Arizona State University Universal Learner
Overview[edit]
Arizona State University's Universal Learner (formerly Earned Admissions/Global Freshman Academy) platform utilizes software from edX to offer MOOC-style courses that offer the possibility of regionally accredited credits from ASU itself. There are no fees for books or materials for these courses.
In order to begin a course, students must pay a $25 fee. Upon completion of a course, so long as the grade is 70% or higher, the course may be transcripted for an additional $400. Both the $25 and the $400 are per course. You may also opt to instead take the course again for a better grade. The only cost of doing this is paying another $25 fee. Courses that are failed or dropped will not appear on any transcripts sent by ASU.
Important Information[edit]
ASU used to allow students to audit these courses for free. However, students will now need to pay the $25 fee to access the course before they can view the course contents. Students may request a refund within 10 days of the course opening date. Paying the $400 course transcription fee at the end of the course is still optional.
In order to pay the fee, students will need to have a verified ID. It is recommended that new students sign up for the ASU platform at least 2 weeks before the start of the next session. It will take approximately 1 week to obtain the login information, with additional time needed for ID verification.
Course Structure[edit]
Nearly all ASU UL classes consist of a number of videos along with weekly assignments. These assignments generally take the form of multiple-choice quizzes or short-form entries for math problems. Notable exceptions are self-study precalculus, which utilizes the ALEKS platform, and English 101/102 which require you to create a free Wix site that will be used to submit your essay assignments. Other resources that are used by ASU include the Cerego flashcard platform (there is no cost for this) and Yellowdig for some written assignments with some classes. Calculus classes utilize the Gradarius system instead of ALEKS.
For courses that have a final exam, which the English 101/102 classes do not have, the final exam is worth anywhere from 25-35% of your total grade. In order to get credit for a given course, you must have an overall grade of 70% or more.
Final exams utilize the RPNow system for proctoring.
For Charter Oak Students[edit]
Of particular note to some students is AST111 (Introduction to Astronomy) and CHM114 (General Chemistry for Engineers). These are 4-credit classes that count as a science with a lab and can fulfill COSC's requirement for such. Once the cost of purchasing lab materials, shipping, and subscription fees are taken into account for other classes offered elsewhere, this can make ASU's offering less costly than some alternate credit offerings. Since ASU is RA credit, this does not count towards COSC's new limit of 90 credits from alternate credit providers, potentially making ASU even more attractive.
For TESU Students[edit]
TESU has followed in COSC's footsteps and restricts degree-seekers to 90 credits from alternate sources. Although ASU UL is more expensive than some other options, they do have some offerings that aren't available elsewhere or that students might prefer to take from ASU. Equivalencies are provided in the table below.
| ASU Course | Self-Paced Option? | TESU Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| MAT-210 Brief Calculus: Calculus for Business and Economics | Yes | MAT-231 Calculus I |
| MAT-265 Calculus for Engineers I | Yes | MAT-231 Calculus I |
| MAT-117 College Algebra and Problem Solving | Yes | MAT-121 College Algebra |
| CIS-105 Computer Applications & Information Technology | No | CIS-107 Computer Concepts & Applications |
| CIS-194 Technical Support Fundamentals (1 credit) | Yes | CIS-199 Special Topics Comp Info Sytms |
| CIS-308 Advanced Excel in Business | Kind of[1] | CIS-399 Special Topics Comp Info Syst |
| CIS-309 Business Process Management | No | CIS-440 Business Process Management |
| CIS-310 Business Data Visualization | No | |
| CIS-394 Location Analytics for Business | No | CIS-399 |
| ENG-101 English Composition | No | ENC-101 English Composition I |
| ENG-102 English Composition: Research & Writing | No | ENC-102 English Composition II |
| HST-102 Europe and the Mediterranean: Ancient and Medieval | No | HST-101 Western Civilization I |
| CHM-114 General Chemistry for Engineers (4 credits) | No | CHE-121 General Chemistry I w/ Lab |
| ASM-246 Human Origins | No | ANT-140 Intro to Human Evolution |
| PAF-112 Identity, Service and American Democracy | No | POS-199 Special Topics Political Sci Does not fill the Civic Engagement requirement. |
| FSE-100 Introduction to Engineering: Imagine, Design, Engineer! | No | EGM-101 Intro to Engineering |
| HEP-100 (Formerly EXW-100) Introduction to Health & Wellness | No | HEA-106 Personal Health |
| COM-100 Introduction to Human Communication | No | COM-130 Human Communications |
| SOC-101 Introduction to Sociology | No | SOC-101 Introduction to Sociology |
| AST-111 Introduction to Solar Systems Astronomy (4 credits) | No | AST-101 Intro to Astronomy I and AST-113 Astronomy Lab I |
| ECN-211 Macroeconomic Principles | No | ECO-111 Macroeconomics |
| ECN-212 Microeconomic Principles: Decision Making Under Scarcity | No | ECO-112 Microeconomics |
| FSE-150 Perspectives on Grand Challenges for Engineering | No | EGM-199 Special Topics Engineering Mechn |
| MAT-170 Precalculus | Yes | MAT-129 Precalculus |
| CSE-110 Programming for Everyone: Introduction to Programming | No | COS-111 Intro to Programming |
| CEE-181 Technological, Social, and Sustainable Systems | No | CET-199 Special Topics Civil Eng Tech |
| ACC-231 Uses of Accounting Information | No | ACC-299 Special Topics in Accounting Does not fill the BSBA Financial Accounting requirement. |
| SES-106 Habitable Worlds (4 credits) | Kind of[1] | AST-199 Special Topics in Astronomy |
| BIO-100 The Living World (4 credits) | Kind of[1] | BIO-101 Introductory Biology |
| PSY-101 Introduction to Psychology | Kind of[1] | PSY-101 Introduction to Psychology |
| SST-220 Introduction to Social Transformation | No | SOC-299 Special Topics in Sociology |
Notes[edit]
[1] - These are courses that are only available as 8-week instructor-led sessions. However, unlike other most other instructor-led courses at ASU, the entirety of the course is unlocked at the start.
Both SES-106 Habitable Worlds and BIO-100 The Living World have a total of 40 segments and you are expected to complete one every weekday. However, if you complete 1 or 2 every single day instead of just on the weekdays then you can be done in 4-6 weeks instead of the full 8 weeks. Each segment is expected to take 1-2 hours to complete.
CIS-308 Advanced Excel in Business is also fully unlocked from the start. You are given "deadlines", but these are only to ensure that you are able to finish the course on time. There is no penalty for turning in an assignment early or late. It is possible to finish all assignments & quizzes in a day or two.
PSY-101 Introduction to Psychology includes 6 modules, 5 of which are unlocked from the start (with module 6 open ~50% through the course). "Due dates" are included in the course, as well as extra credit for those who maintain the "suggested" pace, however, assignments are not considered late until the end of the course.
Additional resources[edit]
- Transfer equivalencies at TESU - Check to see what a given RA credit class will transfer in as at TESU.
- ASU UL courses - List of upcoming courses being offered by ASU.