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Once, obtaining a college degree meant leaving home, setting up house in a cramped dorm or shabby apartment, struggling to make ends meet as you balanced a demanding class schedule with a part-time job that provided little more than pocket money.
In those days, single mothers, fathers trying to provide for single income families, and college-aged adults who had to work full time had little hope of obtaining the education of their dreams. Because university settings and on-campus obligations hindered the parent's ability to earn a living and maintain a household, many qualified men and women shut their dreams away and focused on other worthy, but not always as fulfilling, goals.
We can all be thankful that times change. Since the days of the Civil Rights Movement, prior to which more complicated social issues such as race and gender, kept potential academics out of the higher education loop, great strides in education have been made. By the 1970s even, more students in high schools considered themselves budding candidates for Associate's and Bachelor's degrees. For a time money and convenience was still an issue for most of the degree seeking population, however. Now, fast forward to the earliest days of the Internet Super Highway where the seed that grew a pedagogy industry that reaches out to diverse intellectuals no matter the physical location.
In those early days, online degrees were only hopeful whispers at board meetings, college planning sessions, and career day talks. There was hope that enough interest could be generated to attract large companies and respected academic institutions. By the dawning of a new millennium, that interest was soaring and online college resource websites like My College Match and CDI College (for Canadians) formed to help prospective students easily obtain information on educational assistance, continuing instruction programs as well as full baccalaureate programs. A better and brighter future is now available to millions of worthy candidates.
Today, socioeconomic status and class standing does not determine who goes to college. The most significant determining factors in reaching your academic goals are the desire for achievement and the tenacity to follow through. From youthful recent high school graduates to retirees seeking knowledge and/or the potential for second careers, the internet classrooms are filled to the brim and more are offered every day. As interest in such curriculum grows, the offerings made by two-year and four-year colleges become more inventive and innovative, making for courses of study and class catalogues that capture the students' attention.
Many people considering attempting classes on the web worry about the feasibility of such an endeavor. There worries are rational and must be addressed by the institutions offering educational opportunities. What most promising undergraduates find is that online institutions are more than happy to help them research viable options for baccalaureate programs, flexible schedules, and financial assistance. Such institutions want the best students to find their way into the courses they have so carefully designed. What's more, they are willing to help applicants tweak the courses and schedules, in many cases, to make it fit not only their needs but their more practical constraints. With such flexibility, obtaining a university or college diploma at any level becomes a simply practical idea.
Today's web-abled institutions offer various possibilities for furthering your schooling. With programs that put you in line to receive your Associate, Bachelor, Masters, or Doctorate degree via the Internet, the skies are the only limits to the academic heights you could reach. Additionally, professionals already immersed in satisfying careers find that certificate courses offered through the World Wide Web allow them to meet industry benchmarks and continue their studies without upsetting their busy schedules. Individuals considering the various scholarly opportunities offered in a world of democratized education find that there are several fits that may be comfortable.
Comparing online schooling situations to on campus situations will help you to find the perfect fit for your needs and goals. Issues to consider include:
- Program Offerings
- Degree Levels
- Career Placement Success Rates
- Academic Advising Practices
- Faculty and Staff Respectability
- Scheduling Flexibility/ Feasibility
- Affordability
- Scholarships/Student Loans Options
- Length of Completion.
Web based instructions may not be right for everyone. Many college-bound undergraduates look forward to the world they have seen described in movies, on TV, and by friends and family. For some, the attraction will be mostly a social one--parties, fraternity/ sorority social groups, and collegiate athletics will draw students to campuses across the country and around the world. For such socially inspired individuals, an on campus opportunity will enhance their learning, one hope. But learners seeking more focused enriching opportunities find that internet based classes are viable options, too.
While some campus-based courses offer one-on-one instructions, where teachers and learners interact for optimum results, many undergraduates find themselves lost in classes teeming with other classmates competing for the instructors' attention. With that in mind, individuals who have neither the inclination or the time to struggle to swim ahead in a sea of other struggling students find that online class structuring offers them the opportunity to keep in touch with their professors and advisors via email, chat, and computer programs that make at home study feel like private school education.
Making a decision for education is your first step to a brighter future. Deciding on whether or not web based learning fits your needs is the next. No educated person has ever said that obtaining your diploma or other degrees would be easy. What they may have or should have said is that obtaining a degree is smart and possible for anyone willing to exert the discipline necessary to reach their goals. Before signing on for any adult educational program, look to yourself first. Are you:
- Interested in improving your life?
- Increasing your potential for financial success?
- Motivated to improve oneself on a daily basis?
- Inspired to learn and grow?
- Ready to commit yourself to a program for learning?
If the answer you give to each of these questions is "Yes," you're ready to exercise your rights to choose between online and on campus programs that meet your needs and put you own your path to success. Regardless of which is correct for you, you'll be in the starting place for a whole new world of learning.
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