Question: How fast can you get a bachelor's degree?

[jmowreader]

Here's the spiel: The Army has this program that essentially works out to "college equivalence." Example: basic training is equivalent to a PE class, a first aid class and a couple others; wiretapping school is good for a certain amount--a couple of engineering credits, that kind of thing; SIGINT analysis school is good for some credits...all tolled, essentially the first two years of a four-year degree.

Today I was at work and met someone I've done a lot of work with. She's the head of the art department at Methodist University--which used to be Methodist College until they finally realized they've been a university for the last ten years without calling themselves that. While I'm standing there trying to find the weirdly-sized air filters her home's furnace uses, she asked all these questions about my educational background.

It turns out that she didn't just come in out of the blue. Methodist has decided they want to be known for more than just being The Place To Go if you want to be a golf professional and told every department to come up with a Great New Course Offering. The Art Department decided they want to be the Rochester Institute of Technology of the Mid-South and are creating a Graphic Arts major that will have a heavy concentration on print.

After they decided to do this and got Dr. Hendricks' okay to proceed, they started thinking of people who would be good instructors and asked everyone in all the colleges, major print buyers, printing plants, etc., etc., etc., in the Fayetteville and Raleigh areas and kept getting one answer: me. Apparently I'm still the go-to guy even though I haven't put my hands on a plate since January 2004.

I know I don't need an MA to do this. Methodist's art department has several BA-level instructors, and the Department Chair only has an MA. Assuming I got hired, they are projecting the first entering class to start in fall 2008. And Methodist, being a Servicemembers' Opportunity College, accepts Army college equivalent at face value. Plus, they would accept either a photographer or a woodturner in their fine arts curriculum, and I'm very good at both. (They classify woodturning as sculpture, and people have majored in it at Methodist--you must provide your own lathe, but I have one already.)

IF I absolutely had to, would it be possible to pull out a fine arts BA AND set up a whole curriculum between, say, January 2007 and May 2008?

[Gormy Cuss]

1. You need to ask the college.

You have two years of equivalence from the military, and might be able to get "life credit" if you can put together a portfolio of your work or otherwise demonstrate that your skills and experience exceed the course requirements then work with a counselor there on how to execute a course load to complete the bachelor's by the end of SY 2007/2008.

[rug]

2. It can be done in six months by examinations. Try this link.

https://www.excelsior.edu/

[Truebrit71sbruv]

3. Depends on whether you know where the bachelor hid it...

... sorry... just couldn't resist...

[Dora]

4. Look at online/distance learning programs, and give them a call.

University of Phoenix is one that comes to mind immediately. I bet if you called them you could talk to a counselor on the phone, and they could advise as you as to the feasibility of getting your BA 18 mos.

I think if you could find a program that was self-paced and online, allowing you to complete courses in 4-6 weeks rather than 15, it owuld be feasible.

Sounds like a great opportunity. I bet you can work something out.

[Dora]

5. Here's another thought:

http://www.tui.edu/programs/undergraduate.asp

It used to be known as Vermont College, but now it's Union Institute and University. They have a low-residency Bachelor's degree program, as well a BA that's entirely online. I've known several people to get their MFA in Writing from there. The school has been around for a while. It might be just what you're looking for.

You could also try googling "low residency bachelor degree" to see what you get.

[Dora]

6. And one more thing...

One person I hae met who earned their MFA at Vermont is tenured at a state university, I think going on 15 years now.