The Online Degree Dorm Room

The Most Popular Online Degree Programs - What online degrees do people want?

Posted by bposton on September 29th, 2009 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

I thought I’d pass along some results of a recent survery that was done this past summer regard the types of online degrees that most popular.

There seems to be a trend shaping up if you look closely at the results, and the trend is that folks are getting more serious about the exact program they want to go for.

Maybe this is due to the fact that, with today’s job market, many are realizing that you have to be very focused on what kind of job you want, which translates to a more definiitive search for the degree program that fits that goal.

So people are make much more definite decisions about where they want to go, and how to get there, as well as understanding that they want to have a degree that will immediately prepare them for a competitive job marketplace.

So what are the most popular online degree programs?

The top 3 are business administration, nursing and criminal justice degrees, followed by health care, education and engineering.

Rounding out the remaining 4 of the top ten most popular online degrees are computers and IT, Psychology, Legal/Paralegal Degrees and Public Administration.

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The 5 Habits of Successful Online Degree Students

Posted by bposton on June 28th, 2009 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

OK, I just have to say it…

Using an online degree program is not for everyone.

(glad I got that off my chest )

But it is true. There are some folks who are just not cut out for doing studies via an internet connection.

Some people even believe that the obstacles to getting a degree online are even greater than those at a traditional university. I’m not sure about that, but I will agree that these hurdles are at least different.

So how to you make sure that you’re doing the right things to increase your chance of successfully getting your degree via an online education?

Well, you need to develop what I call the 5 Habits of Successful Online Degree Students:

Habit number 1.
Get the right program for your needs.
It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a bachelors degree, masters degree or doctoral degree program, if you just pick a program for it’s degree alone you’re could make the wrong choice.

Make sure that you’re interested in the subject matter, research the professors, other student’s experiences, etc, just as you would if you were going to apply at a campus based college.

Oh, and make sure that you’re only considering fully accredited online degree programs and courses.

Habit number 2
Be patient with yourself. Different students take different amounts of time before they become adjusted to online classes.
Alway keep in mind that your goal is to balance your online study with your family and your job. But it will take time to get that balance the way you want it to be.
Habit number 3
Make and follow a time schedule. Time can be your biggest asset when getting an online degree, but it can also be your enemy if you don’t take control of it.

Believe me, you’re going to be faced with many choices between conflicting responsibilities and you’re going to be swamped with day-to-day activities from time to time, leaving little or no time for studies.

But do your very best to practice good time management. It’s critical to your success as an online student.
Habit number 4
Break it down to daily tasks.
You’re going to have what I call major projects to accomplish as a student. Like term papers or reports that are due in 2 week.

Break those projects down in to daily tasks to make them more manageable and to fit into your time schedule. For example, ready the course material you are given on a daily basis. Many students often put off reading the lessons and books until the last minute since the professors cannot pressure them into answering or reciting anything. Make sure you don’t neglect doing the daily assignments and many other activities you need to do in order to get your papers done and projects turned in on time.

That way, when others are running around with their hair on fire when exam time or mid-term is around the corner, you’ll be calm and collected - and you’ll have the confidence that you know and understand the subject matter.

Avoid getting yourself into a cram for exams. Do your school work DAILY no matter what.
Habit number 5
Attend the online classes (or at least MOST of them )
You should make sure that you have time to attend all of the scheduled classes.
Sure, you can probably just download notes or even recorded lectures that the professor provides, but remember this - it’s nothing like BEING THERE. You’ll learn so much more by attending, and getting involved in the live discussions in class.
Remember, you can learn from the other students, not just the professor…

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online degree programs psychology | Did you hear about “the list”?

Posted by bposton on August 1st, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

Hey my little dorm room buddy!

The hot summer days of August are here again, and that means back to school sales and
move in plans for those who attend on campus universities.

For those who are in the cyberworld of higher education, or just thinking about getting that
sheepskin via an online degree program, here’s some interesting news about a diploma mill that
was shut down in 2005, and a list of folks who could (I emphasize COUILD) have attended!
Eight people have been convicted so far in the federal case that was brough against the diploma mill,
with at least two people sentenced to time in prison. It appears that this mill produced degrees
under the auspices of several nonexistent universities, including: 
St. Regis University
St. Lourdes University
All Saints American University
Hartland University 
Concordia University

Even more this mill evidently offered fabricated diplomas from real institutions, such as the University of Maryland, Texas A&M University and George Washington University.

