Is An Education Online Right for You?
If you’ve spent much time on the Internet, you’ve probably seen the advertisements for online colleges offering a convenient way for you to further your education and advance in your career. While there are plenty of good reasons to consider going back to school, especially in a competitive job market, you need to be realistic about whether or not an education online is the right fit for your personality.
To determine whether or not you might be a good candidate for this approach to learning, let’s go over a few factors.
Can You Make a Commitment?
One of the biggest challenges of an education online for many people is the need for self-motivation. No one is going to be harping on you to do your homework or to do your studies, except your own inner voice. And if that inner voice is telling you that you can put other things – partying, sleeping, video game playing – first, then you may have a real problem being successful with an online education.
On the other hand, if you’re determined to improve your life by getting a better education, you may have no trouble finding the motivation to stay focused on your school work. In fact, you might enjoy the flexibility and the relaxed nature of online learning more than you would the rigid structure of a traditional classroom.
Do You Feel Comfortable with the Internet?
Just because you can browse the Internet and read this article doesn’t necessarily mean you feel comfortable with the Internet. But with modern approaches to education online, you really need to feel at home at the keyboard. If not, it’s not exactly a deal breaker. Once you sign up for classes, you can always spend some time getting more familiar with the Internet or you can take a local course on using computers (sometimes these are offered for free in communities).
The important thing to realize is that most of the programs today are going to have an online element. For example, you may have to email your assignments or your questions to your faculty. Some courses might require your participation in forums or on message boards with other students to replicate the exchanges in a traditional classroom environment. In some cases, all of your instruction may be done online through streaming video presentations or video conferences.
The bottom line is if you’re interested in online education but aren’t too keen on the Internet, you need to work on improving that relationship before you start signing up for courses. Of course, if you’re a natural online then there’s nothing stopping you from charging ahead and furthering your education.
Can You Make the Time?
One of the biggest problems with much of the advertisement for education online is that it leaves out the time commitment. People say they can work full-time and attend classes virtually as if it were the easiest thing in the world. Ask anyone who has done it, and they will tell you it’s not easy. If you’re also trying to raise a family, it gets even harder. If you’re also the only one taking care of the cooking, cleaning, and other household chores, it could fee almost impossible. Now that doesn’t mean it’s not something you should consider. But it does mean you need to be realistic about the time commitment online education is going to require.
First, talk to your family. Explain how important it is for you and for them that you achieve this goal. Then find out how they can help you make it happen. Older children, for example, may be able to help around the house. Your spouse may be able to take on some additional responsibilities so you’ll be able to free up more time for your education. You might even consider taking fewer courses at one time just to make the workload more manageable. This may extend the length of time it takes to complete your degree but sometimes you have to do whatever works.
As far as time goes, you need to think about how much time you have available before you make the commitment to complete education online. While it is more convenient, it does still require some sacrifices. If you can’t make those sacrifices, it might be better to wait until your schedule is more flexible.
Does Your Current/Future Employer Accept Online Degrees?
If your main purpose for exploring the online education option is to achieve advancement in your current workplace or to find a job in a different industry, you need to know if the obtainment of an online degree is going to be sufficient to make those dreams a reality.
Despite the growing number of education online programs, many employers are still biased towards them and consider them less impressive than traditional degree programs, even though many of the latter programs also include online aspects and courses. While you can’t change the bias, you can do your homework and make sure the bias isn’t going to hinder your success once you’ve obtained your degree.
One way you can improve your odds of having your degree given the respect it deserves is to carefully choose the online school you attend. Make sure you check out the accreditation of the school thoroughly. If the school hasn’t been accredited in the field you are pursuing, your degree will be worthless so you must do your homework and pick the right school for your field.
Do You Want to Improve Yourself?
Regardless of whether or not an education online is going to improve your chances of scoring a great job or not, the important part of learning always comes down to self-improvement. Learning changes us for the better and gives us more confidence. Learning just for the sake of learning is one of the best reasons to pursue an online education and is definitely going to give you the right attitude for successfully pursuing this type of program. It’s definitely an accomplishment you should be proud of.