University’s Competency-Based Degree in The Chronicle

The Chronicle of Higher Education published a story on competency-based education featuring A&M-Commerce’s Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences (BAAS) in organizational leadership.

Last year a newspaper article caught Jolene Applegate's eye. It described a new bachelor's-degree program at Texas A&M University-Commerce designed for people who'd racked up college credits but no degree. By that time, she had earned 120 credits and an associate degree, but with this program, even while holding down a job and juggling family commitments, she could keep going.

Ms. Applegate liked that the degree would be inexpensive, as little as $10,000, but she wasn't sure what to make of its being competency-based — that is, based on her ability to demonstrate her knowledge of material rather than on how much time she spent in class.

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