By Debra Karplus
For some, going to school online is like a dream come true. You can “go to class” in your pajama’s, you don’t have to deal with traffic or nasty weather, and you’ll never have a scheduling conflict between your class schedule and your work schedule.
Pursuing a college degree online makes sense.
Distance learning has been around longer than you might imagine; online college is just one type of distance learning that has become very popular in the past few years. You have probably seen the ads for University of Phoenix. Founded in 1976, it is a private accredited university offering a variety of options for earning college degrees at all levels including an online doctorate.
Whether public or private, an increasing number of colleges and universities are offering classes online. The internet allows colleges to offer classes to a greater number of students; thus, increasing their revenue. Students benefit also, online classes give them the flexibility and tuition and fees are often lower, not to mention the savings on commuting and campus housing.
Many types of college degrees can be earned online.
Whether you’re pursuing a two-year degree from a community college or technical school or a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, or even a PhD from a private, public or state university, there’s probably a program to meet your needs. A continuum of options is available to educate yourself via your home computer.
Some courses are considered hybrids as a significant portion is online, but they have a classroom component to them; other classes are completely computer-based. Some degrees can be pursued without ever setting foot onto a college campus; these are typically programs that require less hands-on training and are more conducive to online learning. But, degrees in music performance, physical education or teaching, for example, require brick-and-mortar settings for performance, internships or student teaching.
Know what you are getting into and know yourself.
Before pursuing some or all of your college education online you must be comfortable on the computer and have the right equipment (internet access and a compatible web browser). You must be organized, disciplined and a self starter. Remember that college isn’t just about the classroom; a lot of college learning comes from social interactions. If you don’t require the social life of being on campus or the face-to-face interaction with your professors and classmates, then online education may be perfect for you.
First, you need to find out which courses and which degrees can be pursued online. Be sure to read the fine print on eligibility for your specific situation. And, expect to work at least as hard as you would in a traditional classroom setting. Online college is definitely not for lazy people.
Accreditation matters.
Colleges and universities choose to be accredited; accreditation is not a requirement. In the United States, there are regional agencies that govern and regulate the college accreditation process.
There are many reasons to choose an accredited college or university. You are likely to get a better education. Your degree will have more credibility and clout in the job market. And, perhaps most important, financial aid, loans, grants and scholarships are available to those enrolled only in accredited programs. Make sure your school of choice is accredited.
“Accreditation mills” are counterfeit accrediting agencies; “diploma mills” sell bogus pieces of paper that can be purchased without doing any of the work that goes into earning a legitimate college degree. Again, do your research before enrolling in any of these programs or colleges. Time and money are precious—don’t waste either of them.
Show me the money.
There is scholarship and grant money available for online education. Some programs are unique to online programs while others are available for classroom and online college classes. The Perkins Loan and Pell Grant, both of which are part of Federal Financial Aid programs, are available for students at two-year or four-year colleges whether online or in a traditional classroom setting.
Some scholarships and free money is specific to your state or your college or university. Unique to University of Phoenix is the First Chance Program. Since 2006, this scholarship has been available to a selected group of “in need” students enrolled in Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree programs. It’s funded by a combined effort of various non-profit groups.
Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally, (the HOPE Program) is available in many states including Georgia, Tennessee and Illinois. It is not a scholarship but rather is a tax credit for online programs in two or four year colleges.
Online college education may be the right choice for you. Be sure you’re enrolled in an accredited school and an accredited program, and seek out one of the many scholarship programs for which you may be eligible.
Do you need money for college? Whether you are looking for student college grants or scholarships or minority college grants or scholarships the free college scholarship grant guide is the only resource you need.
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The recent emergence of online college and university programs is providing wonderful opportunities for many people to earn college degrees who would not otherwise be able to get them. College and university tuition costs can be prohibitively expensive for many people. The advantage of an online degree program is that it costs much less.
Most online college and university programs give you the option of paying per course, making it easy to earn your degree at a pace you can afford. Also, because you are learning from home, there is no room and board to pay. In addition, all your reading material is on the web, so there’s no need to buy costly textbooks.
Another advantage of earning a degree though online college and university programs is that you can do it at your own pace. Working professionals and busy parents can earn degrees while also attending to their everyday lives. You can study whenever it’s most convenient for you, in the evening, on weekends, during breaks at work.
Also, you can study from whatever location is easiest. Many parents who are studying for online college and university degrees choose to study at libraries or coffee shops because there is less distraction. As long as you have computer access from your location, you can study there. This allows for a freedom and a flexibility that is simply not possible when earning a degree on campus at a ?brick and mortar? university.
The benefits of earning a degree through one of the many online college and university programs are numerous. Many people are stuck in careers they don’t like, or are unable to be promoted within their company, because they lack a college degree. Employers value employees with college degrees for good reason ? college graduates tend to be more diligent, more thoughtful, more creative and more driven than other employees.
Online college and university programs teach students to think critically and creatively, and to analyze information in an intelligent way, skills which prove invaluable in the workplace. Not only do job chances improve with an online college and university degree, but you can expect to earn more money as well.