Helen Hecker asked:
Many people are earning a bachelor, master’s or doctorate degree online in their field whether it’s an online nursing degree, online education degree, psychology degree, or even an online criminal justice degree without conforming to the traditional, time consuming schedule. Others include a business degree online, online accounting degree, and online teaching degree. The term ‘online degrees’ refers to college degrees (sometimes including high school diplomas and non-degree certificate programs) that can be earned primarily or entirely by the use of a computer connected to the Internet, rather than by attending a college in a traditional campus setting. It’s been reported that employers feel that an employee receiving an online education degree compares favorably, in terms of knowledge learned, to someone with a resident degree.
According to one report, about two-thirds of the largest institutions now have fully online degree programs. Working on your online degree at home enables you to learn in your own way, at your own speed and will allow you to decide how soon you want to earn your degree. You will want to make sure your online school choice has accreditation, which means that the institution has passed a particular set level of standards through a recognized organization for upholding quality education.
Today there are even consortiums formed of universities, such as in Canada, the Canadian Virtual University, which offers no courses or degrees, but simply acts as a portal for courses from 14 universities across Canada. While most major online colleges are regionally accredited, the public perception of their quality has been in dispute but is gradually changing. In 1996, the University of Colorado at Denver in the United States expanded its campus with the formation of CU Online, creating one of the first fully accredited online education programs offering online university degrees.
Types of online degrees available today include: interior design degree online, online law degree, education online, engineering degree online, online paralegal degree, online computer science degree and online history degree. When seeking financial aid or an education loan for an online degree, it’s important to know they are now readily available, which was not true a few years ago. Graduates of any online degree program will be a good source for recommendations and make sure to ask about anything they think you should look out for.
Make sure that all the online credits you earn are transferable; ask at the institution directly, if possible, because most schools vary from course to course and with the individual school policy. Try to find online forums or chat rooms with actual students who are attending the school or who have attended the school you have in mind. Make sure to find out if you have to go to a campus to take some of the exams or complete some of your online coursework; if so, would you have difficulty getting to the campus if during the evenings and on weekends if necessary?
If you’re not sure about where you’ll be working when you earn your degree you might ask the counselors or representatives handling the accredited online degree program or bachelor degree online program what the job prospects might be. There are many online schools that are complete, stand-alone online universities with no campuses, football teams, sororities or fraternities.
Students seeking online degrees should get proof of accreditation from a regional or national accrediting body in the US if they have any doubt. Whether you want to earn an associate degree online, a bachelor’s degree online or even a master’s or doctorate degree online, rest assured that most online programs are fully accredited, but make sure to check this out before you commit; the value of the degree often rests on whether or not an institution is accredited.
Dillan Regos