Studying in America

[Henley1989 10]

Hi there..

 

Hoping some one has been down this road.. I recently moved to the US from the UK. I dont have any post high school education and would like to start a part time online degree. 

 

I have 2 options:

- Apply to local college an begin a part time associates  - apply FAFSA for student loans - I believe this route will take many more years as in america you need the associates first..

- Being a UK citizen, apply to an online program there (OU or something similar), pay out of pocket but be done much quicker? I dont think I can get student loans if im no longer a resident..

 

Anyone been down this road? Any advice?

 

Thanks

Edited March 16, 2017 by Henley1989

[broppy 204]

I can't speak to the local college, but I'm an OU grad, so have some experience there and recently started looking at going back to get my master's. If you have the self-discipline to study remotely, I highly recommend it. Their normal timelines are generally based on studying 50% part-time, so a 3 year bachelor degree would take 6 years. You're free to work at your own pace, though, so you can go faster or slower as you like. And if you aim for a 6-year bachelor's, you generally qualify for some kind of diploma half way through. The costs are a lot higher than they would be in the UK - looks to be around £3,000 per year at 50% part-time. I don't know how that compares to local colleges, but OU was still cheaper than US colleges when I was looking last year. Check out http://www.openuniversity.edu/

[Wuozopo 4,293]

You don't require an associates first. Your local college may be what is sometimes called a junior college which doesn't offer four year university programs with bachelor's degrees and higher. While an associate's degree is an accomplishment, it's not exactly a "college degree" like a bachelor's.  You can go to the local college and get a couple of years in and transfer credits to a larger university and continue toward a bachelor's without meeting the associate's requirements. There are also online universities in the US to look into. If planning to transfer credits make sure you know the ultimate degree plan you want at Uni and what credits will be accepted as transfer so you don't waste time and money on courses that won't count toward your degree.

Edited March 16, 2017 by Wuozopo