Online Education in the 21st Century

Online education has come a long way in the past few decades.
Today's online colleges are on par with traditional schools, offering instruction catered to a variety of learning styles. Online college degree programs often include podcasts and videocasts, online forums, interactive learning, and a variety of technologies designed to enhance instruction. Some online colleges and universities are experimenting with highly customized forms of instruction.
Online colleges often receive accreditation from the same regional accreditors that certify traditional schools-holding traditional and online colleges to the same stringent standards. And more and more traditional schools are going online-with even top Ivy-League schools offering full or partial online degrees.

The Evolution of Online Education

Online education's evolution follows the growth of the Internet itself, and as technologies evolved, so did online colleges. Today, with the increased sophistication of the Internet, online schools have dramatically improved instruction-and even Ivy-League schools such as Yale and MIT have worked online education into their curriculums. Online degree programs have made considerable progress in gaining acceptance in traditional academic halls-and it's rare these days to find a college that doesn't and isn't planning to offer some form of online instruction.

Online Colleges Go Mainstream

A growing number of traditional colleges, both public and private, offer blended learning models or fully-online college degrees. Through these programs, online students can earn the same degree a traditional student would earn-from a program that's either entirely or partially online.

As online college degree programs improve in quality and popularity, they've also become more accepted among employers. Many employers have seen the benefit of online education to their full-time workforce, and it's not unusual to find companies offering tuition reimbursement programs for employees who want to earn an MBA or another degree online.

Choosing an Online College

Choosing a college is never easy. The school you choose could make a big difference in your future career success, however. Here are a few questions to ask when choosing the right online college for you.

Does it include the programs you want? The right college for you depends on what you're going to school for. Many online colleges and universities specialize in certain areas, and have excellent programs for certain industries and careers. If the college you choose has a lot of different options within your general major, chances are they have a large department in that area with a lot of resources. Check out a variety of colleges to find out who's offering the best program in the major you want to study.

Is its program valid in the state where you plan to work? Some online college degrees-such as teaching degrees-include professional certification as part of the degree. When you're studying online, it's important to find out if these certifications and licensures are applicable in the state where you're studying-as your online college may be based in a different state. If this issue is applicable to you, be sure to ask about your employability out-of-state with any certifications or licensures included in the program.

What do students and alumni say? To really get a sense of the school, don't just talk to the admissions office. Talk to real students and alumni. There are plenty of online forums that include discussions of the pros and cons of various online colleges, by students who have no stake in selling you anything-including ours. Find out what people are saying on the ground about the classes, professors, programs, and administration.

What do employers say? It's also important to get a sense of what employers think of your school. Online college degrees are widely accepted these days. However, some employers are more accepting of online college degrees from primarily-traditional colleges than degrees from entirely online institutions. This may not be fair-after all, both types of schools are likely to be assessed by the same accreditor. But the more you know ahead of time about how employers in your industry view a particular school, the more prepared you'll be for the workforce.

What's the student aid package? Your student loan burden should not be too heavy when you graduate-and shouldn't be far out of proportion compared with your earning potential. A better package would include a large percentage of federal aid and require minimal private borrowing-and colleges are obligated to offer you as much federal aid as you qualify for. An ideal student aid offer would include a significant amount of grants and scholarships, which do not have to be repaid at all.

Choosing the right online college is a tough decision. Let us help you make it. Use our listings to find the schools with the best degree programs, check out our student review forum, and review accreditation information to find out which school is best for you. Then apply and compare financial aid packages from a variety of online colleges and universities. Our listings can help narrow down your search-and make your decision easier.