Online College?

[diamondsndaisies]

Has anyone ever received a college degree online like Kaplan or something similar? I am looking for somewhere to complete my Associates that I can do online because there isn't any local colleges that carry the paralegal program. Any suggestions or advice you can give me? 
Not going through an actual campus kinda makes me nervous. 

[akraus2015]

I did most of my graduate degree through a hybrid online program. I think doing classes online is perfectly fine as long as you're self disciplined and a visual learner, but I would try to find an online program that is connected to a physical college or university in your state.

[emilie]

Mar 22, 2016 16:33:23 GMT -5 akraus2015 said:

I did most of my graduate degree through a hybrid online program. I think doing classes online is perfectly fine as long as you're self disciplined and a visual learner, but I would try to find an online program that is connected to a physical college or university in your state.

I agree - lots of legitimate universities (by legitimate, I mean non-profit state schools or established universities) are starting to offer online or partially-online programs.  I live in California and lots of the University of California and Cal State colleges offer some online programs.

I know some issues with those for-profit online universities are that they aren't that well-respected while job hunting and they charge exorbitant tuition and interest fees if you borrow.  If you are in the US, can you see if your state schools offer any sort of online programs?

[icaughtfire]

I did most of my classes at community college & university online. If you're saying there isn't a local college/university in your town that offers that program, I would check out community colleges in surrounding towns. A for-profit college is going to cost SO MUCH MORE than a community college or university, like you would pay more for your AA/AS through a school like Kaplan than you would for a BA at a four year university (tuition only, I'm not talking room & board). The only benefit is that, generally, you can finish in less time. Depends on your priorities -- time or money.

I've also been told that for-profit college degrees are generally less respected compared to a community college or 4 year university degree when compared side by side on a resume. I don't know how true this is, but considering you'll be paying out the ass for that degree, it better be worth something, ya know?

[cnf2013]

I did my graduate work entirely online. I would highly suggest you pick a brick and mortar college that also offers online programs versus for profit, purely online schools. I did mine through the University of Alabama. Most schools are starting to offer online programs. It might just take some digging around to find what you're looking for.

[icedtea]

H is getting his masters through an online program, though they did require some travel to the physical school. I'd search out traditional schools with online programs.

[kayladawn91]

Several teachers I know got their masters degree through online programs. I want to say the college a lot of them used was called Marygrove? The masters degree I plan on doing (hopefully soon) is all online but through an actual physical university. A lot of universities and even community colleges offer online where you never have to travel to the school. So maybe a college too far for you to drive to may still offer online classes for your program?

[diamondsndaisies]

Mar 22, 2016 18:47:26 GMT -5 icaughtfire said:

I did most of my classes at community college & university online. If you're saying there isn't a local college/university in your town that offers that program, I would check out community colleges in surrounding towns. A for-profit college is going to cost SO MUCH MORE than a community college or university, like you would pay more for your AA/AS through a school like Kaplan than you would for a BA at a four year university (tuition only, I'm not talking room & board). The only benefit is that, generally, you can finish in less time. Depends on your priorities -- time or money.

I've also been told that for-profit college degrees are generally less respected compared to a community college or 4 year university degree when compared side by side on a resume. I don't know how true this is, but considering you'll be paying out the ass for that degree, it better be worth something, ya know?

Unfortunately, there isn't any in the area less than 3 hrs away. That is why I was wanting to do online as much as possible. I have to be able to keep my full time job. 

I was noticing that their tuition rates were kinda high, but I haven't been to school since 2007 so I didn't honestly know what the normal price per credit hr was up to. 

[diamondsndaisies]

Thanks everybody, you are pretty much confirming my decision. I was just trying to figure out all of the options because of my distance issue, but I will try to find a way to make it work.

[juliayadda]

I am doing a Bachelor's of Commerce in Canada through our accredited On Line University. Basically a traditional public University that has a developed On Line program. I would only do my degree from this university because it is accepted by the professional community and offers the same level of education as a traditional one.

My biggest challenge is holding myself accountable. I can complete the course as fast as I want like in a month or as long as 6 months. So far I have gotten to six moths every time...

[requiressnacks]

diamondsndaisies, I did my MBA through a distance learning program offered by the University of Massachusetts. I liked that it was tied to a legit college and it worked fine for me.

As others mentioned, I would recommend trying to find a reputable school that has a legitimate "brick & mortar" presence. People see my MBA from UMASS and don't automatically think "online college."

Good luck!

[sarahandben108]

Lurker butting in....

My mother was the register for Kaplan in our local area. Needless to say, she left after two years. She did not have anything nice to say about that particular school. And she had worked in higher ed for 20 years before that. I would run from Kaplan as much as possible and do an online program that is directly connected to an University.