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Tuesday, July 31, 2012

The Biggest Problems With Online Degrees

A current main concern about online degrees is whether an online degree from an accredited college or university is seen by potential employers as a lesser degree than one that is earned in the traditional classroom. Certain professions, such as entry-level MBAs, still consider online graduates as second-tier to traditional classroom graduates because the ones doing the hiring all obtained their degrees from traditional schools and have questions and concerns about the quality of online degrees. Graduates from the first Internet law school, Concord Law School, will likely have fewer options to practice law because the American Bar Association will not accredit the university. As a result, those graduates will only be able to practice law in those states that don't require lawyers to earn degrees from an ABA-approved law school. There are some professions, like information technology fields, that tend to value online degrees more highly because of the nature of the work itself. However, a career network website, did a survey of 239 human resources professionals and found that they tend to put more value on degrees from established universities like Duke or Stanford than from virtual universities like the University of Phoenix. Their study also revealed that 26% believed that online bachelor's degrees were as credible as traditionally earned bachelor's degrees, while 37% believed that online graduate degrees were as credible as traditionally earned graduate degrees. The reason behind this is believed to be that people seeking graduate degrees are doing it online because it's their best or only option due to current job demands. These people may be seen as more driven and self-motivated. The biggest drawbacks regarding online education cited by those surveyed were the lack of social interaction with peers (61%,) lack of data about the effectiveness or quality of the education (53%,) and loss of real-time teacher/student exchange (39%.) The industries most likely to embrace online degrees were the following - Internet/New Media (70%) Technology (46%) High Tech (44%) Media & Marketing (29%) Telecommunications (29%) Consulting (22%) The industries least likely to embrace online degrees were the following - Medicine (68%) Law (56%) Health Care/Bio Tech (52%) Academia (44%) Government (22%) Finance (18%) The following was recommended by respondents to help online degree holders land a position even when the interviewer has doubts about the value of the degree: - Tell employers and potential employers that your degree was earned online. - Bring along transcripts, course study examples, and letters of recommendation or authenticity about the program and its accreditation. - Have industry experience to back the degree. - For those with limited work history, having taken courses like public speaking, debate, public forum, and group dynamics could help show that you have people skills, which could help ease the hesitation over the lack of social interaction with your peers when taking online courses. As more and more online degree holders get interviewed and hired, the number of companies that will be more open to hiring people with online degrees will increase. Slowly, but surely, the employment world is realizing that talented individuals don't have to come from the traditional classroom to provide value to a company. Companies are also realizing that individuals who would have never been available before due to work commitments, family obligations, and time constraints preventing them from attending traditional classroom degree programs, are now becoming options for these businesses to consider adding to their employee talent pool.

About Author: Bryan Wong is the owner of www.OneStopEducationSearch.com, a website that provides you a unique one-stop-search-service and high quality articles.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Long Distance Colleges and Universities

Due to the success of distance education, the number of long distance colleges and universities also has seen a huge rise in the recent past. Recent research too has shown that the number of students enrolled with distance learning programs will see a huge jump in the next decade. Today most educational institutions are realizing the importance of technology aided education, and are willing to start online versions of their on-campus programs. The trend which was pioneered by the University of Phoenix is now being followed by almost every educational institution. It's a Sea of Choices Since most colleges want to broaden their student base, they couldn't ask for a better way to do so than by throwing open their gates to students of their virtual classrooms. Today long distance colleges and universities are more open towards accepting non-traditional students into their fold. The United States Open University offers degrees in various subjects like Business, Psychology, Mathematics, Statistics, Arts, Languages, History and Information Technology amongst others. The Strayer University too has a presence online and aims at catering largely to working adults through its online programs. It has degrees in subjects like Acquisition and Contract Management, Internetworking Technology, Economics, Accounting, and Public Administration. Other long distance colleges and universities include names like Capella University, Canyon College, Thomas Edison State College and California National University amongst others. Degrees are on offered at various levels, be it Associate, Bachelor's or Master's to cater to the varying needs of the student community. Though a large number of the online students' population consists of adults, working or non-working, distance education caters to the fresh out of high school generation as well. Distance education is a great equalizer and it allows a uniform platform to people from various races, social backgrounds and nationalities to pursue their dreams of higher education further. The Latest Technologies Courses offered by long distance colleges and universities aim at providing the same educational environment to their online students as to their on-campus students. The latest technology is being employed by most of these colleges to deliver lectures, discussions and debates in real-time to students sitting far across the world. Today it is possible for a person living in Africa to pursue a degree with UCLA or the Boston University. Distance learning has been a blessing for all the people dreaming of higher education, but not finding the means to partake of it.

About Author: Jim Zorn is web master of the Guide to Distance Learning. Please visit to learn more about online colleges and universities, distance learning degrees, majors and courses offered. http://www.guide-to-distance-learning.com/index.html

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Little Known Ways to Save Money for College

