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CHOOSING A COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY - CONSIDERATIONS
Things to Consider
Other things you should consider whether you're looking at a sit-down-in-class or a distance-learning school are
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Accreditation – To avoid buying a worthless degree, make sure the school you choose is nationally or regionally accredited. Also, if you plan to use the degree you’re pursuing to get a particular job or as a stepping stone to graduate or professional school, make sure the credit and/or degree you earn will be accepted by the employer or graduate school you’re interested in. While many regionally-accredited schools are now accepting credit/degrees from nationally-accredited schools, not all are. Make sure you find out before choosing an undergraduate program.
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Residency requirement and transferability – Find out how many credits you have to take from the school, compared with the number of credits you want to transfer in from other schools you’ve taken courses from and which you’ve acquired through military service. Some distance learning programs require students to attend a one-week on-campus session every so often. This may not be feasible if you’re in the military. Others may not accept all credits you’ve earned elsewhere or may not accept them at full value toward their degrees. Check into this before you plunk down your money. Choosing a SOCCOAST school will make these non-issues.
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Fees – Although you may be using TA to pay for your tuition, remember that TA doesn’t cover many college-related expenses. Some fees are covered by TA (particularly Internet fees for many distance-learning programs), but most aren’t. And in almost all cases, books aren’t. Are you planning to use Top-up to reimburse you for some fees and books? Be sure you’ve activated your GI Bill before you start school – otherwise your reimbursement from the VA will be a long time in coming.
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Course delivery method – If you're interested in distance learning, there are many different modes used in distance learning today.
Print-based courses were the first distance learning courses and have been around for more than a century. These are the traditional correspondence courses, and usually entail little contact between student and instructor. Although you may still mail your assignments to the instructor, you might also be able to send it by fax or e-mail.
Audio-based courses may use two-way communications (e.g., teleconferences) or one-way communications (e.g., radio or pre-recorded CDs or tapes).
Video-based courses may also use two-way comms (video teleconferences), one-way video with two-way audio, videotapes, CDs, or DVDs.
Internet-based courses use many delivery methods. For example, some use live content provided (e.g., with web cams and live audio), while others use canned content (e.g., using CD ROMs, DVDs, video and audio tapes). Some allow or require on-line student and/or student-instructor interaction, while others are like traditional correspondence courses but with content being provided over the Internet instead of via hard-copy by mail. Some require all students to log on at a specific time, using a web cam, and are as close as you can get to a traditional classroom setting.
Specific Questions to Ask
Admissions counselors at for-profit distance learning colleges (no matter what their titles) are sales people for their schools. And, like all sales people, they will try to convince you that their college is perfect for you even when it might not be. This is because the school is trying to make a profit and the only way to do that is to enroll as many students as they can. Many of these "counselors" are paid a commission or receive bonuses based on the number of new students they admit.
So when you're on the phone with an admissions counselor, slow down, and make sure you get good answers to all these questions, plus any others that are specific to your particular goals.
Distance Learning Considerations
However the distance-learning course is conducted, though, you should make sure it fits your learning style, your schedule, and your lifestyle.
If, for example, a course requires you to be on camera and on mike at a certain time, your computer will have to be in a quiet, well-lit space. If your home situation doesn’t provide that and you have nowhere else to set up a computer, on-line interactive courses may not be for you.
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Evaluation – To quote from Military.com, “Will you actually be required to work in order to earn your degree? If students aren’t evaluated appropriately and degrees are handed out with little or no verification that the students have actually learned anything, the program is not likely worthwhile and even less likely to be accepted by employers. A school that offers shortcuts may actually be a diploma mill, and should be avoided.”
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Library – As much as you might prefer otherwise, you’re probably going to have to write at least a few papers. Again quoting Military.com, “Ensure that the school you are interested in has a good system for providing reference materials and texts—they should be accessible from anywhere. The school’s online references should be up-to-date and available at any time.”
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Reputation – Many people consider a school’s reputation to be the most important thing. For example, some people consider an undergrad degree from Harvard to be far superior to that available anywhere else. But a great reputation doesn’t necessarily mean that students receive a great education. It all depends on what you value, and since there are no publicly-available studies of just how well students learn at U.S. colleges and universities, students have little to go on but reputation.
You can and should talk with students at schools you’re interested in to see what they like and dislike about it. You shouldn’t be looking for recommendations as much as information. After all, you may like the idea of a raucous dorm but may learn from students that the dorms are dead quiet after a certain hour. Similarly, you may find that it’s nearly impossible to ask instructors questions in one distance learning program while at another students can’t shut them up.
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Conduct a self-assessment – See your ESO to get an overview of distance learning so you can determine if distance learning is right for you. It’s not for everyone.
The University of Georgia has come up with an on-line assessment tool you can use to determine if computer-based distance learning is for you. It's called SORT (Student Online Readiness Tool) and is based on research that says there are "six main topics closely related to a student's success in the online learning environment". These are,
► Experience with Technology
► Access to Technology
► Study Habits, Lifestyle
► Goals and Purposes
► Learning Preferences
"Each section of SORT has a brief description followed by a questionnaire. Based on your responses to questions, feedback is provided on your personal readiness profile, along with suggested strategies for success and links to more information."
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