Considering Getting Enrolled in an Online College Degree Program? Read on…

Believe it or not, online classes can be more challenging than courses taken in a traditional classroom set up.  This is especially true if you thrive on eyeball-to-eyeball interaction with your instructor, pointers from your classmates, and are easily distracted by your neighbor’s television featuring reruns of “Jerry Springer” ad nauseum! In some ways online courses encourage self-reliance and self-evaluation to a much greater degree than classical campus education.  Employers are aware of this and hence, they give online degree candidates extra credit for this very reason.

Should you decide to pursue an online college degree, the choices can seem daunting.  With the relative newness of the concept, there is not a lengthy track record of online programs to rely on.  How do you navigate this unfamiliar terrain when enough statistics don’t exist?  It squarely falls on your shoulders but here are some important considerations that may make your decision easier.

Make Sure the College is Accredited:  

Accreditation of an online college program is like an insurance policy, that the schools you are applying to are capable of testing and certifying third parties. In this case students, think of it as a quality assurance for you. If an online college is not accredited or credentialed, run like the wind!  You may have an adventurous spirit but being a guinea pig for a college program may not earn you too many points with a prospective employer.

Study Wanted Ads in Your Field: 

All the effort and time that you invested into the online program will be futile if you find out that an online college degree program in your field is not held in the same esteem as a brick-and-mortar degree.  Talk to prospective employers to get a flavor for how responsive they are to online college degrees in your field.  Getting a consensus from employees and employers will better equip you to make this decision.  This varies largely from industry to industry; demographics may also be factored in.  Especially with the baby-boomers retiring, the younger Gen-xers are much more receptive to online degrees.

Consider Leveraging Financial Aid: 

Reputable online degree programs can cost a pretty penny. Online colleges offer competitive financial aid packages with both federal and non-federal grants.  The Pell grant is traditionally thought of as a need-based campus education financial aid program only, but is now increasingly available to online students that qualify academically and financially.

Verify that Credits can be Transferred: 

This may seem inconsequential at this time, but at a later point if you want to continue your education, credit transferability comes in real handy.  Most accredited online colleges have established credit transfer policies, so leave nothing to chance.  In the event that you decide to add to your degree, transferring hard-earned credit hours to a new online degree program will go a long way in satisfying academic prerequisites.

While no road map as such exists that can you help you short-list your online college degreeprogram choices, the four discussed considerations along with a big serving of your gut instinct should land you on a program that will most closely get you to your career goals.