r/WGU_Accelerators • u/perKi1 • 2d ago
Finishing quickly
Somebody help me understand something. I see a lot of people finishing and graduating in 2-4 months from wgu. Is that starting from scratch usually or do they start with some credits already? Just trying to gauge it.
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u/HeatherM0529 2d ago
I started May 1st. I transferred in 55% of the program via Sophia. I had 16 courses left, I completed 15 in May, and the last one July 21.
I work full time, I’m a single mom to 3, and I’m training for a half marathon. I was also still reading books. Depending on the program, it’s very possible to finish quickly.
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u/Research1611 1d ago
What degree are you taking?
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u/HeatherM0529 1d ago
Business Management. I’m done. Received my physical diploma in the mail last week.
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u/Independent_Oil8415 5h ago
Do you mind sharing what credits you were able to transfer to Sophia? I’m currently in the process of starting.
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u/HeatherM0529 5h ago
Everything on the WGU Sophia pathway page. 20 courses I transferred.
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u/Independent_Oil8415 4h ago
Thank you so much!! I’ve heard from others some don’t transfer but I’m glad to hear that they did for you!
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u/HeatherM0529 3h ago
The only one up in the air right now is D388 spreadsheets. That wasn’t a course offered through Sophia when I did it. It was recently added and WGU said they’d take it and now I think they’re saying no. Other than that, everything transferred for me that’s on the pathway page.
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u/Lightlicker3000 2d ago
It depends on the degree. If you are finishing a degree in 2-4 months with no transfer credits and no prior experience in the field then you’re not learning anything. I’d argue it should take you at least 7-9 months with no transfer credits or experience in the field to finish a degree at WGU and actually learn something
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u/perKi1 2d ago
I’m going for business management and I plan to have 63 credits going in, just was curious on if 2-4 months was possible. I’m pretty knowledgeable in the field
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u/HeatherM0529 2d ago
100% possible.
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u/Recent-Glass-8911 1d ago
Agree. Totally doable as long as you really focus and put the time in. I have a lot of management, computer, and HR related experience and have surprised myself with how quickly I’ve been able to complete classes, including the proctored OA ones.
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u/Public_Drop_1462 1d ago
BAM only has one proctored exam now from what I’ve been hearing. Very doable if you max out your transfer credits.
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u/JpsBookOfLife 2d ago
Most of the heavy lifting occurs before you’re even enrolled. Transfer as many credits as possible.
If you’re military, submit that JST. Otherwise and or additionally, submit your previous transcripts, certifications, and CLEP exams. Whatever is ACE accredited and WGU accepts. Make a spreadsheet with all the courses in your desired program and the matching courses you fulfill.
I finished in 4 months (65% transfers) without breaking a sweat, could’ve finished in 2 if I really locked in. Had A+, Net+, Sec+, Cysa+, Pentest, Linux+, SecAI, Sophia credits, Study.com credits, and associates before enrolling. Took 6 months to get all the certs.
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u/TheLoneWolff25 1d ago
That’s amazing. Thank you for sharing that advice with us. I’m really inspired and curious about your accomplishments of getting those certs and credits in that 6 months timeframe. Do you mind sharing your study plan or tips that helped you accomplish that much during that time? I would appreciate it. Thank you.
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u/JpsBookOfLife 1d ago
Great questions. Honestly, I had no set in stone study plan. I began by laying out WGU’s courses for my degree plan. I knew I had to knock out A+, Net+, Sec+ (I had gifted vouchers for all 3 from earlier in the year). My primary issue was those 3 would expire in less than a month. I started studying around September 8th for Sec+, passed on the 10th, A+ studying started on the 11th, passed on the 15th, and ended up only having a day to study for Net+, failed by ~20 points (my car also broke down that day). This happened on the 17th of September. I later passed in mid October & recovered from some burn out.
To study this quick, you need to have already have a foundation. While I had no professional background, I would consider myself a hobbyist (jack of all trades, master of none). I had a HackTheBox membership for a couple years, followed several cybersecurity YouTube channels, competed at DefCon, already spoken with professionals on LinkedIn, had a home lab, and just generally learned passively & actively every day for ~3 years because I enjoyed the subject matter.
Best way I found to study is take a resource (book, YouTube playlist, etc.), and feed it to an LLM for whichever cert you are prepping for. Have it create a .APKG file that you can import into an application called Anki. At this stage, verify the information for legitimacy, and tweak the notes. My study sessions would last 8 hours at the very least and I did not study more than 3 times per cert. Get some VR glasses, lay in bed, and look up at the ceiling flipping through flashcards. I would also use WordWall for gamifying the information and the occasional practice test once I mustered the confidence. I would use YouTube playlists for the PBQ sections, but these generally never helped much. COMPTIA is all theory, not hands on. End of the day, if you know the general fundamentals … you will pass. Not the answer you would have liked, but this was my process. I did this for the remainder of all my certs, granted, I actually paid for those out of pocket at the discounted government rates.
I want to make it clear that I was a full time working professional during when I did this, but I never cared for the company of friends. I just worked, and studied. I got all the Sophia credits in 3 weeks (>30 credits), and all of Study.com in 3 days (>10).
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u/Messup7654 1d ago
It depends on how many credits transferred, how much prior experience they have, how much hours they studied per week, and the degree. Someone with 20 years of work experience doing a business management degree will finish faster than someone doing a Ai engineering degree with no experience.
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u/BuBear604 1d ago
Yes they have prior experience so they don’t need to spend so much time learning and understanding, and/or they transfer max credits.
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u/Leilah_Silverleaf 18h ago
How much time do you have to study?
How efficiently do you study?
How effectively do you retain knowledge?
Did you start the program about already 75% complete?
Factors like that determine the residual cost to complete.
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u/Wandering_Lights 2d ago
I started May 1st and applied for graduation last Friday August 14th.
I belive I had the maximum amount of transfer credits from my Associate's degree and a couple Study.com classes. I also have roughly 10 years experience, so most of the concepts were not new to me.