I have been reading the online topics of many years past on Macinsiders, but I still have a couple questions. I found a list of the preapproved courses here: http://www.science.mcmaster. ca/ass...lop2/equiv.php

but I am still wondering

1) If I was to take online courses through Athabasca, how long does registration take until I can start taking courses? Like if I was to apply now with all my info, would I be able to start my courses this week or will it take longer?

2) Is there anything I have to do at Mac (like talk to office admin or fill out forms) in order to take online courses?

3) If I am super motivated and do all my assignments early, can I end the course early or are the tests only on certain dates?

4) Where are the test centers when I have to right them in person?

Originally Posted by Snowman

I have been reading the online topics of many years past on Macinsiders, but I still have a couple questions. I found a list of the preapproved courses here: http://www.science.mcmaster. ca/ass...lop2/equiv.php

but I am still wondering

1) If I was to take online courses through Athabasca, how long does registration take until I can start taking courses? Like if I was to apply now with all my info, would I be able to start my courses this week or will it take longer?

2) Is there anything I have to do at Mac (like talk to office admin or fill out forms) in order to take online courses?

3) If I am super motivated and do all my assignments early, can I end the course early or are the tests only on certain dates?

4) Where are the test centers when I have to right them in person?

2) You still need a letter of permission in order to have the course count towards your degree. Since it's pre-approved it should be easy and fast (Although I've never actually done it myself). You would also need to have the transcript sent to the associate's dean office at the end of the course.

I can only comment from taking an online course at Guelph a few years ago, and I would recommend sending a message to the registrar.

1) The thing you have to remember is that aside from the LOP and when you bring in the transcript, Mac isnt really the one you want to talk to. So with mac you have to get the letter of permission from your faculty. Personally I did this in person but you can likely get it done online, in which case I would give this a few weeks to make sure it is signed and approved etc. After which you can reg for the course at the other uni. I've never tried getting an LOP after you register...dont know how long that would take to get through and likely more paperwork. So then you register and take the course as normal at the other uni.

This means registration dates, exams, assignments etc are all up to the course, the instructor and institution.

3) again depends on the course- based on my exp - No. but perhaps Athabasca is different.
4) for exams they should notify you when the exams will be and give you an option to opt to write in a different city. keep in mind that they usually only offer on specific dates for that too.

hope that helps somewhat. Emailing the Athabasca and Mac registrars is really the best bet for this though.

^ What is a LOP?

Letter Of Permission

And this thread is perfect; I have the same questions!

Originally Posted by Snowman

^ What is a LOP?

Letter of Permission

Hey, I noticed that you are in engineering

Make sure that you are looking at the correct list. I believe that you are looking at the list for pre-approved courses for the science department.

wwwdotengdotmcmasterd otca/lop/equiv2dotphp

I took Engineering Math 3 (2zz3) from Athabasca (Math 365). On the link that you posted, Math 365 comes up as a equivalent to Mac's Math 2A03, so these two lists of pre-approved courses are different.

Registration is easy. Just find the course on the list and fill the form out at the bottom of the following link

wwwdotengdotmcmasterd otca/current/lopdothtml

Hand it in to Jeanne Hopkins (Eng 1 office). Once she approves the course, you can apply at the other University. Some courses are easier to get into then others, so the sooner that you apply the better.

At Athabasca, you set your own pace, so you decided when to hand in assignments and write exams (McMaster invigilates for $100 which includes fedex-ing the exam back to Athabasca). I also took a course at Ryerson, which was a typical class like at Mac (fall asleep in a classroom, exams and assignment dates are given by prof).

I highly recommend taking a couple of courses at another university over the summer; it lightens the load tremendously

Sorry, you will have to replace "dot" with "." as I can't post links until my 5th post

Good luck

Originally Posted by bsamartin

Hey, I noticed that you are in engineering

Make sure that you are looking at the correct list. I believe that you are looking at the list for pre-approved courses for the science department.

wwwdotengdotmcmasterd otca/lop/equiv2dotphp

I took Engineering Math 3 (2zz3) from Athabasca (Math 365). On the link that you posted, Math 365 comes up as a equivalent to Mac's Math 2A03, so these two lists of pre-approved courses are different.

Registration is easy. Just find the course on the list and fill the form out at the bottom of the following link

www.eng.mcmaster.ca/current/lop.html

Hand it in to Jeanne Hopkins (Eng 1 office). Once she approves the course, you can apply at the other University. Some courses are easier to get into then others, so the sooner that you apply the better.

At Athabasca, you set your own pace, so you decided when to hand in assignments and write exams (McMaster invigilates for $100 which includes fedex-ing the exam back to Athabasca). I also took a course at Ryerson, which was a typical class like at Mac (fall asleep in a classroom, exams and assignment dates are given by prof).

