Can You Really Get Your College Degree Online?

About 20 years ago I decided I wanted to go back to school to get my bachelors degree but the town I lived in only had a community college and I did not like the prospect of driving an hour or more one way several times a week to take classes.

I found a program from a small accredited college in Indiana that had a self-study curriculum that used proctored exams that worked perfectly for me and I began taking classes.

That was cutting edge back then but now there are so many more options available, particularly online, for what used to be called distance learning that it can be very confusing in finding a good online school.

Stay Away From Diploma Mills

There are many shady operations that will sell you a fake degree from a bogus college that isn't worth the paper it's printed on. Stay away from these as they will only end up causing you problems if you try and use one to get a job. You will eventually be found out and terminated for lying about your credentials and could easily ruin your career.

In fact, there have been several high profile people in business and government recently that have been exposed for using fake degrees and as a result lost their jobs and all credibility.

Avoid Life Experience Based Degrees

Some phony colleges will grant you a degree based on your life experiences. Sometimes you need to write up a few small reports to show that you have the knowledge but really I think this is so you think you are doing some work towards earning the fake degree.

These degrees are also pretty much worthless and any colleges that promote this type of higher education should be avoided.

Be aware though that there are legitimate institutions that will grant some credit for life experiences provided that you can detail (and I mean detail) your knowledge of a subject sufficiently enough to convince a professor that you should be granted the credit.

I got credit for a few classes this way but there were some where I failed to show enough knowledge in the subject to get credit so I had to take the classes.

Usually there is a limit to how much credit you can get this way because the bottom line is you need to take real courses with real homework and projects and tests in order to get a valid college degree you can be proud of.

Accreditation Is Key

The most important thing to consider when you are evaluating an online college program is whether or not it is accredited by a legitimate accrediting board. There are many online programs that say they are accredited by XYZ, etc. but many times these are not state recognized and have no validity in the real world.

You want to look for a program that is accredited by the same boards that accredit real brick and mortar colleges and universities so you can be sure you are getting a legitimate education.

Since many mainstream colleges are starting to have online programs you can be assured that taking classes from one of them will be OK but for others do your due diligence before signing up.

Remember, there are no shortcuts to getting a quality education that not only benefits you but your employer so remember the old adage that if it's too good to be true

For more information about online college degrees please visit Degrees and Diplomas

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