Why Get an Online Degree?
So you are thinking about getting your degree online. What are you waiting for? Realizing the benefits online education has over traditional schooling, millions of American students have already gotten their online degrees. And for international students, the benefits are even greater. Let's start by looking at the obvious.
Overcoming Obstacles
Since 9/11, the U.S. State Department has cracked down on visas. It doesn't even matter if you are coming from a country that has nothing to do with terrorism; U.S. visa procedures have gotten laborious, tedious and often demeaning. The visa application process has become so cumbersome that, for the first time since the 1971-72 school year, foreign enrollment at U.S. colleges and universities is dropping. (These figures only take into account international enrollment at traditional schools; such statistics for online programs are not yet kept.) The Institute of International Education reported foreign enrollment at U.S. higher education institutions dropped 2.4 percent during the 2003-2004 school year.
Horror stories about the U.S. visa process abound. Not only do those seeking student visas have to be interviewed in person by a U.S. consular official (often having to wait weeks and travel far distances), but many face problems once they get a visa. One Harvard postdoctoral student in biochemistry went home to Beijing for his father's funeral . and then had to wait five months for the State Department to give him permission to return to school.
The U.S. State Department realizes its new visa policy unnecessarily punishes international students and is working to make the process easier. But, for now, for many international students wanting a degree from an American college or university, physically attending an American university is not an option-at least not a good one. But you don't need a visa to attend an American university online.
Most international students looking at online degrees from American colleges have unsuccessfully applied for American visas, says a manager of international student affairs for one of the U.S.'s leading online universities. "But they don't let that rejection stop them; they turn to online American schools and they get their degree and then they apply for a visa again. The State Department sees they persevered, and I imagine that looks good on the visa application. They may not be denied again. We certainly don't promise anything, but I've seen students who have done that."
Reaping the Benefits
And then there are the obvious benefits: online degrees allow you to work while going to school; you can get a highly respected American university degree without leaving your home country and culture behind; and, if you choose an accelerated program, you can earn a degree almost twice as quickly as you could at a traditional school.
The benefits of online education over traditional education have made online programs among the fastest growing of any educational offerings in the U.S. In 2000-2001, the most recent years for which data is available, 2,320 U.S institutions were offering online programs and courses to an estimated three million students (according to the National Center for Education Statistics). Three years later, no one can say for sure how many online schools exist - some come and go that quickly - but everyone seems to agree that the number has only gone up. For an increasing number of nontraditional and international students, online education is an appealing option.
"Being an online student does not interfere with daily obligations at all," says Ayman Afana, a resident of the United Arab Emirates who got his associate's degree from an American university online and has already started working toward his bachelor's degree. "The student chooses the perfect time for learning and can log on any time and from everywhere. The concept of online education was made for working professionals who really want to enhance the quality of their lives. Studying online is stress-free and guarantees the same education level of regular offline schools."
Mwaba Chisenga, currently getting his master's degree in IT online, says, "Going back to school and not working was not an option for me. I have expenses and children I need to take care of. If I couldn't do it online, on my own schedule, I wouldn't be able to get this degree."
There is no doubt going to school while working full-time and most likely also caring for a family is difficult. But online programs-at least the accelerated ones-can allow you to finish a degree in much less time than if you were at a traditional school. For example, some schools allow you to earn an MBA in 10 months rather than two years. "At a traditional school, you are in the same class for a whole semester. In my online program, each one is six weeks," Mwaba says. "Before you know it, the class is over, and you start a different one. It makes the time fly, and no subject matter ever gets stale."
Making a Personal Connection
One common concern of prospective online students is that they will not get to know their professors and fellow students in their virtual classrooms. In fact, it is exactly the opposite that happens. "Having had both the traditional and now the online learning experience, I can say online students don't miss out on anything," says Gail Chapman, a single mom who earned her first degree at a brick-and-mortar school and is currently working towards her degree in criminal justice online. "I interact more and stay in touch with my online classmates more than I ever did with the students I sat next to in an actual classroom day after day. And I can't even begin to compare the professors. At community college, never once did a professor hand out her home telephone number. In my online program, home numbers are the norm. The professors are there for you and let you know it. They really care."
Afana echos Chapman's sentiments: "I made new friendships with classmates and even professors I think will last for good."
While earning his online bachelor's degree in IT, Richard Szabo befriended a classmate, Lori, who lived 4,000 miles away. When his family was vacationing near Lori's home, they met face to face. Not surprisingly, everyone got along in real life as well as they did online. Now the two families are planning a weeklong get together.
While an online degree might not give you the full "living in America" experience you would get if physically on a college campus, in today's world, when the demands of life, work and family are more pressing than ever and visas are not easy to come by, sometimes it is the only option. And many online students find it a far superior choice.
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