If you are a self-motivated person who is good at time management, eager to embrace new technology and need flexibility, programs offering online bachelor degrees are for you. Not only do students earn all kinds of degrees online today (from associates to doctoral), they can do it quickly ? and for less than half the cost of a four-year course of study at a traditional ?brick-and-mortar? university.
The keys to earning fast online degrees lie in advance planning and taking advantage of what you already know (or are willing to learn on your own). The College Level Examination Program ? predictably (in a field that cherishes its arcane acronyms) known as CLEP ? enables students to ?test out? of their entire lower division (or general educational requirement) coursework. The best part of this is that it can be done for about 10% of the cost of doing traditional coursework. It?s basically like getting an associate?s degree at a 90% discount! This program has been around for a long time, and is still used by military personnel and other professionals who need to pick up quick credits.
When earning degrees online, the only difference is that all interactions with the professor and classmates are done online, over the Internet. Course materials may be delivered over the Internet over via post. Typically, students working toward online bachelors degrees will listen to a professor?s lecture (which may be via podcast today), read assigned texts, then post comments to an online forum or discussion board which is monitored by the professor. The online student is usually required to reply to a certain number of classmates? comments. There may be group projects, and of course, term papers and exams are as much a part of earning degrees online as they are in a more traditional setting. Students may do all of this without ever leaving home, yet their classmates may be anywhere in the world ? yet another unique feature of online learning.
One of the great advantages of online bachelors degrees is the amount of resources offered by the Internet. Professors will usually provide their students with links to many other Internet resources in order to enhance and maximize learning.
If you are considering joining those who have obtained their degrees online but are not sure if this new way of learning is right for you, consider taking a non-credit or ?continuing education? course in a subject that has always interested These type of courses are typically not applicable toward online bachelor degrees; therefore, they are an excellent, low-pressure way for the prospective student to explore the possibilities of online learning and find out if they want to join those pursuing fast online degrees.
