Q. What does “AA Bundle” mean?

A. That simply is a package of courses resulting in an AA Degree, including up to 75 college credits, for a fixed annual price ($3,975 before any discount) with the tuition equalized over four years.

Q. What courses are included in the Angelicum/CIU AA Bundle?

A. The 4-Year Great Books Program (48 college credits) and 10 CIU courses (30 college credits). The CIU courses can vary depending on the Degree Plan selected by the student.

Q. What courses are included in the Angelicum/UST AAS Bundle?

A. The 4-Year Great Books Program (48 college credits), 4 Theology Online Courses (12 college credits), and 5 UST courses (15 college credits). Note that only 45 credits may be transferred into the UST AA, whether they are from the Great Books Program or the Theology Online Courses. The UST courses offered to students may be viewed HERE.

Q. Why are no new students being accepted in the Angelicum/Holy Apostles AA track?

A. We are phasing out the Holy Apostles (“HAC or HACS”) AA Track over the next three years and replacing it with the CIU and UST AA Bundles (and other opportunities for our students – see Great Books College Credit & BA Degree Program) which will approach our educational vision more closely. In particular, CIU allows our Angelicum students to take up to 10 CIU courses (vs. 5 at HAC), which, if completed, can enable our students to earn a total of 90 college credits (typically three years of college) by the completion of 12th grade (vs. 75). Additionally, on a case-by-case basis, CIU will allow Angelicum Seniors to complete their BA degrees (requiring 10 more courses) by the completion of 12th grade (a 3.0 GPA must be maintained).

Q. I see that the Angelicum/CIU AA Track Bundle includes 78 college credits – how does a student reach the 120 credits you mention while with the Angelicum Academy?

A. All Angelicum students after the completion of the Great Books Romans year, may add any or all of the four Angelicum Theology Online courses (3 college credits each) taught by Fr. Joseph Fessio, Th.D., a student of Pope Benedict the XVI and founder of Ignatius Press, at any time, all of which CIU accepts towards its BA degrees: 78 + 12 = 90 credits total. These courses are $225 per credit (rather than $400), which if taken would reduce the CIU BA cost by $1,300, to a total of only $31,400.

Q. I am currently taking Great Books courses in the Angelicum/Holy Apostles AA Track. May I continue this track to completion, or may I transfer into the Angelicum/CDU or Angelicum/UST AA Bundle if I wish?

A. Yes, to both questions. Because students are at different Great Books levels, with different total credits earned, please give us a call or email if you have any questions about transferring into the Angelicum/CIU or Angelicum/UST track. Angelicum students wishing to transfer from the HAC AA track to the CIU AA track who have or will have earned more than 60 college credits will need to do so for the Summer semester, 2024 to transfer more than 60 credits.

Q. Is the AA Bundle price of $ 3,975 fixed for the next four years, until completion of the AA degree?

A. We hope so. However, we do not control the tuition of either CIU, UST or HAC, so it is possible that they might raise their tuition some, but historically like us they do so rather rarely and minimally to address increased expenses. But if they do, only about ½ of any increase might affect our tuition price – meaning it is possible, but if so it should not be very significant.

Q. May I take longer than the high school years to complete the A.A. track?

A. Yes. Students may take up to three years from the time of matriculation into the Catholic Distance University Associate’s degree program-which they do upon their graduation from high school (or home school equivalent)-to complete the entire A.A. program, and another three years (so six years total) to complete their B.A. at Catholic Distance University, if they wish. So there is plenty of time to complete the track.

Q. May I complete the A.A. track in less than four years?

A. Yes. For example, a few students take two years of the Great Books courses in one year, or may complete all of the Theology Online or Catholic Distance University courses in one year. However to take the Theology Online courses and/or the Catholic Distance University courses the student must be a Junior (11th grader), having completed the first two years (4 semesters) of the Great Books program with “C” or better grades. Older students (beyond high school) may take the A.A. track courses when they wish.

Q. If I complete the A.A. courses in less than four years does the tuition change?

A. It depends upon how many college credits you earn while in our program.

The typical student in our A.A. track is in it for four years, and earns a total of 75 college credits. The A.A. track costs $ 3,975 per year x four years = $ 15,900. That comes to $212 per college credit hour – a tremendous bargain in higher education. However the tuition is the same if a student decides not to earn 90 credits, and earns perhaps only 70 or 60. But it includes the cost of all 90 credits available to our A.A. track students.

