If heading to campus doesn't work for your busy life, consider earning a flexible degree when and where you want.
Has earning your degree been on your New Year's resolution list for a
while now, but your schedule doesn't seem to allow you time to
physically go to school? You may want to consider earning your degree
online. That's because an online education offers flexibility of
schedule and the convenience to take a class anytime, anywhere.
Mike Echols, executive vice president of strategic initiatives for
Bellevue University, says that he usually sees online students that fall
into a number of similar characteristics: they tend to be working
adults, oftentimes with families, and they have complex schedules.
"They need flexibility in their learning," Echols adds. "I'd say that
online learning lends itself particularly well to that population of
people in particular."
However, while studying online is convenient, it isn't for everyone.
It takes hard work and commitment to successfully complete a degree
online.
But if studying online seems like it may be a good fit for your busy
life, take a look at these five degree programs that translate well to a
flexible, online format.
Degree #1: Criminal Justice
Have you watched cop cars swarm the scene of a crime and wished you
had the time to gain the skills necessary for their job? Earning a
criminal justice degree online could give you the flexibility of taking
your classes from anywhere, at any time.
The College Board, a not-for-profit organization committed to
excellence and equity in education, says that criminal justice students
could take classes in policing society, criminology, juvenile justice,
and statistics.
The Online Advantage: Echols say that in most online
learning models, students must review and deliberate on facts, then
discuss their ideas and their interpretation of those facts with other
members of their online classroom.
And that's very similar to what criminal justice professionals have to do on the job.
"Professionals in this field are routinely challenged to gather,
interpret, and communicate evidence to others in the legal system," says
Echols. "It is this case-by-case study approach, combined with the
practice of extensive debate and dialogue with other criminal justice
students in the online class that lends itself so well to this
profession."
Potential Careers*:
Degree #2: Business Administration
If you've got your sights set on climbing the corporate ladder, it's
possible that earning your degree in business administration online
could help. Not only can you do it on your own time, but you'll also
learn valuable skills that follow you post-graduation.
According to the College Board, students in this program could study
classes like accounting, operations management, business statistics, and
economics. This program prepares students to run an organization's
activities.
The Online Advantage: Echols says that organizations
are increasingly operating on a global basis with huge geographic
reach, and studying online can expose students to interacting with
others in different parts of the world.
"The boon to studying business administration online is that students
immediately get immersed in that international component by working in a
collaborative digital environment with students and teachers in other
countries," he says. "The tools and tech they use in online learning
help to grow the real-world skills they'll use on the job
post-graduation."
Potential Careers:
Degree #3: Computer Science
Do complex problems and the interworking of computers sound like
something you'd be interested in dealing with day-in and day-out? If so,
earning your degree in the growing field of computer science could help
you achieve your career goals, while offering you the flexibility of
going to school online.
The College Board lists artificial intelligence, software
engineering, and data structures and algorithms as typical classes for
this major.
Online Advantage: Essentially, this degree is great to pursue online, because you'll be learning about computers while you're working on one.
"The exposure to tools used in class and the practical alignment with
the career world is unmatched [in this program]," Echols says. "The
design and deployment of a robust online education learning model is
exactly - save the application testing - the deployment of these very
skills," he adds.
Potential Careers:
Degree #4: Graphic Design
If you catch yourself frequently looking more closely at posters,
magazines, and websites, you may be a good fit for the popular field of
graphic design. And because of the technological components of the
coursework, this degree translates perfectly to an online format.
Typical coursework could include Photoshop for designers, typography,
and history of graphic design, notes the College Board. They say that
this program teaches students how to design books, magazines, websites,
and more.
Online Advantage: Echols says that students of an
online graphic design program use digital tools like Photoshop, and the
online medium, to truly excel in their studies.
"While they're doing things like working with online educators who
are teaching how to build online content in the form of multimedia, for
example, they're also getting practical hands-on education for any
employment opportunity they may pursue down the line," he adds.
Potential Careers:
Degree #5: Health Care Administration
If you can't stand the sight of blood, but really want to work in the
booming field of health care, earning an online degree in health care
administration could be a good match for you.
The College Board says health services administration students learn
what it takes to oversee a health care facility, and possibly take
courses like accounting, health care law, statistics, and health care
ethics.
Online Advantage: "Health care providers say one of
their biggest challenges is finding ways to integrate technology into
their field for things like data capture, medical information, etc.,"
says Echols.
"The interesting thing about a student learning to function in an
online collaborative mode, on a tech learning platform, is that they're
exposed to the use of tech right from the start," he observes. "Learning
on the platform that their field is struggling with puts them at an
advantage - comfort and experience-wise - so they're able to better
assimilate and teach others when they get on the job," Echols says.
Potential Careers: