If you’re looking to build valuable skills and push your career forward, you might want to consider going to school and earning a degree. However, the pandemic has made traditional universities a little bit complicated right now. In-person courses put you at risk for catching or spreading COVID-19, and there’s a decent chance any university you applied to now would wind up giving you online courses anyway.
Since online is the safest option right now, you may want to simply consider an online university from the get-go. Not only are online courses a risk-free way to get an education, but they also open up your options substantially. You don’t need to choose from the options nearby or consider a move, plus you can study on a schedule that works for you. Geek Alabama has put together this look at some of the benefits of an online university so you can see if this option is a good fit:
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Access to a Variety of Focuses
Unless you have the freedom to pack up and move wherever your academic aspirations might take you, you’re limited to whatever’s available at the universities near you, if you’re seeking a traditional, in-person degree. However, what if those universities don’t offer the degree you’re interested in, or their curriculum isn’t especially compelling?
Expanding your options to include online universities gives you access to nearly any program you might want to pursue, as well as the chance to embrace a university that’s proud to offer those options virtually. For example, you could pursue an IT degree and pick a program that prioritizes cybersecurity, or find a virtual program that takes an in-depth look at a particular era in history. Even something as ubiquitous as a business degree isn’t as powerful coming from any old university. Online schools open you up to the best education — without uprooting your life.
Freedom to Set Your Schedule
Although this isn’t the case for every single online program, many online schools offer full flexibility when it comes to your schedule. Since the lectures are often recorded, you can choose to study during the class window or at a later point in the day or week. Yes, you still need to meet deadlines and follow the pace of the course, but you have the freedom to define your own schedule.
This can be invaluable for populations that might otherwise struggle to pursue a degree, such as working parents. After all, you can’t exactly take a course at noon if you work a day job, and few parents want to sacrifice evenings with their little ones. Online degrees give this group the ability to tackle their schoolwork after their children have gone to bed. This flexibility can be absolutely invaluable.
Overcoming Virtual Schooling Obstacles
We don’t want to give the impression that pursuing an online degree is completely without drawbacks or obstacles. Indeed, depending on your disposition and your ability to self-motivate, it could easily be the wrong move entirely. Studying online requires a strong ability to organize and keep yourself on track. There aren’t outside motivators reminding you to finish assignments or check your course work — it’s all on you!
If this isn’t a strength of yours, you can prepare yourself for this challenge with practice. For a few months, commit to using a daily planner. Write down everything you plan to do, and keep track of what you do and don’t achieve. If your life doesn’t naturally have deadlines, assign some for yourself to practice keeping your tasks on schedule. This is the exact technique that will allow you to thrive in a virtual education setting — if you can get the hang of it beforehand, you’ll have a far easier time down the road.
If you have the drive to make it work, an online degree can open countless doors. There’s a whole world of information and education out there waiting for you. Are you ready to seize that opportunity?
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