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How To Test Out of College While You’re Still In High School | Millionaire Educator | Ep 238

The Millionaire Educator

What You’ll Get Out Of Today’s Show

  • When you understand and optimize the opportunities available, it’s possible to complete the first 2-3 years of college for less than $10,000.
  • Higher education is going through a period of incredible disruption that has only been expedited due to COVID.
  • Gerry Born, The Millionaire Educator, received two years of college credit for less than $30 in under 2 months online through Sophia Learning.
  • Gerry’s son, who will be a high school freshman this year, has already taken 15 hours of credits with Sophia and will try to earn college credit by taking College Level Examination Program (CLEP) tests.
  • Colleges and universities don’t advertise it, but there are a number of low-cost programs to earn college credit online.
  • There are 33 CLEP tests available to earn college credit from and resources to help students prepare and pay for testing, like Modern States.
  • DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSST) have 38 tests earning credit toward both lower and upper-level course credit.
  • Using online programs like Sophia, it’s possible to take 3 years’ worth of college courses for around $8,000 and at least 31 colleges accept transfers of credits earned from Sophia.
  • If you transfer the credits earned online and the remaining courses are taken from that university, the degree will be issued from the university just as if all the credits had been earned there.
  • Gerry recommends that high school students try to bank college credit throughout high school.
  • Young adults aged 18-22 could be learning work skills and earning money to help them get ahead rather than just going to school.
  • Instead of trading $100K for a degree, get the degree as inexpensively as possible and take the free time to focus on skills you will use for the rest of your life.
  • Some schools are more progressive than others, so it’s best to have an overarching strategy of what you want to study and plan for which credits may be transferred over to your desired university.
  • Gerry and his wife aggressively pursued financial independence. They currently live off 72T distributions from their IRAs and one of his wife’s 457s, while sending virtually all income earned from their teaching positions into pre-tax retirement investments like their 403b and 457 plans.
  • The benefit of 72T distributions and 457 withdrawals is that they are accessible before you turn 59 1/2 year old without penalty.

Resources Mentioned In Today’s Conversation

The Simple Startup book preview image

The Simple Startup: A Beginners Guide to Starting a Business

This is a guidebook for teachers, parents, and students interested in starting student businesses - but aren't sure where to start or how to move forward. You'll learn everything you need to know to help students take their ideas and turn them into profitable businesses.

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