Many students join us “laterally,” in their 2nd, 3rd or 4th year of high school, or later. In that case, since we have no way of knowing exactly how many credits they may earn in our program, they pay the same $ 3,975 per year minimum for the Great Books Program A.A. track, and at or near the conclusion of their time with us we tally how many recommended college credits they have earned, and we simply multiply that by $212. If the resulting total exceeds $ 3,975 per year they have been with us and paid, then they owe the balance at that time, before they may receive their transcript, diploma or degree. So for example, if a student is in the program three years, and thus paid $ 11,925 in tuition ($ 3,975 x 3 years), and earned 63 credits, that student would owe a final balance of $ 1,431 (=63 credits x $212 = $ 13,356 – $11,925 paid = $1,431 balance). If the balance is reversed, that is they have paid in more than $212 per recommended college credit earned, there is no refund. That rarely happens as most students and parents are very aware of their academic progress and take full advantage of our program to maximize their recommended college credits earned.

Q. If I leave the A.A. program before completing it, can I order a transcript for courses completed to that point?

A. Yes, provided there is no tuition balance due. All colleges require tuition be paid before transcripts, diplomas or degrees are issued. Since the A.A. tuition is discounted, and on a four-year basis, students who leave the A.A. track before completion will have their tuition recalculated at that time, based on the tuition of $1,987 per Great Books semester ($3,975 per year); (plus $212 per credit hour earned to the extent this exceeds the above amount – see FAQ #45). In effect, this simply restores the tuition discount they received for joining and completing the A.A. track. Students who leave mid-semester or any time before completing a course will be charged proportionately – for the classes or portion of a course they attended or completed before withdrawing. To be effective, we require 72-hour written notice of withdrawal – an email is fine.

Q. I have completed some high school courses that are rigorous and rated as “Honors” or “Advanced.” Are they eligible for college credit?

A. Accreditation agencies generally require any college-level credit for work done in high school or home school to be evaluated by a recognized third party evaluator such as such as AP, IB, ACE, CLEP. So any courses not recommended by such a recognized 3rd party course evaluator cannot be accepted for college credit, even if they might otherwise merit it.

In order to obtain such recommendations, these 3rd parties either do a full review (as ACE has done in our case) of the courses involved, or develop and utilize their own tests to evaluate the results as college credit worthy (such as AP and CLEP). The review process is arduous and very expensive. But it provides a safety factor for colleges in that as long as they have had such a 3rd party review or testing they may accept such credits (however they do not have to) towards their degrees without jeopardizing their accreditation. Almost no college would be willing to step outside this accepted framework. So any courses without one of those recognized 3rd party college credit recommendations would generally not qualify for college credit, regardless of merit, title (such as “Honors” or “Advanced”) or content. An exception to this is a limited number of credits that some colleges offer for “life” or “experiential” learning, which of course generally applies to older students, and even these are often subject to some similar form of review or testing.

Q. What if I already have some college credits, may they be accepted, or may I substitute some other courses for some of the A.A. track courses?

A. That depends on a number of factors – please contact us in that case (see contact page).

Q. I am already in the Great Books or Theology Online classes – may I still join the A.A. track?

A. Yes. However in that case please contact us directly for pricing and terms (see contact page).

Q. If I transfer from the High School or College track to the AA track, will my prior payments and discounts be lost?

A. No. Assuming you earn 75 college credits, here is how that works: we total all payments made for the Great Books courses for college credit, and any payments for our Theology Online courses, and credit those towards the AA track total. Any discounts previously received are counted towards the AA track total, that is, they are added into the total paid. The balance needed to reach the AA track total cost of $15,900 is then scheduled for payments (based on the estimated time to finish the AA track courses), or paid in full.

So for example, if you have completed 3 years of the Great Books program and paid $9,000, then you would need to schedule $6,900 in payments to complete the AA program. The monthly payments for the AA track are $ 397.50 x 10 months = $3,975, leaving a balance due of $ 2, 925 at the end. You may, of course, simply pay an extra $292.00 per month the final/4th year, and have no balance sue at the end.

Another example: You have completed all four years of the Great Books program and three of the Theology Online courses paying a total of $13,000 after receiving $1,000 in various tuition discounts. The $12,000 paid + the $1,000 in tuition discounts = $13,000 in credits towards the AA program, leaving a balance for it of $2,900. You can pay this at the end or simply increase your monthly payments by $290 per month and have no balance due at the end.

Q. May I join the A.A. track even if I am already a sophomore, junior or senior in high school or home school, or already graduated from high school?

A. Yes. Just send us your transcript(s) or a listing of your prior studies and we can help you determine where you would best begin the A.A. track and what courses you would need to complete. Keep in mind, high school courses do not ordinarily qualify for college credit (nor towards an A.A.), but they generally will count towards obtaining your high school diploma (or home school equivalent).

Please let us know if you have any questions not addressed above or elsewhere on our website. 719-373-6876 ~ info@angelicum.net