The point is, I know this stuff. What I know is equivalent to several years of university coursework. I am now interested in obtaining a degree in CS, initially a BS and possibly going on to an MS. This is mostly for personal fulfillment rather than a need.
What I don't want to do is spend three years writing basic code I can write in my sleep.
To this end, I am looking for schools where I might be able to take exams to pass courses rather than have to devote entire semesters or quarters to obtain the credit. I contacted our local college's CS department. While the school does offer credit for prior learning through examination, the CS department is the only one that does not, at this time, offer that option.
There are many interesting online CS courses (For example, I've done the MIT 6.00.1x series), yet none of them provide transferable credits. Does such a thing exist?
An alternative would be super-short terms. If I could take courses that only go for, say, 8 weeks, instead of 20, well, that might be a decent option. I would not have to study much, if at all. So, pass a couple of exams every eight weeks and knock out a few years off a degree timeline quickly.
I'd appreciate any input on this.
Frankly, this is what is missing in online education today. A degree granting program that is compatible with people who might have acquired the knowledge outside university walls. Coding is coding. Algorithms are algorithms. Theory is theory. If you know the subject, and you can prove it, it should not matter one bit where you did the learning.
Thanks.
Not saying you shouldn't do this - I think you should because CS is tons of fun - but thinking you can do it without spending time and effort on it is naive. If you have money saved why not take an extended vacation and run through as many CS and math courses as you can?
In principle, nobody prevents you from passing the whole BSc in two semesters.
This opportunity gets especially interesting when you consider national open / remote universities, as you won't need to travel to pass the exams.
However, coding is one thing, theory is another one. Even if you know theory pretty well, you will need to review a bit which kind of imposes a speed limit on how fast you can pass said courses.
Western Governors University is the largest and best-known school with competency-based degrees. They use an online model where you pay a fixed amount per semester, but with no cap on the number of credits you can complete.