My needs for an online degree.

Posted by Jen Zeman on December 16th, 2008

When I started my search for an online degree, my number one requirement was my desired program. I wanted to study law and I initially searched colleges and universities within the state where I live (Maryland). I was fortunate because the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) offers a legal studies program that is completely online. Fortunately, having a degree program completely online was my second requirement! There are hybrid programs available at many institutions (where you attend some on-campus classes and take other classes online), but this wasn’t for me. I didn’t want to commute to a single class because it would have been too much of a hassle for me (too far from work and home). UMUC actually offers several programs completely online for those who would be interested: www.umuc.edu. The tuition and fees I paid for in-state were reasonable, which was my third requirement for an online degree. Some institutions will drain your wallet dry with various “technical” fees for online courses on top of the regular tuition, so this is something to research before signing on!

Another requirement for me was the availability of classes. UMUC offers a wide selection of courses to choose from each semester, including the summer session. This was important for me since I had set up a tight deadline to complete my degree and taking summer courses accelerated the schedule. A final requirement was the ability to retain nearly all my credits earned from my associate’s degree. I was fortunate to transfer from an in-state community college to UMUC and was able to retain nearly all my credits. I know not everyone is so lucky, especially when transferring to an out-of-state college or university. I recommend once you are fairly close to deciding where you want to attend, have the university complete a transcript evaluation as soon as possible. This way, you’ll know whether you will have to take more classes than you originally planned, which may make you decide to find another institution who will accept more of your hard-earned credits.

Tags: online degree, programs

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 16th, 2008 at 6:00 am and is filed under Student Voices, What I was Looking for in an Online Program. 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.