Education Articles from College Matching Service

Online Colleges – An explosion of accessibility.

Because the Internet has become available almost anywhere, the availability of distance learning has grown tremendously.  A student can now achieve education through the Internet from the comfort of his or her home.

An online college is essentially an online portal, or otherwise known as a website.  Through web 2.0 technology, a student can interact with other students and a professor through online chat rooms, bulletin boards, virtual classrooms, conference calls, webcam conferences, and much more.

This essentially turns their website into an online campus, one that is accessible from any Internet connection in the world.
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About Colorado Technical University

Colorado Technical University is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is a premier technical university offering a broad range of degrees in fields such as computer science, business, information technology, health services, and management.

For convenience, Colorado Technical University offers campuses located throughout the Midwest in the United States and a popular online college that offers a plethora of online degrees for students who are interested in distance learning.

Accreditation

Colorado Technical University or CTU is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. This independent corporation was founded in 1895 and is recognized by the US Department of Education and the Council on Higher Education Accreditation.

Is CTU Right For You?

Colorado Technical University structures its programs and degrees around the idea that their students will be going from graduation directly into the industry. They provide valuable mentoring to students graduating from their university to help them achieve success through networking and job placement.

A few facts about CTU:

• Outcome-focused Degree Programs
  The programs and degrees are a direct reflection of the need for career-motivated professionals
• Education From Almost Anywhere
  Campus locations and a robust online campus that offers access to mentors, chat with instructors, join clubs, apply for financial aid, and network with other class members.
• Enhance Your Resume With Academic Certificates
• Commitment to the U.S. Armed Forces
  CTU is a DANTES-affiliated university and member of the Servicemembers Opportunity College.

Paying For Your Education

Finding ways to pay for your education can sometimes determine which college you attend. Colorado Technical University takes financial aid very seriously. They offer a financial advisor dedicated solely to helping their current and prospective students develop an education plan that fits into their budget.

By developing a financial plan from the start of your education to the finish, the financial projections will let you know exactly what you can expect to pay for your education. It will also solve the problem of how you are going to pay for your education by exploring options such as scholarships, federal student loans, private student loans, government assistence, grants, federal grants, and many other opportunities for students to get money for their education.

Most importantly, their financial advisor will help you secure monies for your education.

Over the past few weeks I have been hearing a lot of buzz around the University of Phoenix.

Most of what I have heard was good and there were a few things that were not so good. Though, I took these with a grain of salt because every university has current and past students that are hell bent on cutting them down.

I found numerous articles written on the University of Phoenix that demonstrated why the University has gained so much popularity. These of course were simply theories, but if you look at the sheer size of the University of Phoenix, there has to be something to the buzz.

The University of Phoenix is the working adults higher education.

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Evaluate your material. How do you determine if a source of information is of high quality? Even if you are obtaining your data from a library database such as Lexis-Nexis, you should be aware that the articles contained in the newspapers they have in their database could be biased.

If it has advertising or links indicating that the owner is a member of an affiliate program on it, does such activity automatically make the site untrustworthy? In the past, it might have been an automatic disqualifier to see links to advertising, sponsors, or affiliate programs that pay the Website owner a few cents for referrals. However, one can not make such assumptions now. In fact, the presence of affiliate links may indicate that the Website is a labor of love, and that there are no ideological or commercial ties. Further, the lack of commercial ties may actually be a negative factor because it may mean that the enterprise is so profitable, or the ideological motivations are so strong that there are numerous well-endowed backers, or a highly successful business model.

Here are a few considerations as you evaluate your distance learning sources.

• Refereed journals. This is an academic journal that requires all articles to be reviewed by experts in the field. They require revisions and will reject articles if they do not meet standards.
• Books and serial monographs. In this case, it depends on the publisher and whether or not they evaluate, judge, and critique the material to assure that only the most reliable are published.
• Series sponsored by an association or reputable group. These are very common in the humanities, particularly in the hosting of content in the public domain.
• Wikis and collaborations. Variable quality. They can be extremely good and reliable, but the quality, quantity, depth, and breadth will be variable, as will be the scope of the contributions. There can be bias, distortion, or gaps (lacunae) in information.

Make the most of any group or team time. If you are assigned to a team, make time to do your best on the assignment. Even if your team can only meet for 15 minutes every week during the team project time, do it. You should use the telephone, instant messaging, or the class chat room for your team time. Save the discussion board and e-mailing for exchanging files and polishing your group project. You will get to know your fellow classmates and get a better grade in everyone gets to know each other, even just a little bit. (Hint: Online courses call instant messaging, chat rooms, and telephone conversations synchronous, meaning at the same time, and call discussion postings and e-mails asynchronous, meaning not at the same time.)

Look for opportunities to meet other online students. They don’t have to be in the same class or even in the same university because there are many similarities when taking online classes anywhere. Local public libraries, community colleges, and other places are good starting points for locating students. If you are unable to find people in your community, look online or right here in the eLearners community. Even if you are not interested in replying to a blog or a commercial chat, you will probably see some of the same experiences you are having appearing in these places. (Hint: Check to see if your school hosts local meetings or events and attend them.)

Establish a relationship with your professor. If you are truly interested in the subject you are taking, e-mail your professor some very well thought out questions about the subject. Most professors will answer and be flattered you are thinking about the course beyond the assignments and activities. Also, many professors enjoy sharing their expertise so don’t be shy! (Hint: Online professors can become mentors, reviewers, and references for later projects just like classroom-based professors.)