WOW! :-0

This mill launched in 1999 and sold some $6 million of high school, college and graduate diplomas to customers around the world. Man, what a scam!

Anyway, it seems the Feds accumulated a list of almost 10,000 names of people “believed” to have purchased degrees
from this illegal diploma mill. And a newspaper got their hands on the list.

The problem was that it became clear that dozens of the names could be traced to e-mail addresses that end in “.edu,” which meant the possibility that there could be instructors in academe who were hired under false pretenses — a degree from an unaccredited, or worse, nonexistent institution.

So far, that hasn’t been any evidence found that any lecturers or faculty members knowingly purchased degrees from the company. But you have to wonder, don’t you?

You also have to wonder about the accuracy of any list that the Federal Goverment creates… I heard that there where people on this list that had legit degrees and only contacted the mill out of curiosity.

So let this be a lesson. If you go down the diploma mill path it will eventually catch up with you.

JUST SAY NO! 

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online degree programs psychology | Want 19 grand more in your pocket?

Posted by bposton on March 31st, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

Did you know…?

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, if you only have a high school diploma then you’re missing out on over $19,000 in additional income per year.

That’s right - you could be making about 19 grand more per year.

How?

Easy - just get a Bachelor’s degree.

Or you can just get an associate degree, which could put an extra $6,500 per year into your pocket. 

OK - I know what you’re saying to yourself: ”just how to do I fit a college degree into my busy schedule?”

Well, since you’re reading this blog, you’re close to the answer:

Start by checking out online degree programs (which are near and dear to my heart )

If you’re a homemaker, active-duty military or someone who travels a lot with your job, you can find an online degree programs that will let you complete college while maintaining a work-home-school balance.

Have you seen the gas prices lately? Well, as an online student, you will never have to worry about driving and parking.

Child care? No problem.

Scheduling? Attend class at midnight if you like.

(see - I told you it was easy )

And you know what? You might even be able to complete work for an associate degree in as little as 18 months or a bachelor’s degree in three years - which measn you get to that extra dough sooner.  

If you have access to a computer (which I assume you do if you’re reading this), then you also have access to online courses and distance-learning degree programs. Most lessons are delivered through special, Web-based distance-education systems. A course may include online lectures, assignments, practice drills and quizzes with instant feedback.

So what do you need to look for in an online program? Here’s a short list:

- Find out how often you will be required to log in for class.

 - Look for a program where you can interact with classmates using a discussion board and instant messaging.

 - Ask whether exams will be taken online or at a local testing site, and whether tests must be taken at specific times.

Also, make sure that you search out a college program that leads to career advancement. Otherwise that extra 19 grand might not happen.
And make sure that you check out a college carefully so that you are in a better position to get that extra income when you finish. Make sure you find this out:

 - Do instructors in your career-specific courses have practical experience in the industry or business? (Tip - go to the school’s Web site and look for instructor biographies or contact the school and ask the program’s director to verify that your instructors will be experienced professionals)

 - Ask if business and industry professionals worked with instructors to develop a program that will provide you with the skills employers are looking for. For example, if you are pursuing a degree in Information Technology, will your program include industry certification training? Or, if you plan on a career as a paralegal, will you learn how to use state-of-the-art legal software?

If you are self-motivating, then getting an online degree is a great way to improve your career opportunities.

And hey, who wouldn’t be motivated, by the prospect of as much as $19,000 per year?

:-)
 

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online degree programs psychology | SHRM Approves Capella HR

Posted by bposton on March 24th, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

OK, so what’s that cryptic headline about?

Well, if you’re into Human Resources (better known as “HR”) then you probably have a clue.

:-)

Let me explain to the rest of us.

SHRM stands for Society for Human Resource Management. This is the world’s largest association devoted to
human resource management. The Society serves the needs of HR professionals and advances the interests
of the HR profession.

They’ve been around for a while - since 1948 to be exact. And they have 235,000 members in over 130 countries.

