5 More Speed Strategies

5.  NEGOTIATION---All Things Speed!

So, the great majority of Americans don’t EVEN TRY to Negotiate ANYTHING related to their College Experience.

Most don't think it’s an option---while others are just really uncomfortable asking.

Here you'll probably be a bit surprised at how much of a College's Catalog is not as RIGID as you think!

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HOWEVER---First, we do have to discuss one important thing we've been alluding to throughout the Speed-to-Degree section.  We didn't want to bring it up when covering the other topics (CLEP, DSST, AP, Dual Credit, etc..), as it would've taken away from the basics you needed.  But now, we're in the Negotiation section---and here is where it makes the most sense.  So, what's the BIG SECRET?

 

It comes down to this:  Most Colleges are essentially just businesses (don't let the whole Non-Profit or Education thing fool you).  If they miss Enrollment Numbers, Student Retention Goals, or certain Graduate Percentage Rates---people get fired (fast).  There are tons of "slots" that need filled nationwide, with a very limited supply of students each and every year.  To add to the Traditional Colleges' Problems, more and more students are finding out you don't need a typical Campus-Based University Degree for most jobs in the US today.  There are plenty of alternatives---and the competition can be pretty fierce.  For our purposes in this section, we just need you to know that outside of most "Football Schools", more Well-Known or Prestigious Colleges, or Community Colleges---the GREAT MAJORITY of Institutions are having to Fight for your "Business".  Considering all this, a good bit of stuff has naturally become a little more NEGOTIABLE these days.

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We originally had about 750 words ready on this topic---but it started taking away from the key points and strategies we wanted to hit.  You will get a bit more throughout the site, but for now just know that most of these schools are Not Charitable, Nor Noble (as related to you)---just businesses.  Whether they're Private, Public, Online, Accelerated, Career-Based---they all need YOU.  It's simple supply and demand.  The Big Popular Schools (described earlier) have plenty of Demand and the Community Colleges have big-time governmental support and are often free---or close to it.  Thus, they have little reason to bend the rules, policies, or catalog guidelines for individual students (You).  However, MOST, of the 4,000+ other Colleges have significant motivation to consider many of YOUR REQUESTS to ultimately land you as a student.  Welcome to the "Butts-in-Seats" mentality.  

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So, now you know...

 

Let's leave it at that (whether you believe us or not). 

You'll get a good bit more under the "Cost Cutting Tricks" and "8 Types of Schools" sections a little later on. 

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​​​​​OK, with all that said, let's get rolling... 

So, what can you Negotiate (as related to the “SPEED” categories)?

 

 

 

All the strategies and information below deal specifically with getting ADDITIONAL CREDITS approved that you may not have gotten without pushing a little.  Thus, OVERALL SAVINGS and SPEED to the tune of $10k+ saved, along with many months of your time in most cases if applied correctly. 

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These typically work best after you're ACCEPTED, but could be tested much earlier if you're pretty confident you've found "THE TARGET SCHOOLS" to investigate further using the other parameters we outline (or of course, just your own).  The stuff below involves 

TIME & MONEY you would not have saved without asking (the softer version of Negotiation).  The number one rule is to know what you want---and let them know you've talked with other Colleges.  It’s often best to let them know they are The Primary Choice “BUT…this other College is doing this for us".  Just know most of the tactics below work to varying degrees at the great majority of Schools

discussed above.

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So, Let's Get to the Specifics! 

We'll throw a couple Real World Examples in here to spice it up...

 

1.  Getting a course accepted from a Previous Institution, Military Training, APs, Dual Credits etc… that does not SPECIFICALLY match a course they offer (but maybe close).  This one is pretty basic.  If it's pre-enrollment---discussing how another College is accepting it might be enough.  Other options include---making it a deal-breaker, asking them if maybe you can talk to someone higher or shoot a request up to them, and one you learned earlier here---GET THEM TO PUT IT IN AS A LIFE EXPERIENCE CREDIT.  Now, if all those fail---they often become very amiable to allowing you to take a non-approved CLEP or DSST exam as a middle ground.

 

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2.  CLEPs---Which are accepted, and what Courses do they count for NORMALLY?  As mentioned in the last bullet, often you can get CLEPs accepted that are not listed in the College's Catalog.  Additionally, with those they already accept, many times you can get them applied as substitutes for other classes---sometimes even a higher-level course. 

Ex.  Recently a Student took a Macroeconomics CLEP before checking the College's acceptance grid AND his Degree Map.  The College "Accepted" Macro---but there was no spot for it in his Major "Class Grid" (all Electives had been filled).  There was, however, a higher-level Economics class required, so we helped them reach a middle ground.  The Asst. Dean agreed if he took & passed the Microeconomics CLEP she would "bundle them together" as a Substitution for the Higher-Level Econ. course.
 

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3.  DSSTs:  Basically, you've got the same possibilities as CLEPs, but now you have to deal with, do they even know what DSSTs are? 

Do they have any established list of approved exams (even if just internally based on past submissions from Military Members and Veterans)?  If not, negotiate their acceptance—AT LEAST FOR YOU!

Ex.  Not long ago we had a Major University tell us at least 4 times they did not accept DSSTs.  In fact, about 7 different people didn't even know what they were.  Obviously, we had talked with several departments and often a couple people within the same section.  Fast forward a few weeks and we had 6 APPROVED, most of which our Mentee took over the following 4 weeks.