I highly recommend taking a couple of courses at another university over the summer; it lightens the load tremendously

Sorry, you will have to replace "dot" with "." as I can't post links until my 5th post

Good luck

I am in engineering management, and the course I failed is likely too technical (and I do not believe there is an online equivilant) so instead I am taking some of the easier business courses, such as first year macro econ which I am now taking going into my 3rd year, and instead taking that during the summer! That will also make it less stressful since I am working full time.

Thanks for the link!

Does anyone know of any other schools that offer the same "learn at your own pace" as Athabasca does? That way I don't have to be on time for any classes or tests, since I live over an hour from the closest university (U of T) so I wish to avoid commuting or eating into my job.

If your in electrical you could take the equivalent of eng econ 2b03 at the university of New Brunswick. Athabasca isn't the most prestigious university, but Mac kinda does credit washing; as they give you a complete (if mark is >= 60) on your transcript an the other uni name won't appear (at least as far as I know).

Originally Posted by Snowman

Does anyone know of any other schools that offer the same "learn at your own pace" as Athabasca does? That way I don't have to be on time for any classes or tests, since I live over an hour from the closest university (U of T) so I wish to avoid commuting or eating into my job.

No idea about learning at your own pace, but a lot of universities offer distance education. I did a quick search and found this list:

http://www.canlearn.ca/eng/preparing/find/ded.shtml
But not all of them are undergraduate courses. For example, McMaster doesn't offer any undergraduate courses as online courses.

Originally Posted by bsamartin

If your in electrical you could take the equivalent of eng econ 2b03 at the university of New Brunswick. Athabasca isn't the most prestigious university, but Mac kinda does credit washing; as they give you a complete (if mark is >= 60) on your transcript an the other uni name won't appear (at least as far as I know).

Unless you apply to post-graduate/professional schools. They usually want you to submit transcripts from all universities you've attended. No idea if it also applies to when you apply for a job...

My guess is that they don't accept the grade at McMaster because it may interfere with students being wrongfully given/denied a scholarship or a spot in a program.

Originally Posted by Snowman

I have been reading the online topics of many years past on Macinsiders, but I still have a couple questions. I found a list of the preapproved courses here: http://www.science.mcmaster. ca/ass...lop2/equiv.php

but I am still wondering

1) If I was to take online courses through Athabasca, how long does registration take until I can start taking courses? Like if I was to apply now with all my info, would I be able to start my courses this week or will it take longer?

2) Is there anything I have to do at Mac (like talk to office admin or fill out forms) in order to take online courses?

3) If I am super motivated and do all my assignments early, can I end the course early or are the tests only on certain dates?

4) Where are the test centers when I have to right them in person?

So I`m currently about to start a course with Athabasca and have been dealing with all the stuff you just mentioned. I didn`t read the previous posts, just skimmed, so if I repeat then I`m sorry.

1. If you were to register right now you would not be able to start until July. They allow registration up to the 9th or 10th of each month to take the course the following month. So to take it in July you would need to register this week.

2. You need a letter of permission, go to your faculty office for info.

3. Yes, you can finish early. I`m doing a 6 unit course in two months. You book your own finals and mid-terms but you need to book I believe 20 days ahead of time. So I suggest just booking them all right when you sign up, that`s what I`m doing.

4. Here`s a list http://registrar.athabascau. ca/invignet/on.php Apparently for some courses they also allow you to do it at highschools or elementary schools if you get a teacher that`s willing to take the time with you.

Originally Posted by sarahsullz

So I`m currently about to start a course with Athabasca and have been dealing with all the stuff you just mentioned. I didn`t read the previous posts, just skimmed, so if I repeat then I`m sorry.

1. If you were to register right now you would not be able to start until July. They allow registration up to the 9th or 10th of each month to take the course the following month. So to take it in July you would need to register this week.

2. You need a letter of permission, go to your faculty office for info.

3. Yes, you can finish early. I`m doing a 6 unit course in two months. You book your own finals and mid-terms but you need to book I believe 20 days ahead of time. So I suggest just booking them all right when you sign up, that`s what I`m doing.

4. Here`s a list http://registrar.athabascau. ca/invignet/on.php Apparently for some courses they also allow you to do it at highschools or elementary schools if you get a teacher that`s willing to take the time with you.

The one thing I was really impressed with was how you can do your exams everywhere. For me, I can do them at the local college or the library if I pay $25 for the librarian to supervise which is super convenient.

Is there a limit to how many courses you are allowed to take from other schools? It looks like I may be unexpectinley getting an 8 month co-op, so I would still like to take courses during it.

So in other words, if by the time I graduate from Mac, would it affect me in anyway (I don't want to go to grad school) to have many courses from other schools like 3 or 4?

Just wrote my Math 365 exam through athabasca today.

You need 15 business days notice to book an exam. You can do it quicker, but you need to pay more. If there is a university/college near you, you can most probably write there.

As for registration, I had to pay $100 for registration with the university, and another 700$ for the course itself... plus $50 per exam for an invigilator...

Overall it gets expensive, but worth it if you want to lighten your load/graduate quicker