OK, so the SHRM is a pretty strong organization for HR folks, right?

Well, they have something called the HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates, which they developed to define the minimum HR content areas that should be studied by HR students at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

And they recently announced that three Capella HR programs fully align with SHRM’s HR Curriculum
Guidebook and Templates. They are Capella’s Human Resource Management specializations in its
MS in Organization and Management, MBA, and BS in Business online degree programs.

And if you’ve been researching online degrees then you know all about Capella, a fully online university that offers
graduate degree programs in business, information technology, education, human services, psychology,
public health, and public safety, and bachelor’s degree programs in business, information technology,
and public safety.

Now is the picture a little clearer?

What’s impressive about this is that is that only 23 programs in 19 educational institutions in the world
have been acknowledged by SHRM as being in alignment with its suggested guides and templates.

And Capella is the first university to have three programs acknowledged, and is one of only three universities with online HR degree programs to gain acknowledgement from SHRM.

So if you’re looking for an online degree to advance your HR career, take a serious look at these programs from Capella.
You can reach them at 1.888.CAPELLA (227.3552). 

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online degree programs psychology | Penn State Online Degree Update

Posted by bposton on February 8th, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

Hey there dorm room buddy,

If you’ve been reading my posts for a while then you may remember that I told you in November about how Penn State had become the first College in the USA to offer online psychology degree programs.

(if you don’t remember, that’s OK - I know you’ve slept since then )

Anyway, since word got about about this, a lot of prospective students have contacted Penn State about the programs. 

According to Rich Carlson, professor and director of undergraduate studies in the College of Liberal Arts, there has been a ”huge response”.

In fact their ad on Google has gotten more than 18,000 hits, and as I speak there are more than 1,800 requests for more info on the online degree program. 

Just to recap the specifics…

They will offer both four-year Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Sciences degrees in psychology to online degree students this summer.

The Bachelor of Arts degree has a foreign language requirement and has more of a focus on liberal arts. The Bachelor of Science degree has a business option, so students can take 15 credits of business courses. But in general the core of psychology courses in each degree will be the same.

Another interesting part about this is that the online degree courses will be provided on a rollout basis. There will be a batch of introductory courses available from the beginning of summer 2008, and then they will continue to develop and make courses available as developers work to finish the program curriculum. This means that the first online psychology degrees could be awarded as early as fall 2010 for students coming into the program with credits already earned.

So it’s great news for Penn State, who decided to be a pioneer in online education.

And it’s great news for all those interested in online degree programs in psychology who are tied to their location because of work or children and can’t attend a local college in the traditional way. 

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online degree programs psychology | Penn State Online Degree Update

Posted by bposton on February 8th, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

Hey there dorm room buddy,

If you’ve been reading my posts for a while then you may remember that I told you in November about how Penn State had become the first College in the USA to offer online psychology degree programs.

(if you don’t remember, that’s OK - I know you’ve slept since then )

Anyway, since word got about about this, a lot of prospective students have contacted Penn State about the programs. 

According to Rich Carlson, professor and director of undergraduate studies in the College of Liberal Arts, there has been a ”huge response”.

In fact their ad on Google has gotten more than 18,000 hits, and as I speak there are more than 1,800 requests for more info on the online degree program. 

Just to recap the specifics…

They will offer both four-year Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Sciences degrees in psychology to online degree students this summer.

The Bachelor of Arts degree has a foreign language requirement and has more of a focus on liberal arts. The Bachelor of Science degree has a business option, so students can take 15 credits of business courses. But in general the core of psychology courses in each degree will be the same.

Another interesting part about this is that the online degree courses will be provided on a rollout basis. There will be a batch of introductory courses available from the beginning of summer 2008, and then they will continue to develop and make courses available as developers work to finish the program curriculum. This means that the first online psychology degrees could be awarded as early as fall 2010 for students coming into the program with credits already earned.

So it’s great news for Penn State, who decided to be a pioneer in online education.

And it’s great news for all those interested in online degree programs in psychology who are tied to their location because of work or children and can’t attend a local college in the traditional way. 

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online degree programs psychology | Paralegal - The Next Best Thing to Becoming A Lawyer?

Posted by bposton on February 4th, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

Interested in the field of Law, my dorm room buddy?

