n your opinion, what are the advantages and disadvantages of taking an on-line course?

Question

For all of you who have had experiences with on-line courses, I'd like to know:
What is your opinion of the experience,
Were there too many problems?
Did the course fullfil your expectations?
What was you role and the attitude you had to assume to accomplish the objectives?
Would you take another course?

Thanks a lot, your ideas and experiences are very useful to help me decide on on-line education.

Answer 1

The thing I didn't like about it was it was way more expensive than the traditional campus education. Also, you need to FOR SURE check and double check the school's accreditation!!! VERY IMPORTANT!! Make sure the school has the accreditation they say they do and that they are not on probation with their accrediting board. Each board has their own website with a list of the schools and their status / standing. (For instance, I know that AIU - American Continental University - is on probation and in danger of losing their accreditation.) Also, ask employers which on-line degrees they respect the most. There are on-line universities out there with perfectly good accreditation which no one respects and a degree from them could actually HURT you so be careful. Most on-line degree programs are offered by FOR PROFIT universities which means they'll accept you because they simply want your money. Be very weary of their withdrawal proceedures, too. Some may charge you to withdraw early from the program for ANY reason.

On-line is great because you can attend classes according to YOUR schedule. You have more contact with the others in your class, I find, than traditional campus education because there's just something about chat rooms that draws out the "Type A Personality" in even the worst-case Type B's of the world. You have a tendency to say what you think or ask what you would normally be afraid to in a person-to-person situation. On-line is also quicker than traditional campus education. Also, the classes are one-at-a-time (depending on your school) which is great for really focusing on that particular class. You wind up with a better understanding of the subject because that's all you study for 5 weeks (or however long).

Have fun with it and be open to learning and creative problem solving and you'll do fine!!!

Answer 2

it depends on the course whether taking it online is good or bad.

Benefits:
You can do it at your pace
you can do it at home, thus cutting down on driving around (i.e. saving you time and gas money)
you can do it at times that are more convenient for you and in lengths that are better suited to your schedule

Detriments:
You can be easily distracted at home (phone rings, drywe buzzes, someone comes to the door)
You don't have interaction with the Professor to ask questions during a lecture
You don't meet other students that you can study with if you need to
Sometimes online courses are NOT accredited or recognized for a degree program, so they might not help you in the workplace

Answer 3

If you take an online course and still plan to go to an university, you should be sure to check that the classes will transfer to your desired school. A lot of online schools will not transfer all of your classes, so you will have wasted time and money.

Answer 4

The legitimacy and transferability of on-line courses is always a question to me. In a hiring capacity for a long time I have often found that they are virtually useless. Many potential employers do not favor them.

Answer 5

I took two online courses my third semester of college. For me, it was horrible. The professors who 'taught' the courses didn't care about the students because they didn't have to face them in real life. One of the profs (the lit prof) was outright mean to her students in e-mails, causing one student to report her for asking "How stupid are you?" when she didn't understand an assignment and asked for more information. I would not take another online course. I feel that I do far better being physically in a classroom, and the teachers have to look you in the face, so they're kinder and more accomodating.

Answer 6

I can't imagine taking an on campus class. I love online classes because i can schedule my work anyway i need to. It is so flexible and with my life, school has to be. Good luck.

Answer 7

Basically, no problems at all. My suggestion to you do not take online course, becase you will not learn anything from.