Today, I figured I would provide you with a key synopsis on how online education works

Online courses follow the same format as traditional college courses, with a professor, textbooks, homework, exams, etc. However online courses have a much higher degree of flexibility and usually use a combination of message boards, e-mail, chat rooms, CD-ROMs and textbooks.

In a typical online course, the professor will post weekly reading assignments, study questions and schedule a group online chat time. The student must post answers to the study questions and respond to at least one other student's postings by the end of that week. Online courses typically have weekly deadlines.  However, your daily/weekly study schedule is completely up to you. At the end of the course or module you will have either final exam or written essay requirement.

Your Key to Success

Just like in traditional college classroom courses, success depends on your commitment and devotion to the class.  Plan on spending about tow hours a day studying.

With Online education, you need to have a strong desire to learn and you have to remain focused on earning the college degree.  Don’t forget that it is your and what you learn from these classes that will expand your career opportunities.

Are Online College Courses for Real?

Yes. Many people share your concern about the validity of online college programs. Online programs are offered by many big-name, fully accredited and esteemed schools like Penn State, Phoenix University, the University of Washington and Capella University, to name a few.

I have heard that you should not buy into an image, but rather buy into a degree.

More and more colleges, both big and small, offer online courses that may fit your needs and budget.

The first thing that you should do is obtain a information brochure from the schools that you are interested in.  From these packets, you will learn the courses that they offer and the related tuition costs.  I think that it is a great first step to order information from multiple schools.  They are free and without any obligation on your part. 

It is like starting a diet without changing your eating habits.  I just wish dieting was that easy.