Did you know? Though we call this e-learning, online education & Virtual Learning – this is a mode and subset of Distance Education. Why is that?
Distance Education has been there since 1700s. It has evolved with the mode of communication :
- 1840 : Sir Isaac Pitman educated others of his famous Pitman Shorthand methodology via Postal Service
- 1948 : Federal Communications Commission (FCC) promoted Distance education via Radio & Television
- 1985 : Nova Southeastern University used Internet to start its first ever Online Education
Now, with rapid advancement of Internet – Virtual Learning
became a convenient medium for many universities and self-starter students
5 Key Points to note while Choosing the University/College providing Online Degree
- Accreditation : Be it Online or On-premises Education – always check the authenticity of the College/University. Beware of fakes! You can verify if they are recognized institutions through the following websites:
- USA : Search for the university name in
CHEA(Council for Higher Education Accreditation)
- India : Search the College/University name in
Know Your College
(published by HRD Ministry, Govt. of India). Do note that it can fall under Technical College or Other Higher Education Institutes
- USA : Search for the university name in
- Quality of Online Teaching :
- See if the Course Content matches your requirement
- Apart from recorded videos, do they have interactive sessions?
- Do a thorough Google Search on the Course and University. Check out the no.of Ratings & Reviews. Both matters!
- Flexibility : One of the main reasons to prefer Online Education is for its flexibility.
- See if their semester schedule is suitable for you
- Check if it is completely online or do you have to visit the Institute for any session/meeting
- Course Fee & Financial Aid : Generally, Online Degrees can be pursued from reputed universities at a fractional cost (in comparison to On-Premises). But, do verify
- if there are extra charges apart from Course Fee
- if you can avail a Financial Aid (Scholarship)
- Support Services : This is key in Online Degree. Verify the following:
- How to ask doubts with Professors? Email or quick Virtual Meeting?
- Whether they provide Placement (Career) Opportunities?
- If there are issues, who and how quickly will it be resolved?
Next Steps
If you are already aware of the University & Online Degree that you would like to learn – then, validate it with the above 5 key points.
If you are new to this concept or would like to explore, then you can start with the below list and validate it with the above 5 key points :
Stanford Online - Master of Science
IIM, Ahmedabad - e-Mode Post Graduate Programme in Management
University of the People - Online Tuition-Free University Degrees
eDX - Online Master's Degree
Coursera - Online Bachelor's & Master's Degree
Happy Online Degree Learning! Stay Safe!
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