How To Start In Distance Learning

Online education is a great option for adults who don't have the option of quitting work to attend a four year, full-time college. Over 50% of distance learning students today are married and have children. So even if you're starting your higher education a bit later than some of your friends did, you're certainly not alone.

A couple of interesting facts about online degree programs today:
-- Well over a million adults are currently studying for certificates or degrees online.
-- Over 75% of corporations in the U.S. use some form of online classes to train employees.
-- The biggest private university in America today is the University, which in addition to its on-campus students, has more than 200,000 students enrolled in online degree courses.

WILL ONLINE LEARNING ACTUALLY HELP YOUR CAREER?
There are tons of things you can study online just for your own interest - a language or even how to paint pictures for example. But most adults who do it are looking for a degree or certificate that's going to help them get a better job than the one they have now, or maybe just get moved to a higher pay scale in the company they're with.

If you're starting in a new career, there are clearly some areas where you won't be hired without the right basic career training. Nursing and teaching would be two obvious examples. But because people are generally so educated in the U.S., it's much harder today to get hired as a policeman or a car mechanic (two careers people seldom went to school for in the past) without behind able to prove you've had some schooling in your specialty.

The bottom line is that education generally proves to be one of the best investments you can make. How well a degree from an online school pays off for you will depend on whether or not you're comfortable learning through a computer, and whether or not you choose a school and a degree program that give you exactly what you need to made a career move upward. The most important thing is to have a clear picture of what you want to accomplish before you spend any time or money on distance learning.

DO YOU HAVE THE RIGHT PERSONALITY FOR IT?
A major study has actually shown that shy people do very well in the online classroom, because they're more comfortable responding to questions and taking tests online than they are in a room full of students. But the most important personality trait you need to succeed here is self-direction - the ability to work on your own, put distractions aside, and stay on course toward the goal you are seeking.

IS IT EXPENSIVE?
Individual course on line can cost up to $900, which is about the same as you'll pay at some mid-priced colleges. A full four-year online degree can cost up to $30,000. That can be a huge saving when you consider that Boston University, for example, will cost over $47,000 per year (including room and board) for the 2008-2009 school year.

The point is that online schools aren't cheap. But when you consider that you'll have absolutely no cost for room and board, it can be a whole lot cheaper way to get a degree than many of the other options out there. The added fact that you don't have to stop working to study online also eliminates the lost wages you would have from spending four years at a traditional school. There is a very wide range in fees however, even at the online schools. It pays to spend a good deal of time researching fees on the web.