The Online Degree Dorm Room

Engineering Degree Online | Housing Bust creates online learning Opportunity

Posted by bposton on November 11th, 2006 — Posted in engineering degree online

OK, I guess I shouldn’t call it a Bust…:-)

But the fact is that housing sales are down. Ah, but there’s a silver lining…

Why am I taling about housing sales and what does that have to do with an online degree?

Well, just hear me out my door room buddy, especially if you’re a Realtor…

The fact is that sales are down pretty much everywhere. According to the October 2006 Freddie Mac Economic & Housing Outlook, home sales for this year are expected to fall 9 percent from 2005 figure.

And projected sales for next year are even worse. To prove the point, sales of existing and new homes in August were down 12 and 15 percent, respectively, from 2005.

So what’s a Real Estate agent to do?

Try going back to school for that degree!

If you’re an agent who wants to remain competitive, then you should think about these points made by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics:
 
1. As real estate transactions have become more legally complex, many firms have turned to college graduates to fill positions.

2. A large number of agents and brokers have some college training.

3. College courses in real estate, finance, business administration, statistics, economics, law, and English are helpful.

4. For those who intend to start their own company, business courses such as marketing and accounting are as significant as courses in real estate or finance.

Here’s some more facts and figures:

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Member Profile, back in 2001 about 26 percent of Realtors had bachelor’s degrees and they earned 30 percent more than Realtors without degrees.

The 2005 NAR Member Profile now shows that 20 percent more Realtors (46%) now have at least a bachelor’s degree.

So if the market is slowing and your workload is decreasing, maybe now’s a good time to consider getting that online degree.

Ben

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Engineering Degree Online | The college textbook ripoff - continued

Posted by bposton on November 10th, 2006 — Posted in engineering degree online

OK, I’m rested now and ready to finish my expose on the college textbook scam…

Again, to recap - it’s a 6.5 billion dollar business. The costs have risen 186% since 1986. The average student book bill is 900 per year…

ahrgggg….

Here’s another thing. Publishers are saying they have to include more and more material to serve as many people as possible, and that’s why they costs keep going up.

Of course, that also means that the darn books get stuffed with so much “stuff” that it’s impossible to go thru it all during the course!!!

double ahrgggg!!!

Here’s another thing. since these publishers are bundling disks, workbooks, and website access into a textbook, they’re not playing fair with the textbook resellers. That’s because once these type of bundles are opened, like courses with DVDs inside, they can’t be resold. So these publishers are doing everything they can to end the used book market

Yeah, I know. theres alot of reselling options on the Internet. For example there’s the every popular ebay, half.com and even independent outfits like varsitybooks.com and ecampus.com. But you know what? their slice of the business is a small fraction of the total textbook market. A 2006 report by the NACS found that 23 percent of students buy their books online and of those online sales, a third are from the websites of existing campus bookstores.

So what’s a student to do?

Write your congressman…

Seventeen states have recently proposed legislation to help curb the rising costs of books, including the requirement that schools post the international barcode number of each of the required texts so that students can shop for them online. The new Connecticut law also even require publishers to tell professors what the books cost before the professors assign their students to buy them. I guess that might make a different.

In my next post, I’ll tell you about a student who took matters into his own hands…

Ben

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engineering degree online : calling all astronauts…

Posted by bposton on October 27th, 2006 — Posted in engineering degree online

Interested in the highly specialized field of Aerospace Engineering?

Here are a few of the colleges that offer online Masters degrees in Aerospace Engineering, starting with the newest program: Georgia Tech

The GT School of Aerospace Engineering currently offers two different master of science (MS) degrees.

The first is the “Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering” degree and is generally referred to as a “designated degree.”

The second is the “Master of Science” degree which is referred to as an “undesignated degree.”

What’s the difference between “designated” and “undesignated”?

Well, according to their website, the designated degree requires that you must have completed all academic course work which is required for a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering degree. 
Here’s the list of other schools that offer a Master’s degree in the Aerospace Engineering field (or in that general area):

Illinois Institute of Technology
Program: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Location: Chicago, IL
University of Washington
Program: Aeronautics and Astronautics
Location: Seattle, WA

University of Southern California
Program: Aerospace Engineering
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Buffalo State College, SUNY
Program: Engineering
Location: Buffalo, NY

University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
Program: Space Operations
Location: Colorado Springs, CO

Binghamton University (S.U.N.Y.)
Program: EngiNet Programs
Location: Binghamton, NY

Stanford University
Program: Part-Time Graduate Degree Study (HCP) At A Distance and On-Campus In Aeronautics and Astronautics
Location: Stanford, CA

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Program: Master of Aeronautical Science
Location: Daytona Beach, FL

University of Colorado at Boulder
Program: Aerospace Engineering
Location: Boulder, CO

North Carolina State University
Program: Online Graduate Degree Program in Aerospace Engineering
Location: Raleigh, NC

Saint Louis University
Program: Master of Science in Aviation Safety Management
Location: St. Louis, MO

Auburn University
Program: Aerospace Engineering
Location: Auburn University, AL

University of Alabama
Program: Aerospace Engineering
Location: Tuscaloosa, AL

University of North Dakota
Program: Space.Edu Distance Education
Location: Grand Forks, ND

Ben

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