If you are a college student’s parent, you are faced with a daunting challenge. The cost for a four-year college education is unbelievable, but we do have a few suggestions for you to ease the burden. The first is the community college alternative. The cost of a three – semester hour course at a community college is significantly less than a four-year college. Also, most community colleges have articulation agreements with four-year colleges in that particular state. Another less expensive alternative is CLEP or DSST. CLEP, which is sponsored by the College Board, allows a student to take a CLEP test and if passed will receive three semester hours credit. The DSST is the military equivalent of the CLEP test. There are free CLEP preparation courses available and the cost for the CLEP test is less than $150.
We offer courses that are self-paced, online and reasonably priced. At $750 a course, we compare favorably with a four-year three semester hour course which approximates $2000 when text and fees are included. On the other hand, if the student is attending a community college in a state such as California, we cannot compete, since the cost of the three semester hour course there is less than $200. In a state such as Virginia, the cost of a three semester hour course in the community college (including text and fees) gets very close to our cost of $750.
Cost is one variable in your decision but the most important variable which is typically never considered is time. It takes a student 15 to 20 hours to complete one of our courses. Contrast that with a 15 – week three semester hour course or an online 8 week three semester hour course. The possibilities are staggering. For example, since we offer 15 courses, the student could complete a four-year degree in 2 ½ years. Or a student could work full time and still go to school since he or she would not be attending selected classes. Or a student could complete an entire year’s worth of classes in the summer prior to matriculation in the fall. These are just a few of the limitless possibilities associated with the time variable which is the most significant feature of our courses.