Well, you’re in good company.

As the law becomes more complex (maybe thanks to the lawyers on Capital Hill ) and since people in the US will sue you at the drop of a hat, there is more demand for legal representation.

Of course, this means that there is not just a need for more lawyers, but more legal support professionals as well.  

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, paralegals will be among the top 30 fastest-growing careers in the 10-year period ending in 2014.

Interested in becoming a Paralegal?

More than just a legal secretary, the paralegal career has advanced to the point that paralegals are taking on more responsibilities that require advanced training, and employers are demanding it.

That’s why All Criminal Justice Schools (ACJS) has launched a comprehensive, 16-page career guide for people wishing to become paralegals. The online guide can be found here. 

ACIS’ guide contains up-to-date information on certification, accreditation and degree information. It is designed to give people considering paralegal careers the knowledge they need to make informed decisions about choosing schools, types of degrees and legal specialty areas.

Most important (at least to me) is that it also includes is a section on online degree programs, which is becoming more and more popular for paralegal training.

So have at it, my future paralegal…

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online degree programs psychology | annual online college rankings released

Posted by bposton on January 23rd, 2008 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

Hi there my dorm room buddy,

I thought I’d let you know that the second annual online college rankings have been released.

So, are you interested in knowing which online school is number one?

I’ll get to that later First I want to explain these rankings, who does them and how:

First who does the ranking: That’s OEDb (Online Education Database).
Founded in 2006, OEDb is dedicated to providing comprehensive reviews of accredited online colleges and universities and the degree programs they offer. OEDb is headquartered in Houston, Texas and is privately owned and operated.

Now that you know who, lets talk about how:

Each school’s ranking is based on data gathered from eight different measurement areas. These eight area are:
acceptance rate, financial aid, graduation rate, peer Web citations, retention rate, scholarly citations, student-faculty ratio, and years accredited. 

Last year’s rankings by OEDb was the first of its kind, and each year OEDb works hard to improve upon its rankings by adding new colleges, and adding data as more information becomes available.

So, who is the number one online college, according to OEDb?

That would be Upper Iowa University
(applause, please )

Rounding out the top ten:

Nova Southeastern University
California University of Pennsylvania,
Grand Canyon University
Regent University
Champlain College
Westwood College
Tiffin University

And they give “honorable mention” to ITT Technical Institute at 16th, Kaplan University at 17th, and the University of Phoenix at 25th.

Last years top school? Grand Canyon University

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online degree programs psychology | Penn State offers online Psychology degree

Posted by bposton on November 24th, 2007 — Posted in online degree programs psychology

OK, my little dorm room buddies, this is it.

This is the news I’ve been waiting for. For the first time ever, a public university is offering online psychology degrees.

Beginning this month, Penn State will open admission to its bachelor of arts (BA) and bachelor of science (BS) degrees in
psychology to online degree students. Students can begin applying to the program later this month, and courses begin in summer 2008.

The program is from the University’s College of the Liberal Arts and delivered through Penn World Campus.

This is HUGH!!

Why? - Because it;s PENN STATE, that’s why…

Penn State College of the Liberal Arts educates more than 5,000 undergraduates in 43 majors and over 800 graduate
students in 16 programs, in addition to being the largest provider of courses for Penn State World Campus.

The World Campus at Penn State specializes in adult online education, delivering more than 60 of Penn State’s most highly regarded graduate, undergraduate and professional education programs through convenient online formats.

It was founded in 1998, and now serves more than 7,000 students in all 50 states, 43 countries, and on 7 continents.

And now they’ve added two online psychology degrees–a bachelor of arts (BA) and a bachelor of science (BS) in psychology. 

The BA program is geared towards professionals who want to pursue psychology with a focus on the human-services aspects of the field, or plan to continue on to a master’s degree in psychology. The BS program follows a business track–for professionals interested in psychology-driven aspects of business–such as human resources, management, leadership development, and marketing.

As with all of Penn State’s online programs, the new psychology degrees are designed to empower working adults to
pursue life and career-enhancing higher education without sacrificing personal or professional time.

This is definitely a milestone for online education; the first public university offering of online psychology degrees.

Hat’s off to Penn State!!
 

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