Wear your school colors with pride! Purchase a sweatshirt with your online university’s logo or slap a bumper sticker on your car. Believe it or not, just associating yourself with a school helps makes you feel a part of the school and once you feel part of the school, you will feel less isolated. (Hint: Most online bookstores will sell you logo items right along with your books!)

In a traditional classroom, you meet your fellow students and faculty and create a real community; even it’s only for the length of the class. You notice when your classmates look upset or even who is there and who is absent. That’s part of the community; it makes you feel connected, and it is one of the more enjoyable aspects of college life. But can you get that feeling as an online student? The answer is yes and here’s how!

Share a little personal information. It can be about your family (Are you married? Do you have children? Any pets?) and your life (Think favorite hobbies, professional interests, top five movies, etc.) in either your bio page or the introduction post. If you are able to post a photo, do so. (Hint: Most course management systems reside behind a firewall so only your classmates, your professor and some of the administrators have access to this information and they are required by law to not share personal information, so it’s a safe environment.)

Remember that your other classmates are in the same situation. You are not the only one who feels some sense of isolation. Just like in a classroom, some people are shy and some are outgoing. It just takes one person to do a little reaching out to create a community and you can be that person. (Hint: Even if you are a little shy, you don’t have to speak to get a community started online.)

Find a buddy. In the beginning of the online class, find someone you’d like to get to know better and start up an email conversation with them. It’s good to have a buddy in the class and it will help reduce your isolation. Keep your initial e-mail short and let the receiver know in the Subject line that you are from the same class. (Hint: If one person does not respond, find another person to e-mail.

Chatting during an online class may be a breeze, but it can even be a lot easier if you do these measures:
Be on time. Just be on time for your chat. In fact, be a little early so you can get the feel of the chat room. If you are going to be late, make sure you let your professor know ahead of time or see if you can reschedule. When you come to a chat late, it’s like coming to a class late, everyone, including the professor, notices. (Hint: Most class chats are recorded, so the professor has the exact time you entered the chat in the transcript!)

Have your references on hand. Make sure you have your paper, your textbooks, and any other documentation readily available, so you can refer to it to support your ideas or you can check your interpretation with the other students in the chat room. (Hint: If you want to reference something specific in a reading you know the whole chat room is using — like the textbook, just refer to the page; don’t type the whole thing in.)

Avoid disruptions during the chat. A chat room where the professor asks a student a question and gets no response, especially if the student has been responding quickly, indicates the student isn’t there. It gets uncomfortable for everyone, so make sure your chat has your full attention. If given the option, select a chat time where you know you will not be interrupted, avoid the temptation to check your e-mail or you’re my space page while in the chat room, and keep focused. (Hint: If the chat is just not moving fast enough for you, make notes on a sheet of paper about the ideas you are having during the chat.)

Expect the unexpected. Even with the best of technology, something can go wrong. You could lose power, others could lose power, the website could go down, you might have to miss because of something unexpected at the last minute, etc. If something happens, don’t panic. E-mail your professor as soon as possible. Be open and honest and ask how you can make up for your absence. (Hint: If the professor lets you copy the transcript and interject your comments — don’t destroy the flavor of the chat by over stating your position because you have time. Just write your comments and ideas exactly as if you had stayed in the chat. No one likes a show-off.)

Know the chat room signs and symbols. Some online schools, to facilitate a civil conversation, give certain signs and symbols special meanings. For example an ellipses (…) sometimes is put at the end of a sentence to mean there is more to come. Find out what the recommended signs and symbols are before the chat starts. You can learn the basic signs at Netlingo.com, Thinkquest.org, and Safesurfingkids.com. (Hint: If you don’t know the signs and symbols and you type in the middle of someone else’s thoughts, you will be seen as rude!)

Be patient. Some people are very slow typists and others have dial up issues. Sometimes it takes a long time for a thought to get out, so be patient. Let your professor be the gatekeeper for the discussion. (Hint: If the chat is going really slowly, review your topic notes or have baroque music playing in the background to keep your mind active and focused.)

Read what your professor has to say. In the beginning of each chat, most professors will go over the rules; let you know the order of the chat, the time limit for the chat, what’s acceptable in the chat, etc. Pay attention to these comments. The chat room is a time where the professor sees you interact with others in real time. You want to make a good impression. One of the elements of grading a chat room is almost always about following directions. (Hint: A professor may not state the element of following directions, but it will affect the subjective part of your grade.)

If you are looking for online degree, the internet the right place to look. You can select from the wide range of courses available online. The internet can provide links to some of the best online universities as well as campus colleges.

You can earn while you learn. You can continue with your full time or part time job while doing your online college course. Online degrees are becoming more popular for the person who wants to study and look after the family at the same time.

Other reason why people are more interested in getting online degree is because it comes to you at a very low price as compared to the money spend in campus colleges.

In online universities, you can study according to your own time; there is no fix schedule as you have in campus colleges. So it becomes very easy to adjust time according to your job, business or family.

You have wide range of learning methods available. If you like reading you have access to vast study material online or if you like hearing then audio lectures are available online. There are online instructors present to answer any of your queries.

You can earn your degree in your desired subject from the comfort of your home. You can learn while being with your family and at your own time.

Internet gets updated regularly, so you get the latest study material online. You don’t have to buy new books or articles to get the latest information.

A school accredited by the right agencies can grant degrees that lead to increased income and higher positions. But, a degree that is given by a “fake” school can turn out to be a huge waste of time and energy. Make sure you know the facts about accreditation before you register for classes with any online school.

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.