylor Corporate Communications (3 credits)
- Saylor Introduction to Western Political Thought (3 credits)
- Saylor Business Law & Ethics (3 credits)
- FEMA Independent Study courses (20 credits)
And there we have it! A COSC BA in Psychology degree plan. You can take the same steps we just used here in our example, and apply them to planning a degree with the major of your choice. Now, one of the things that made this particular plan so easy to put together was the availability of so many psychology exams. This is true, too, of the history degree, and the business administration degree. It does get a bit more complicated when you pick a major that doesn't have much by way of concentration equivalencies with exams. Complicated, but not impossible by any means. One thing to remember about your area of concentration is that even if you can't find any exams to cover what you need and there aren't any online courses you can find, you still have the option of earning your credits through portfolio assessments, as we already discussed.
So... you're looking at all your scribbles on your notepad and thinking, "Nope. She said this was easy. She's crazy. That's the only explanation." Or maybe you're thinking, "She still hasn't answered whether or not I should get a BA or a BS degree." Or you might just be thinking, "What's for dinner? I'm hungry."
I might be crazy. If you decide to major in psychology, maybe I can be a case study for you! Aside from that, give yourself a day or two to really absorb this. Before you even start asking yourself things like, "Should I take a CLEP, or would I be better off with something like a StraighterLine course?" or "Where am I going to find the materials to study for all these tests?" or "What order should I do all these courses and/or exams in?" - just take a breather. Look over the names of the exams/courses you wrote down. Which ones really appeal to you? Which ones are in subjects for which you have a natural aptitude? Whatever is prompting you to work on earning a college degree, you should make it something that you enjoy as much as possible, or you run the risk of eventually giving up and abandoning your goals. So take some time to really consider what subjects you would like to study, before you even decide if you want to do so through some type of formal course, or by studying independently and taking an exam. Then come back and read over this again. After you've had time to think about it, it will make it easier to digest all the information the second time through.
As for the BA vs BS degree? That's open to debate. Google it and you'll see what I mean. Generally speaking, it probably makes little difference in the grand scheme of things, unless you plan to enter a field that requires one over the other. (You'll have to do some research to determine that.) I have on occasion come across someone claiming that a BS degree is somehow considered "lesser" than a BA, but frankly, I don't put a lot of merit in that argument, since I've never seen anyone provide a solid reason for why this would be true.
And dinner? That's entirely up to you. We're having pasta and a spinach salad.
