Thomas Edison State University has developed a new pathway that allows students to complete an Associate in Science in Business Administration degree by taking free, open, online courses from the Saylor Foundation that are aligned with the college’s prior learning assessment program.
“In the past two years, there has been much debate about how open online courses benefit students,” said Marc Singer, vice provost of the college’s Center for the Assessment of Learning. “Our program enables students to take high-quality open courses at no cost and then apply what they learned in those open courses by taking our assessments. This process allows them to earn credit that can be applied to a degree program at Thomas Edison State University.”
Thomas Edison State University’s new Open Course option enables students to earn credit by either passing a TECEP® or other credit-by-exam program aligned with a Saylor course or successfully completing a portfolio assessment that documents they have gained the college-level knowledge aligned with the degree requirement.
More than 20 Saylor courses are currently part of the Open Course option, as are the college’s new online prior learning assessment courses.
The program is not limited to students interested in earning credits toward the college’s Associate in Science in Business Administration degree, as students can apply credits through the program to most bachelor’s degree programs at the college to satisfy general education elective or free elective requirements.
“This is an interesting option for adult learners who prefer to work independently, enjoy credit-by-exam programs and are interested in prior learning assessment,” said Dr. Michael Williams, dean of the School of Business and Management at Thomas Edison State University. “This model offers students a more flexible, efficient way of completing their associates degree that has the potential of saving time and tuition dollars.”
Toni M. Terry, BA