Common Myths About Online Colleges

Are online degrees really credible? Will employers hire professionals with an online degree? These are valid concerns for anyone ready to invest time and money into a college degree.

However, online college programs offer equal standards to that of on-campus counterparts and are a viable path for achieving career goals.
Here are common myths about online college degrees and coursework. Online colleges are just profit-making corporations that do not care about students' best interests.
Public not-for-profit, private not-for-profit, and private for-profit colleges all offer online degree programs.
With an increased number of postsecondary institutions offering online education, the standards continue to rise and the focus on the student improves.

Online programs at traditional schools retain the same overall goals and missions of those on campus.
Individual degrees may be housed within the same academic departments with on-campus counterparts, and many classes are taught by on-campus faculty.

Moreover, for-profit schools that offer distance-only education programs are driven to meet the standards of more traditional institutions with long-held reputations. All online classes are alike.

Online degrees and coursework offer a wide range of opportunities. First, some programs feature asynchronous coursework to be completed on your own time, while others engage students through virtual real-time classrooms, or synchronous sessions. Programs can follow traditional semester calendars, provide accelerated options, or even be self-paced.

Furthermore, some online programs are delivered fully online, while others are blended, or hybrid, requiring both on-campus and online components. Just as each person has their own unique perspective about content of a specific on-campus class, professor likability, etc., the same holds true for an online class.
The quality of an online degree is not up to par with traditional on-campus programs. All colleges, online and on campus, maintain different levels of overall accreditation, with regional accrediting agencies having the best reputation, followed by national accreditation.
Furthermore, individual degree programs often retain added specialized accreditation through individual organizations, such as the American Bar Association and the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.
Accrediting agencies periodically review and hold online programs to the same standards as those taught on campus.
Furthermore, the U.
S.
Department of Education maintains a database of approved accrediting agencies for postsecondary institutions and degree programs.
Prospective students should always research accreditation standards of a school, including overall and specialized accreditation, and determine that programs meet necessary state certification requirements (if applicable).
Online degrees are easy, and therefore not credible. There are many components to online programs that closely resemble on-campus counterparts. For schools that offer both online and on-campus programs, many of the same faculty teach both.
Faculty are specifically trained to deliver effective online course content.

Students are often required to complete outside research assignments, that may require access to a college library or electronic research database. A practicum and/or internship may be required.
Students must maintain time management, reading comprehension, and self-motivation skill sets in order to successfully complete self-paced and asynchronous coursework. For these reasons, an argument can be made that online programs may require added effort.

Online degrees lack personal connectedness.

Just as many global corporations interact and conduct business in multiple locations in different cities, online campuses operate in much the same way.
Email, discussion boards, virtual classrooms, chat rooms, and two-way video feeds, like Skype, offer communication opportunities between professors and students, as well as student-to-student interactions. Furthermore, some online programs feature cohort class sessions that require students to progress through coursework together, in an effort to create a more socially engaged environment.
Employers do not hire professionals with online degrees. Employers want reliable employees with a good work history, experience, and know-how to complete the task at hand.

While degrees need to meet accreditation and certification standards, such as teacher licensure, research has shown the actual college of choice has little effect on the hiring decision of most employers.