Peggy Said:

Are remedial courses required if you already have an Associates Degree from a Vocational school?

We Answered:

1) remedials: Whether you need to take a remedial or refresher course depends on your skill levels and pre-test documentation. It is possible to have a degree and still need remedial work in a specific area if that area wasn't addressed in the degree. So, it depends on how you test. Remedial courses are not bad - if you need it, you need it. Retake the entrance exams though if they're required at your school. How you tested 15 years ago isn't a valid indicator of what you can do now.

Only you know your true skill levels. I regularly test into Intermediate Spanish (I lived in Spain for 3 years) but can assure you that I don't need to skip any lower level Spanish courses. I also regularly test into middle maths - my math skills are horrid. I just test well. Be honest about your abilities or you risk taking a low grade on those upper level classes in favor of saving relatively little time.

2) transfer: If none of your courses transfer to the new college then you are not a transfer student. This can happen for any number of reasons and accreditation is only one. For example, a BS in Automotive Technology (even from a well accredited school) isn't likely to transfer well into a BFA in Studio Art.

Transfer student is usually defined as having 30+ hours transferring into the new degree program.

Since you reference "fast forward 15 years", you're not entering under normal freshman rules anyway. Most colleges have a different set of rules for adults. You are likely not a "transfer student" or a "new student" as you're thinking of those - you're a "non-traditional student".

Now, what to do about those courses that didn't transfer in. First know that if you learned stuff from them - you still know that stuff. That has value.

You should be able to use standardized testing (CLEP/DANTES/AP/ etc...) to validate that learning for credit at your new school. Most colleges accept some form of credit by examination for exactly the situation that you're in. Whether you can recover all 60 hours of the AS depends on how much you learned and the specific limits your new college sets. Your catalog has the rules for credit by examination spelled out - you need to explore those rules.

CLEP - http://www.collegeboard.com/student/test…
DANTES - http://www.getcollegecredit.com/

Rene Said:

is it better to attend a college RN prog. or a vocational school's RN prog.-college = degree, but @ 2-4 yrs.

We Answered:

Do the RN but make sure it transfers. If not go for the BSN.
Many are recommending the 4 yr. degree now bc you can do so much more with it. Also, nursing instructors (req. Masters) are in short supply. Think of your future.

Craig Said:

i go to vocational school. do i have to get my associate's degree to get enough credits for a 4 year college?

We Answered:

Depending on the school you may not even have to go to a CC first. My advice is to find five or so 4 year schools that interest you and go over their admission procedures with a fine tooth comb. You may be able to get in without either a foreign language or CC courses (for example La Verne University in California will allow this). If the schools that interest your require you to go to a CC first, enroll in one that has a guaranteed transfer agreement with the school(s) you want to go to. And certainly, if you go to a CC you can transfer to a 4 year school to get your bachelors.

Thanks
Bill