Tips for Success: Going Back to School Online

Your learning environment is an important aspect of your education. Create an environment that is quiet, comfortable, and organized. Remember that you are not bound by traditional school rooms. You can do your classwork anywhere as long as you are able to achieve the necessary focus your classes require.

You have time scheduled for work and for school, make sure you have time slated for family fun as well. If you have children, set aside time each day to work on their favorite activities and homework. Remain flexible and plan ahead for events such as school plays and soccer games. Your class time need not interfere with family if you plan and have your work finished ahead of time. Also, if your children are old enough, conisder doing your homework together. My oldest daughter often sits with me and works on her language arts work sheets while I write research papers. This reinforces the idea that homework is both necessary and fun.

Write your assingments out on a family calendar so you can keep track of when your work is due in relation to family events. This makes it easy to see if you have to complete work early in order to make family obligations.

Universities offer access to many online databases such as EBSCOhost and Proquest. These databases contain many of the resources you will need to complete assignments, including books and journals. These databases are a wonderful resource, but don't make the mistake of over looking your local library. The library is filled with content you may not have access to online, and will supply you with resources your fellow students may not have. Keep your audience in mind and consider sources your instructor hasn't seen in 50 other papers and presentations. Libraries have banks of reference materails that are specific to your course of study and may not be contained in many online library systems and databases. For example, in my study of psychology the DSM-IV is not part of the school library. It is, however, an important resource for papers and power point presentations, and can be easily found at any local library along with other psychology related reference books.

Your university may supply you with all your text books in PDF form for no extra charge. This can be a real advantage. When books can be downloaded it removes all worry about going to a book store or odering online and hoping for a quick delivery. In addition, books in PDF form can be kept on your computer or a flash drive with out taking up any space. I have an entire library of text books and journals related to my course of study saved on an external drive. They are easy to access, organize, and don't clutter my work space.

However, not everyone studies well from a computer screen. Many students find it more difficult to learn the material when they cannot hold it in their hands, under line, highlight, make notes in the margins, ect. If you find that this is the case, consider buying the text book. Look around for the best deals available. Your school may have a book store for you to buy from, however you may find better prices elsewhere.

As you can see in the following examples, you may find your text books at a reasonable price on Amazon or Ebay.

Depending on what program you are in, you may need to work in groups. I am requried to complete group projects in every class. It's not always easy to collaborate with students who may not be in the same state or even the same country you are. I once was in group where one of the other students was attending class while on a business trip in Hong Kong. The poor guy could never keep track of the time.

First, be sure you are up to date in all the programs used for your group assignments. For my projects Microsoft Power Point is often required.

Second, be prepared to handle the other personalities and styles of the other students. They will each have different ideas and ways of getting things done. If you are a natural leader, it is fine to lead but make certain you are not being too pushy. Ask for votes, opinions, and ideas. People will responde better to your leadership if they believe that your are democratic and interested in what they want and have to say. You are likely to run into another natural leader in the group, so be willing and able to share the spotlight.

If you're not a natural leader, that's fine too. Just make certain that you get your two cents in. If you have a better idea, make the suggestion. Group work will likely make up a large part of your overall grade, and you don't want to regret not making your suggestions when the grades come in.

Take advantage of any prior learning credits your university may allow. If accepted, these credits will save you time and money. Prior learning assessments are a way of being granted credit for learning done outside of the university. For example, my husband received credit for military training courses. Sadly, these assessments are not free, and you will be charged fees. You'll find however, that if you compare the cost of the assessment to that of a course for the same credit hours, the assessment is less expensive. In my case, I will be submitting an experiential learning essay, which will cost around $300. This essay will be taking the place of a class which would cost over $1000.

Some online universities leave it up to you to schedule your breaks. So take them up on it! Yes, we all want our degrees as soon as possible, but we shouldn't burn our brains out in the process. Every now and then take a week or two and RELAX! It is easy to get so focused on that degree that you drive yourself like cattle on a ranch. Focus is good, and determination is great. However you won't perform at the best of your ability if you are tired and worn out, and you'll find that you are more easily irritated with your instructors and classmates as well. So take a break already!

Currently, I'm taking my own advice. I'm on an long break. I need some time away from school to handle a situation in my personal life, and to write prior learning credit essays. I'm confident that when I return to class, I'll have benefited from some down time.

I'm currently a student of the Univerity of Phoenix, online campus. I'm in my final year and will graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. I find UOP to be a challenging and enjoyable learning environment. If you haven't yet made your final university choice, check out my school here.

In addition to studying psychology, I'm also very interested in food and cooking. I have a lens on peddlers kitchen and on gluten which discusses celiac's disease and gluten free living. I have also added a lens on milk allergies, lactose intolerance, and milk free cooking. I have also begun to blog. In the future, I plan to make more lenses relating to online higher education.
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