There are so many reasons why Online Universities are a great option, not only for working adults but for those who want to save money as well. It is less costly because you don’t have relocate and you don’t lose out on money sitting in lecture halls for hours at a time. The added bonus is the Internet- it’s available just about any where so the trend towards distance learning is growing quickly.

A student can now achieve higher education through the use of the Internet from the comforts of their own home or choice of study location. An online college is essentially an online portal, or more commonly known as a website.  Through the use of the web, a student can interact with other students and their respective professors through online chat rooms, bulletin boards, virtual classrooms, conference calls, webcam conferences, and much more. These amenities essentially turns the campuses online portal into an online campus- one that is accessible from any Internet connection in the world.

Some of the advantages that an online college has to offer is the ability to hand in assignments easily and electronically- no need to print!  Campus-based colleges are starting to adopt the practice used by online colleges of uploading documents sent to professor with an online college assignment. This allows the student to simply log into their online college website, upload the thesis and report,and send off for a grade. Furthermore, exams and quizes are online as well.  Often times this means that grades can be immediately returned to the student after the exam is finished.

Do you know what you want to do with your life? That’s a tough question but regardless of what you want to do for the rest of your life you should get a university degree now. You will make more money, according to the most recent US Census 51% more, and move ahead faster.

How do you know what college to attend? Here are a few questions to start thinking about to help select the college that is right for you:

1. Is an in-state or out of state college right for you?

2. Do you want to go to a big school or smaller sized school?

3. What financial aid is available?

4. Do you prefer a suburban setting, a school in a big city or studying in the middle of nowhere?

5. What programs are of interest to you? Liberal arts or a more focused program?

6. What school rankings should be important?

7. Is there a career services office? Can you find out the percent of people who get a job after graduation?

8. Are there available programs offered by the school for extracurricular activity?

9. Do they have on campus or off campus housing available?

10. Is there a professor that could potentially mentor you one on one to develop your career interest?

11. Bonus question for today’s world: Do you know how financially secure the school is?

Once you start thinking about the answers to these questions, you can help focus on the college that is best for you!

The author is a consultant in Miami, Florida and currently writes about accredited colleges online for College Matching Service. She is currently helping to build the largest college directory online.

Photo by: Ephemeron1

Unemployment rates of persons 25 years old and over, by highest level of education: 2006

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Office of Employment and Unemployment Statistics, unpublished 2006 annual average data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

There is still a lot more research to be done to find out the true value of online colleges.

So you’ve decided to apply to college. You collected all the paperwork and now that college application is sitting in front of you with numerous questions to answer: Where are you from? What do you want to study? Tells us something about you? And what about the main college application essay or worse essays? What should you write? 

Here are some tips to consider as you start putting pen to paper:

1. Start with an outline: Start with an outline and figure out the main points you want to touch on before you start writing.

2. Stay Focused: make sure you answer the question in full

3. Structure your essay: Make sure you have a clear beginning, a middle, and an end.

4. Get to the point: don’t get lost, make sure you don’t lose your reader along the way

5. Make it unique: think of a topic that is unique to you. Personal experiences and stories can draw in and interest readers

6. Make it your own: Giving it your own flare can give a refreshing twist to an essay

Now you have some focus, good luck!

The author is a consultant in the miami area and is currently trying to figure out how she’s going to fund college for her 22 month old daughter.

*College Graduation Photo taken by TCS Photo’s

What is accreditation? Accreditation is the process of reviewing a school’s programs and policies to see if it meets criteria set by an outside agency. When a school is found to meet the minimum criteria, it is granted accreditation.

Why is accreditation important? Accreditation is meant to protect students, schools, and employers. It ensures that a school is educating its students and meeting quality standards. When a student receives a diploma from a school accredited by the right agency, he can be assured that it will be accepted by employers. Likewise, when an employer is looking to hire, she can be assured that a graduate from an accredited school has received the training necessary and didn’t pay for a degree from a diploma mill school.

Who can grant accreditation? Not all accreditation is equal. Accreditation from the wrong source (such as an accreditation mill) can be worse than no accreditation at all. Make sure that your online school is accredited by an agency recognized by either the United States Department of Education (USDE) or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). These organizations maintain lists of legitimate accreditors. If you want your online degree to be widely accepted, select a school that is accredited by one of the six regional accreditation agencies recognized by both the USDE and CHEA. These are the same agencies that accredit reputable brick-and-mortar schools. Many online schools are accredited by the Distance Education Training Council (DETC). This accreditor is also recognized by the USDE and CHEA. It is recognized by many employers. However, DETC accreditation is not as widely accepted as regional accreditation. Many regionally accredited schools do not accept transfer credits from DETC accredited schools. Use discretion when selecting an online college with DETC accreditation.

What if my school isn’t accredited? If you choose a school that isn’t accredited (or is accredited by an illegitimate agency), it may be difficult to use your degree. Few employers will take your degree seriously. Additionally, you may not be able to transfer your credit hours or degree to an accredited school. If you are seeking a degree for personal enjoyment, accreditation may not be important to you. However, if you want to use your degree in the workplace or plan on furthering your education at a later date, accreditation is essential.

The Kind of Reputation The School Has

It may seem simple — a good school will have a good online program. That may be true, but it is also probable that its online program is still too new to judge, so you’re left with nothing but the reputation of the school’s traditional programs. This reputation, however, may not be as straightforward as you think. You can look at the overall quality of the school and make a judgement, but there may be weaknesses in the program in which you are interested. It’s not uncommon for a great school to have a weak program or two.

The Way Students Are Evaluated

Earning a degree should mean just that — earning it. If students aren’t assessed properly and degrees are handed out with little or no verification that any knowledge has been transferred from the instructor to the student, then how can the program be rated? Students, particularly adult students, learn more by doing than by simply listening. For this reason, it is important to ensure that part of the program involves applying what has been learned.

The Kinds of Library Facilities That Are Available

Make sure the school has a good system for ensuring that reference materials and texts are accessible from anywhere. If a student is taking a course in another state (or another country), the online program shouldn’t limit that student’s ability to do assignments because of lack of electronic reference materials. Online references are extremely important and should be up-to-date and accessible at any time.

Some of these non-accredited violators have been awarding diplomas and degrees for decades. Courts that have shut them down have cited problems like:

Too few qualified faculty members to maintain the number of students or level of education

Too much credit given for previous life and work experience without properly determining the actual level of knowledge

Not having course objectives

Awarding Ph.Ds to students who haven’t performed the type of research and analysis typically required of such a degree

Basically, the problem relates to the schools having substandard requirements for earned degrees. Some programs even allow students to earn master’s or doctoral degrees without having first earned a bachelor’s degree.

The best bet is to stick with a known, reputable university or college that is offering online/distance learning. That school’s reputation will be at stake so it is more likely to have the same quality online as offline. Of course, there are some good programs from universities that are strictly online. According to an article by a former student at the University of Phoenix Online, many students feel as connected with other students as they would if they were on a campus attending classes in the traditional way.

An online certificate programs from our accredited colleges and universities can provide you with all the career advantages that this distinctive credential confers. Regardless of their particular focus, these MBA programs share the objective of helping students develop sound business skills and inspiring thought-leadership among future and current managers, C-level executives and entrepreneurs.

MBA programs continuously evolve to respond to gradual and sudden changes in the marketplace, emerging industries and technological advances that impact how we do business. In today’s global economy, an MBA from an accredited American institution continues to be the gold standard for Fortune 100 companies who compete for the best and brightest managerial talent that there are and in having a very good online certificate programs, this can be made possible easily and in the comfort of ones own home.