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4.  AP's & Dual Credits---You can essentially do the same things as you can with CLEPs/DSSTs, but in this case you've already "got credit" from the classes taken or tests passed.  The College is just saying a specific course/exam doesn't meet the School's standard parameters for scores (AP), or the course-content "needed" (it happens with both AP's & Dual Credits).  Just Note: In most cases before your request, the College was going to accept them, but only as an elective---that's if you had spots available on the "Degree Map" (i.e. the full Course Grid for the Major).  

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5.  Exceeding max allowable “Credit-by-Exam” policies.  For instance, if a College says they only accept 30 hours of AP, CLEP, and DSST credits total---you can often get them to adjust their Max quite a bit FOR YOU in many cases.  

Ex.  We recently got a University whose Catalog clearly stated a MAX of 30 Credit-by-Exam Semester Hours to move it up from 30 to 54 (the approval took only 3 days).   

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Note:  This can also be used with Colleges that limit your "Total Incoming Credits" (for new or transferring students).  I haven't seen it done above 90 hours (so into the Senior year)---but have seen a School's 60 hour MAX eclipsed many times.  Thus, someone can definitely get approval to come in as a mid-level Junior at many Colleges (even though the Catalog says otherwise).

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6.  Life Experience “Portfolio Assessments”.  Probably the easiest.  Talk to a couple Colleges and just let each school know EXACTLY what you are being offered at other schools regarding Specific Classes/Hours and whether or not any are being accepted as Major related classes.  The easiest way to do this (other than fibbing) is to use some Online-Driven Colleges for preliminary assessments.  They're typically pretty quick and you can do it from your couch. 

Ex.  We had a Student a while back who submitted their Portfolio to a University and received credits worth 5 CLASSES (not bad right?).  However, when she told that College she was considering another Institution that was giving more, they re-evaluated the Portfolio and miraculously found 4 more!  So Yup, 9 CLASSES.  She basically added a Semester's worth of credit in about a day.  Wow.

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7.  Course Challenges---If one does not exist for specific courses (perhaps a Pre-Req for others needed later), ask if they can make one for you, or give you some assignments to complete.  You can often get them to agree to a CLEP or DSST that is presently not accepted.  And as reflected in the Full Course Challenges section above---this request can often lead them to agree to an Independent Study opportunity.  So still a win.

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8.  Independent Study---Typically these involve asking for an alternative route to complete a required course not offered this semester so you can take the next course in succession next term.  If approved, they would typically give you a textbook or e-book to rent/buy and an outline of what needs covered.  These will often involve several papers & periodic assessments by an individual instructor.

As mentioned before---these opportunities are often approved when certain classes get cancelled or can often be by-products of your request to Challenge a Course.

Ex.  This was used to great success by a student a while ago.  In fact, she did it twice.  What's important was the initial response was "we can't do that" (at the Program Chair Level).  She put together a short proposal and asked permission to take it higher up in the Academic Department. 

A day later it was approved without needing to do that---and the 2nd request flew right through later on. 
 

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9.  Take a Class You Need at Another School and "Import it"---You can request your College allow you to take a course at Another School if it's going to be a Semester or 2 until a crucial class is offered (that you need now).  This is typically done using a Community College, as it's pretty easy to hop in for one course.  Bottom line:  Courses get cancelled more than you know---especially in ANY INSTITUTION deemed "Public".  Typically, this occurs for Low Enrollment (ex. only 5-10 students), or Lack of Faculty Availability.  This just gives you another opportunity to keep moving forward on your path without delay. 

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10.  Concurrent Enrollment (Bachelor’s & Master’s)---When you are nearing the end of your Bachelors, it allows you to take Master’s courses simultaneously to get ahead of the game if that's your goal.  You can even do it with two different schools, if you can successfully hash out the details with both.

Ex.  OK, this one was me, but I've seen it done numerous times.  Anyway, my scenario was I had 2 classes remaining for the Bachelor's and they were sequential (so 1+1 remaining).  The Master's Program agreed to let me in for 2 classes per "term".  The kicker is this was two different Universities.  Both agreed and they even worked together to handle all the financial stuff!

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​11.  Getting Certificate Courses to Count as College Classes ---OK, we showed you this one in the Life Experience Section.  This however involves ENTIRE Programs where classes were taken toward a "Certification Program"---thus not considered transferrable College Classes. These would include Certificates in programs like IT, Automotive, Healthcare, Robotics, Flight School etc... 

 

Ex.  Here we had a Student that received a Certification as an EMT.  He wanted those classes "turned into" College Classes---which most people will tell you "THAT'S NOT HOW THINGS WORK".  Well, the majority of people are WRONG ONCE AGAIN. 

He negotiated almost all of them in toward another Healthcare Degree he wanted to pursue---using the Life Experience option.  In fact, he even got credit for some OJT stuff and a couple Business/Administrative credits from a previous job.  Just note: this was with a Private Institution (Accelerated-Career University) that really wanted an additional Student to hit objectives for THIS TERM.  Another fine example of the power of understanding the "Butts in Seats" Mentality!

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The Bottom Line Regarding the Negotiation Section?

You can save a ton of time and money by using any of the options listed above.  

Why not try?  Don't make us remind you that...

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."  

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