Question about CLEP and College Network

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Ok, if this has been asked before Please forgive me. But I met with the College network ppl and I have a list of all the prereq's I have to take....So I was wondering. Can I buy the study guides off Ebay, call up a testing facility and CLEP it without even paying the College Network a dime? Has anyone done this and is this sucessful? I see on EBAY alot of books that I can buy for studying materials. But I don't know how CLEP, DANTES and other credits are posted? My goal is to enroll into ISU once all my prereqs are done, but it just seems senseless to me to give The College Network thousands of dollars that maybe I can do on my own? Am I wrong? Can it be done? And who has done this? Thank you for your help. I am a single mom with NO MONEY right now, but need to get ahead to make it in this world!!LOL

thanks for your reply and good luck also with whatever you choose to do. Too tricky isnt it????!!!! like u said, i guess i will just have to do whats most convenient and hope it all works out! i have a newborn baby and my husbands in iraq so i guess at this point i'll just have to deal with what i have in front of me. speaking of which have u heard of any sholarships/loans etc for military spouses? i cant find anything like that anywhere. u think there would be something like that???

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Specializes in Day program consultant DD/MR.

I would contact base spousal support services. I am and ex army wife, we spent 8 yrs in. They had quite a few resources on post check ther 1st they will be your most reliable source, the info may not be available for the public on the net.

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So, I know there are TONS of threads about TCN/ISU (as I have browsed most of them), but like the first poster asked, has anyone gone through the ISU online program WITHOUT the use of TCN. I have met with a rep from TCN and spoken directly to someone at ISU (almost impossible to get direct answers from them and they CONTINUALLY refer you to TCN). But I'm assuming you CAN just clep out of your list of pre-reqs and submit them the transcripts to ISU as well as take the 4 "nursing concepts" tests and submit those transcripts as well, THEN enroll in ISU? Has ANYONE done this on your own? It seems as if there are people advising NOT to go through TCN but they don't come right out and say that they are IN the program NOT using TCN.

I had specific questions for the person I spoke with at ISU b/c I had a rep from TCN "evaluate" my transcripts (from my previous bachelors in art), and this person said I only needed to take 6 pre-reqs (but I KNOW I haven't taken college algebra). So I wanted to know directly from ISU if THEY could evaluate my transcripts INSTEAD of a rep from TCN b/c I didn't want any surprises later when told that I needed to test out of more classes than originally told. I was told I'd need to enroll in the college itself before they can evaluate my transcripts, which makes sense for the most part.......anyways, thanks for reading and sorry for going on and on. If ANYONE HAS gone through ISU WITHOUT TCN please post, as I think it would be beneficial for others to read.....or pm me :specs:

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BA.LVN

I'm not in the ISU program yet, sill battling my way there. There are a couple girls on here that are enrolled in the RN part without TCN but I believe they did purchase the 4 test out modules through TCN as they are hard to obtain on ebay.

I first started testing out the general eds when I noticed that my friends who signed up with TCN had no problems getting their old clep, dantes and excelisor tests credited, so I figured I'd do as many on my own that I could before I signed up. After having gotten some tests under my belt (and purchasing all the TCN modules off ebay) I'm confident I can do the bookwork part. My concerns now are the attitudes of the local hospitals --why should they precept for free when ISU is getting paid, that will be a future hurdle.

As to your question regarding Algebra, even my friends who signed up with TCN can never get a straight answer on that one..so I did what you did..called, you go to the website, fill out an application for admission to the regular university, pay $25 enrollment for paperwork, have your transcripts sent to them, request eval. That's what they told me to do, I'm waiting for all the transcripts to get there. Let you know how that goes.

