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DNG Education Program JOIN THE GUARD!
By 1LT Deborah L. Welch, Education Services Officer, Delaware National Guard
Should You Earn Your Degree Online?
Four Key Questions to Ask Before You Decide
by Peter Vogt
Monster Career Coach
It's tough when an employer compares your hard-won college degree to "earning a GED through a Sally Struthers correspondence course." But in a 2000 Vault.com survey of 239 human resources professionals, that's what one respondent said about college degrees earned online.
Of course, that was four years ago -- practically a lifetime in Internet years. And interest in online bachelor's degrees among traditional-age (18 to 24 years old) college students continues to grow.
According to a June 2004 survey commissioned by Excelsior College and conducted by Zogby International, two-thirds of 18 to 24-year-olds said they'd be "much more likely" (42 percent) or "somewhat more likely" (24 percent) to pursue higher education if they could earn a degree through an accredited distance-learning program. At University of Maryland's University College, a leading online education institution, the number of undergraduates under the age of 25 nearly doubled between Fall 1998 (603 students) and Fall 2003 (1,120 students).
If you're a young adult considering an online undergraduate degree, you're not alone. But you may be a little unsure about it. Here are some important questions you should ask before making a final decision.
What Will Employers Think of My Online Degree?
According to Vicky Phillips, CEO of GetEducated.com , a Vermont-based e-learning research and consulting firm, reports there has been a "sharp increase in the acceptance of distance degrees," especially since 1996. "In 2000, 79 percent of corporate managers rated a distance degree ‘as good as' a residential option. Fewer than 50 percent of corporate managers held this opinion in 1989," says Phillips.
But not all online degrees, and the institutions that offer them, are created equal in the public's mind, Phillips stresses. That 79 percent approval rating rises to 90 percent "when the name of the institution offering the degree is immediately recognizable to the prospective employer."
"Universities that lack a brick-and-mortar legacy...earn the lowest approval marks," Phillips says. "While Americans generally love new products and services, higher education is one area where historical longevity breeds consumer trust and confidence."
If you decide to pursue an undergraduate degree online, be prepared to prove your degree's worth and validity to at least some of the prospective employers you approach.
What Will I Miss by Not Being on a College Campus?
An online degree won't provide some of the on-campus educational experiences your peers might have, such as living with a roommate or interacting informally with students and faculty members whose backgrounds and beliefs may differ from yours.
"Online degree programs cannot offer the type of social and peer interaction many younger students may be seeking," Phillips says.
Will I Be Able to Get the Degree I Want?
There are fewer online bachelor's-degree options available compared to those at the master's-degree level. In fact, online graduate-degree programs outnumber online bachelor's-degree programs by about 2-to-1, says Phillips.
Moreover, online bachelor's degrees are mostly in areas such as business, management, information technology, computer science and education. "There are very few online programs in the humanities, because there is very little market demand for these programs," Phillips says.
In some cases, you may need to be a certain age -- 25 or older -- to participate in online bachelor's-degree programs. Check admissions requirements closely.
Can I Handle the Workload?
Contrary to popular myth, pursuing an online degree isn't any easier than pursuing a degree on a physical college campus.
"For many people, online learning is harder, because it requires more independent reading, much more writing -- since written assignments take the place of classroom discussions each week -- and a great deal more in the way of time management," says Phillips.
She advises students considering an online degree to "try a single course and see how that goes. If one course works well for you, then you're probably a good candidate for online learning."
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