Choosing a College - Online Colleges

If we were all in high school we'd probably think about picking a major first and then finding a school that carried that degree. Non-traditional students, however, usually don't have the freedom of relocating to go to school so have to look at local colleges and online schools.

First lets look at online colleges as opposed to brick and mortar (B&M) schools. I have never come across an online college that wasn't outrageously expensive and, more importantly, has respectable accreditation. For example, I was recently asked about a college, one that advertises on television. The person had already talked to admissions there and was told they were accepted and could get financial aid for their tuition. Sounds good, right? Well it didn't take much digging to find out that the cost for the program, $15,000.00, had to be paid up front and was non-refundable, whether the student completed the program or not. Problem number two was the program resulted in a certificate, not a degree, and the classes taken were non-transferable to other schools. Third problem, the financial aid was actually a loan with the school, not a federal student loan, at an interest rate of 16%, as opposed to the current 7% for federal student loans. Fourth problem, a google search of the school found hundreds of complaints about the quality of the education. Fifth problem, the school had only local accreditation, not regional or national. The person found that their community college offered the same program, for a lot less money, and enrolled there instead.

Unfortunately this is not uncommon with online colleges. When the R&D company I worked for was down to less than ten employees the owner decided to rent out half of the building. The tenant ended up being an online college that only offered a masters degree in computer security. It was owned by a group of people in Singapore who opened six offices in the southwest United States. They got state accreditation only and required the $20,000.00 fee upfront. The student could then complete the program at their own pace. Even though they only opened their doors in 2008, had minimal accreditation, were very expensive, and offered only one degree, they had over 500 students signed up in their first year. I don't know how the other offices were staffed but the one in Albuquerque only had six people so I suspect that student support was minimal.

Now don't confuse online colleges with online classes. Almost all brick & mortar colleges now offer some classes online, some offer entire degree programs online. B&M schools are, for the most part, legitimate (more about that in another post) and online classes are convenient for students and instructors. Online colleges are essentially diploma mills e.g. you pay money and they give you a certificate or a degree, the education isn't a priority for them. There are probably a few that are valid but I've never heard of any. Then again, there are thousands of them out in the ethernet so it's impossible to know them all. If anyone knows of one, feel free to leave a comment.

When considering an online college, or any college for that matter, look at the following:

• Accreditation - is the college accredited, and if so, what type does it have? Has it ever had it's accreditation pulled or been put on probation?
• Tuition & Fees - does the college charge by the course, or hour, or does it charge one flat rate for the program? If financial aid is involved, who is the lender and what is the interest rate and terms of payment?
• Are credits earned transferable to other schools? TVI, for example, has in the small print of its TV ads that credits earned are not transferrable to other schools. This means a student is not only tied to that school to finish the program but it calls into question why the credits won't transfer.
• Does the college offer student services that help a graduate write a resume and find a job, and does it disclose the percentage of graduates that are able to find work in their fields.
• What other student services are offered?

Since this is the information age the answer to most of these questions, and many others, should be available on the college's web site. If the school provides minimal information that could be a red flag. A google search can also provide answers.

Happy 2010!

I've been thinking about doing this type of blog for months and what better time to start than the beginning of the new year.

This blog will focus on starting, or returning to, college for the non-traditional student. I'm reading more and more about older students going to college. Maybe their kids are older and they now have the time (and money), maybe they're finally getting a chance to finish a degree they started when they were younger, or maybe, like me, they decided to do a career change and are back in school working on that degree. The reasons are as varied as those of us back in the world of academia.

In my case, I was a music major at Crane Conservatory (SUNY Potsdam) after high school, transferred to Binghamton University in my senior year and never was able to finish due to finances. Eight years later I went back to Binghamton University as an Industrial Engineering major. After seven years of working full-time and going to school half-time I was within two course of graduating and was transferred to New Mexico. This was back in the days before online courses so I was unable to finish that degree. I talked to people at the University of New Mexico thinking I could transfer the credits and finish there but they wanted to start me as a sophmore because, they said, since my employer would pay for it it shouldn't matter to me. Well it mattered a lot since it was my time and I was again looking at years to finish. Long story short, I ended up not going.

So ten years go by, I leave the company I was with for twelve years and go to work for a small Research & Development group. After I start I find out that two of the three partners had just left, taking most of the scientists with them (the things they never divulge at the job interview...), and the company is in financial trouble. They were able to keep going for a few years but the doors closed in 2009.

There I was, out of work and fifty. I had almost thirty years of work experience in various areas and had offers from a few companies to do consulting work but I thought it was time for a change. I decided it was the ideal time to go back to college. As we all know, the economy was, and still is, in bad shape and there's no guarantee of job security at any company. My plan was to go to the local community college, get my AS, and then either work while doing my bachelors degree part-time or continue to be a full-time student for another few years. Ideally, the economy will be more stable by the time I graduate and I'll be more marketable because I'll have a degree.

In my next few posts I'll talk about choosing a school, choosing a major, financial aid (we're at that FAFSA time of year), buying books, and how to deal with real life while going to college. I'll also be doing a giveaway here and there. If any of you are also going to school, or dealing with your children getting through it, I'd love to hear from you.