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THANK YOU SOOO MUCH for being so specific in answering my questions/concerns. I am probably going to go that route as well.....order some books from ebay (What I can anyways) and just start studying/testing, then apply to the school and pay the $25 and have them evaluate my transcripts. Are you ready to actually take classes through them b/c you are now enrolling? or did you enroll just so you can get them to evaluate your transcripts? B/c should i enroll now or wait until I have some clep tests under my belt....hmmm.....thanks again! And if you need anyone to take those books off of your hands, consider me please! haha

Thanks again! :bow:

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You don't need TCN. They are just a publishing company, not connected to any college. They sell study materials for a monthly fee, you sign a contract and are legally obligated to pay them, even if you change your mind about where you want to go to school. Excelsior will tell you exactly which textbooks you need to study from to take their tests and I would imagine ISU is the same. TCN is a scam. Don't do it.

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Yeah, ISU wasn't very forthcoming w/ "what books" to study for the clep/dante/excelsior tests. The woman just referred me to TCN and said she knew other people who had NOT gone thru TCN and had not done as well.....but people (including my husband) have taken cleps/dantes without the "help" of TCN and done fine. Yeah I know they are just a publishing company and what not.....thanks

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Hello, I just wanted to put my input in on the college network experience also.. Yes i believe this company is a scam and no they do not provide you with the help you need. and also you are in this book selling business for the long haul if you do not opt out in 3 days.. I have to now pay 3000 dollars for books that i will not be using. Also they tried to sell me more study material that i did not need nor could afford.. five hundred dollars for n-clex review material when you could go to the store and pay fifty. Also to even return the books you are charged for that also.. These books are not worth it. I would buy the books somewhere else or the school in which you are planning on attending. This is also not a college, it provides tutoring service and terrible ones at that. Thank you... christina LPN future RN...

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I think this has already been said, whether on this thread or others I've read, but if you really want to check out whether TCN has some special magic in their study materials (not), you can purchase them on EBAY cheap, one book at a time, rather than getting into a 3 or 4 year contract just to get books that you can buy on your own. Rue is the same. I was so lost in the beginning trying to figure out how to get started with the distance learning thing that I almost signed TCN's contract. But I didn't, and I'm glad. Think about it -- if you're smart enough to do the critical thinking it takes to be a nurse, you're smart enough to work your way through the maze of college websites. And this site is a wonderful place to get all the help you need. Once you get the books, study notes, etc. that are available, you're on your way.

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I do not think that it is a critical thinking process. I believe that I had thoughts that you could trust people and that this business had integrity. I also have not been a nurse very long and just wanted to move on towards something more.. Like a lot of people that are now in this deal. we did not find this forum or have acquaintances here that could give us a clue about it. That is why I am informing people today of my experience because I do not want people to be in the same boat as me. I do not need information about online programs. I luckily got into a bridge program and do not have to do the online version.

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I do not think that it is a critical thinking process. I believe that I had thoughts that you could trust people and that this business had integrity. I also have not been a nurse very long and just wanted to move on towards something more.. Like a lot of people that are now in this deal. we did not find this forum or have acquaintances here that could give us a clue about it. That is why I am informing people today of my experience because I do not want people to be in the same boat as me. I do not need information about online programs. I luckily got into a bridge program and do not have to do the online version.

Apologies if my post came across as putting down people who have signed with TCN or Rue. Like I said, I came within a hair of doing it myself, and had I known for certain that I could have made the monthly payment I would have. (For once in my life, being low on funds at a particular moment in time turned out to be a good thing.) I am older than most of the people who are posting here, I work full-time, and for those reasons and several others, showing up to scheduled classes on a campus was not working for me. I started classes (paid for by a grant I might add) 3 quarters (fall, winter and spring) only to have to drop about 3 weeks into them. Distance learning being my only option, and being bombarded by those ads in the mail from TCN and Rue, I checked into them. It makes me mad that they aren't truthful with people. They make distance learning sound like they can get you through quick and easy if you just sign with them. It's not quick and it's not easy, and none of it's cheap, especially if you use their materials. I have several friends I graduated from LPN school with who are now bogged down with payments to one of these companies and it makes me mad that they would take advantage of us. I barely escaped myself. I was just trying to encourage those who haven't signed with them to not do it. And I appreciate your post letting people know the truth about them. :yeah:

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I also know several people i graduated with that is now tied down with TCN. Even after several warnings about them they still signed on....so--oh well.....

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