Common Terms


 * Accreditation: Certification of competency in education. Understanding accreditation is critical to deciding your future degree path.
 * ACE: American Council on Education
 * ALEKS: Provides math courses via adaptable AI engine. A source of math credits for the Big 3.
 * AP: Advanced Placement test. Available to anyone, not just high schoolers!
 * Big 3: Thomas Edison State College, Excelsior College, and Charter Oak State College
 * CLEP: College Level Examination Program, a type of course equivalency test
 * COSC: Charter Oak State College
 * DANTES: Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education
 * DETC: Distance Education and Training Council, a type of National Accreditation
 * DSST: DANTES Standardized Subject Test, a type of course equivalency test
 * EC: Excelsior College
 * ECE: Excelsior College Exam, a type of course equivalency test
 * FEMA: Federal Emergency Management Agency. You can get some credit at the Big 3 by taking free online FEMA courses. Really!
 * NA: National Accreditation. Generally speaking you should avoid NA schools.
 * PF: Penn Foster, a regionally accredited, non-degree-granting school that provides some transferrable courses. Your mileage may vary.
 * RA: Regional Accreditation. Generally speaking, you should favor RA schools.
 * Straighterline: Provides some courses for a fee. A source of some credits for the Big 3.
 * TECEP: Thomas Edison State College Examination Program, a type of course equivalency test
 * TESC: Thomas Edison State College
 * "The Big 3": Thomas Edison State College, Excelsior College, and Charter Oak State College