One of the phrases that parents dread the most is this: college money. As soon as their child is born, parents tend to think about the future and actually make plans for their kids. They instinctively think of a profession that they want their children to have in the future: some want their kids to be the next Bill Gates, a big-company CEO or a world famous surgeon. As a student, you have to do your part in saving up for your own college fund as early as you can, even if your family is well-off. Getting a college degree costs a lot and graduating would be more of an ccomplishment if you know that you have contributed your share in your education costs. Before filling up those college application forms and constructing your essays, take a look at these ways on how you can save up for your college money: 1. Start early. A college degree is very important. You may look at it from an emotional or a practical view, but in the end, you can still say that a college education reaps more benefits than being just out of high school. Depending on whether you were sent you to a private or public school, your parents would more or less have an idea about the costs of your going to college. As a student, you need to work with your parents in saving up early. Use summer vacations as an opportunity to start saving up for your college fund. Allot a part of your Earnings as college money and make sure that you do not tap into it for any other purposes. 2. Be creative in tapping your resources. Use special occasions like your birthday or Christmas to add funds for your college tuition. On your birthday, ask a close relative to contribute to your college money instead of giving you other gift items. If you cannot do this yourself, your mom or dad should be more than happy to ask your relatives, Grandparents, aunts and uncles, to consider as a Christmas or birthday gift a contribution for your college funds. Do for yourself the household chores that your mom or a neighbor would usually pay for, like mowing the lawn, cleaning the attic or garage or doing painting jobs. Save a part of this money for your college tuition. You can even use a coin bank to save up. Every cent would help, just make sure to resist the temptation of breaking your piggy bank before you need to. Part of your monthly allowance from your parents is another resource that you can tap into. 3. Work with your parents in planning for your college money. In the end, majority of your college money will come from your parents. Show them that you are responsible enough to take part in the decisions regarding your education. Ask them to explain to you the plan that they have as well as investments that they made for your college money. After all, it is your education, and your future, that they are investing for.

About Author: Dave Poon is an accomplished writer who specializes in the latest in Education and Careers. Article Source: ArticlesAlley.com

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Need Admissions and Financial Aid Help? Here's How To Hire a Private College Counselor

In a recent college admission industry journal a brave admissions Vice President commented that 'Sadly, in the last 20 years we have lost our way in admissions. Colleges are no longer centered on counseling students; we are focused more on recruiting and competing for them. The students are just a way of keeping score. Furthermore, we charge different prices to students whom we value more or less because of our internal institutional priorities...Private counselors who strike a balance between helping students find the right match for their abilities, interests, and personality and assisting families in locating affordable choices are valuable.' We couldn't agree more. So who is looking out for your student in the admissions and financial aid process? Not the colleges anymore. Independent counselors, however, have no agenda other than what is best for their students. College is big business, first and foremost. You may not need a CPA to do your basic taxes and you may not need legal help for routine matters. But if you're facing an IRS audit or having to go to court you want a professional in your corner. The same can be said of college admission and financial aid. The stakes are high, to say the least. Given that a bachelors degree from a public institution will cost $50,000 to $75,000 and a degree from a private institution can cost upwards of $175,000 or more the dollars alone beg for a professional's expertise. Consider also that the difference in average lifetime earnings between a high school graduate and a college graduate is $1.2 million and climbing. So where can you find help? And how do you know that you've found a professional? In an ideal world, the first place to seek assistance would be from your high school counseling office. But in reality, too many high school counselors are not 'college' counselors per se; only a small amount of their time and resources are dedicated to college admission and only very rarely do counselors understand the intricacies of the financial aid process. Too many counselors are simply overworked and lack the time and resources to offer meaningful personal attention and guidance. There are also no widely-known and recognized certifications for independent counselors such as the CFP or CPA designations, although such certifications do exist. And it is all too easy to find 'independent counselors' with little or no experience other than their own children's admissions and financial aid processes. A disgruntled parent can make a bad counselor. However, armed with the right questions, you can find true experienced professionals. When interviewing an independent college counselor be sure to have these questions answered to your satisfaction: 1. Professional Credentials/Experience Do not ask if they have college admission and college counseling experience - ask them to tell you specifically how many years in admissions, how many years in financial aid, how many years in college counseling, how many years in private practice, and which institutions they served. The ideal is to find someone - or a team - who has direct experience in all of these areas and knows the tips, tricks, ins, outs, politics, processes, calendars, expectations, and language of college admission and financial aid. 2. Professional Associations Ask if your independent counselor is a current member of professional associations. Professional associations, such as regional chapters of the National Association of College Admission Counseling, keep counselors up to speed with developments, issues, ethics, and news within the college admission and financial aid industries, not to mention that such associations foster collegial relationships between professionals. It would be nice to have your counselor personally know the deans and directors at the colleges your student will apply to. 3. Number of students You want to know that your counselor is a full time professional and will work with your student appropriately. However, you also want your counselor to have a reasonable case load. You do not want your student to be that counselor's fourth (why so few - does she know what she's doing?) nor his 400th (will he be able to spend any time with my student?). 4. College & Campus Familiarity You want to know that your counselor has personal experience with many different campuses and that they visit different colleges whenever possible. Matching the student to the right college is crucial. Colleges have personalities. Students have personalities. If your counselor has not visited the campus they do not have a good understanding of the college, period. It would be like finding a mate through an old-fashioned classified ad (nice college with leafy trees and okay professors seeks student with 1200 SAT score...). The better the counselor knows the colleges and knows the students the more successful the matching. 45% of students who start college do not finish; often this is because the it's just not the right place for them and, frustrated and demoralized, they drop out. 5. Money Matters No, we're not talking about counselor fees here (although these vary wildly - we've seen everything between $500 and $30,000). You need to know to what extent your counselor understands the financial aid process. Ask if they fill out or help you with the FAFSA and CSS Profile applications for need-based financial aid. Ask them if they think you need to fill out the forms even if you don't think you will qualify for need-based aid (the answer is yes, of course, so you can be eligible for merit awards and loan packages). Ask if they will be able to provide you with a college funding plan with a breakdown of estimated family contribution numbers, line-by-line estimated financial aid packages, and if they work with a financial planner or college funding specialist to suggest ways to improve the family's bottom line. Most independent college counselors do little to none of this, so you may want to cut them some slack; just know that such help is out there for those who want and need it. The stakes are high, but there is excellent help available. Just be sure you find a pro, someone you trust, respect, and whom you know will work well with your student.

About Author: Bill McCumber is the founder of iCollegeCoach, a leading provider of college search, admission, financial aid, and college funding services. For more information please call 1-877-Coach-13 or visit iCollegeCoach.