My Inspiration for Choosing an Online University?: Accessibility
Posted by Jen Zeman on November 18th, 2008
Living in a small, rural country town has many advantages. Having an easily accessible four-year college or university is not one of them. Accessibility became the main inspiration to pursuing an online university.
The University of Maryland University College (UMUC) provided me everything I needed online: application, course schedules, registration, book ordering, advising, library services, you name it. I didn’t have to step foot on the physical campus until commencement! Final exams couldn’t be taken online, but even that was convenient. I had the ability to take proctored exams at my local community college (which at the time I worked for them, making it that much more convenient). It was wonderful knowing I could achieve a bachelor’s degree (and now even master’s degree) without having to commute 45-75 miles to a physical campus. No wear and tear on my car, no extra money spent on gas, and no traffic! I could log-on to my coursework during lunch breaks, evenings, weekends, whenever it worked for me versus the rigid three-hour classroom requirement typically available. A point to remember – the coursework isn’t any easier because you’re not sitting in a classroom! There usually is plenty of reading, but if you account for the three hours normally spent in a classroom, the reading won’t be an issue.
One other reason I chose an online university was the ability to learn at my own pace. I’m an independent learner who normally moves quickly through assignments so an online atmosphere was ideal (i.e. I didn’t have to sit through an hour-long discussion on someone else’s question when I didn’t need the clarification). However, instructors were easily accessible if I did have questions.
If accessibility to a four-year institution is an issue for you, an online college or university is an ideal choice. It certainly beats the alternative – not getting a degree at all.
Tags: Online college, online degree, online university
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This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 18th, 2008 at 6:00 am and is filed under Student Voices, Why I Considered Online Education. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
