Anonymous wrote:Some brands are deemed more valuable than others (Harvard over Strayer). But why does it matter really? Education seems like it's becoming more of a commodity. The brands are meaningless when it is not based on merit and intelligence. And grades meaningless with grade inflation.

This is not consistently true. Average grades at many selective institutions have gone up because their admissions selectivity has also gone up and thus a greater percentage of students meet disciplinary benchmarks that grades indicate. What used to get a "C" or a "D" still gets a "C" or a "D" but far fewer students at strong institutions perform poorly now than in the past. Meritocratic admissions to elite colleges is relatively new; fifty years ago entry into Harvard was explicitly based on social class more than academic achievement.
(I am a prof who recently worked on an cross-institutional assessment project examining whether there was grade inflation over time in relation to bench-marked standards rather than averages. We only looked at selective schools though, not less selective schools or on-line universities and to be sure there are gray areas, but the overall thrust seems that more of the increase in average GPA is explained by increases in selectivity than grade inflation).

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Anonymous wrote:You don't get the present and future contacts and friends who help you get jobs and opportunities. It's about the interaction with people, not the degree.

This may apply to someone who is just getting out of school but many online advance degree candidates are already established and working towards advancement in their own companies so to speak. And it is about the degree. Interaction with movers and shakers is worthless without it.

Yes, for many in this position it's about checking a box.

You can recognize such students from a mile away. They are checking a box to get a raise...they seek the easiest route to all assignments, etc.

It may work in their life, and that is their choice. But to me (a college professor) people who approach education with that attitude are a FAR cry from the ideal student/classroom participant.

(This post is about people going to school to check a box, not online education per se)

Anonymous wrote:Because they are not respected by employers.

Or graduate program admissions committees.

Some of it is a perhaps unfair bias.

But I have also seen many transcripts and these programs seem to give A's to everyone for everything.

It seems like the effort involved is minimal, which I know appeals to busy people...but others assume the resultant learning was also minimal.

Many of them are scams (just trying to get the many of vulnerable students).

Sorry, we are trying to be honest with you. I would not waste my money.

Anonymous wrote:

I feel very thankful that I have been able to take classes online. I am a very busy mother of four and I want to have a degree. I feel like I am prepared to go to GMU sometime next year. I hope that future employers will look at me a know I worked very hard to attain something that seemed impossible at one time.

Online classes are the way of the future. The push back against online classes seems to come mainly from older people.

As someone in HR, to me it matters why the person took the online version of classes, as well as the reputation of the university/college. If you have a candidate who completed an degree partially or fully online because they were getting their degree after work hours, or had children at home they couldn't leave alone, or had a temporary health issue they were recovering from, or could only afford the tuition and not the R&B, etc., I would see an online version of a degree from a reputable university/college as a degree that person showed fortitude and hutzpah in obtaining. They took their challenging circumstances and were able to get a degree despite their limitations. I would see that as a plus in hiring them as a go-getter who problem-solves and makes the best of a challenging situation. Again, as long as the degree is from a reputable source. Such as online degree versions from state colleges, SLACs, Ivies, mid-tier smaller colleges, etc. That's why it is so great that for the folks described above, mainstream schools are quickly creating online versions of their degrees if they didn't have them already.

If the person did not have an extenuating circumstance they could discuss, and just got the online degree because they wanted to get the degree from their house for convenience, that I would worry about in terms of their initiative and problem-solving at work. They didn't put forth the effort to get out of their house and go to a physical classroom for their coursework, and took the easier path. I would not pursue that candidate.

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Anonymous wrote:I live in Montgomery County, and know of quite a few elementary school teachers who have received their teaching certification through online schools. They were people who had previously earned college degrees in a field other than education. They were required to do both observations and student teaching in local schools, but their actual classes were all taken online.

I do feel that the for-profit schools are sketchy and that their diplomas are not worth much.

I'd rather have a teacher who went this route than one from Teach for America or some other program where you learn on the job. At least the former has experience being in the classroom and an understanding of the demands of the job.

Yep. I worked at a math tutoring center (I’m fully aware that’s not the same as a school classroom) in college as a math-related and the tutors who were elementary math education majors were way better at it than I was because they knew pedagogy (sp?) and how to control the kids’ behavior.

Anonymous wrote:I live in Montgomery County, and know of quite a few elementary school teachers who have received their teaching certification through online schools. They were people who had previously earned college degrees in a field other than education. They were required to do both observations and student teaching in local schools, but their actual classes were all taken online.

I do feel that the for-profit schools are sketchy and that their diplomas are not worth much.

I'd rather have a teacher who went this route than one from Teach for America or some other program where you learn on the job. At least the former has experience being in the classroom and an understanding of the demands of the job.

Anonymous wrote:Question for the principal who posted:

Would you hire a teacher who got her degree through UMUC of would you discount that degree?

Our school had an AP who got her master’s at an online school. Her undergraduate degree was from a major university. Both degrees were displayed on her office wall.

Anonymous wrote:I have much more respect for a person that goes to community college and transfers the credits to a traditional, reputable school to graduate. Of course there will be some (military and their spouses) where that is not an option. But for most others the cost of cc and a state school is less than a for profit online, especially for those that are truly disadvantaged but have the intelligence and drive. Otherwise it looks like you saw the ad on TV that you could attend college in your pajamas and took the path of least resistance.

I find it comical that there are those that say online is comparable simply because you have to " make 2 online comments". Conversations between students in/after/between classes and with professors, study groups, etc are not likely to be replicated online, even with 2 mandatory weekly comments tossed into cyberspace.

Except there are non-profit online ones. ASU online doesn’t even distinguish between in-person and online classes on your transcript

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When I make hiring decisions, I don't have any information about the particular professors an applicant had. I have to just make generalizations based on probability And the probability is that someone with a "real" degree got a better education than someone with an online degree, so that's who I'm more likely to hire. Are there exceptions? Absolutely. But I get too many resumes across my desk to figure that out on a case by case basis.

That attitude makes an excellent case for earning a degree from a school with a bricks and mortar presence, that doesn't show on a transcript which classes were taken in person and which were taken on-line.

In about 7 years, though, I predict this attitude will have fallen by the wayside. There is a sea change coming in higher education. We need to prepare students for the real world and the real world, more and more, is highly connected and communicates online.

Perhaps.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't get the present and future contacts and friends who help you get jobs and opportunities. It's about the interaction with people, not the degree.

This may apply to someone who is just getting out of school but many online advance degree candidates are already established and working towards advancement in their own companies so to speak. And it is about the degree. Interaction with movers and shakers is worthless without it.

Yes, for many in this position it's about checking a box.

I have much more respect for a person that goes to community college and transfers the credits to a traditional, reputable school to graduate. Of course there will be some (military and their spouses) where that is not an option. But for most others the cost of cc and a state school is less than a for profit online, especially for those that are truly disadvantaged but have the intelligence and drive. Otherwise it looks like you saw the ad on TV that you could attend college in your pajamas and took the path of least resistance.

I find it comical that there are those that say online is comparable simply because you have to " make 2 online comments". Conversations between students in/after/between classes and with professors, study groups, etc are not likely to be replicated online, even with 2 mandatory weekly comments tossed into cyberspace.

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Anonymous wrote:This thread is sad. The purpose of education should be to master the subject- not to get a job. But perhaps you enjoy the system as it is- paying through the nose for little value.

And you know this how? Tell us about your practical experience, not what you've read in the funny papers.

Are you really asking this question in 2013?

Wow, you are dumb. I bet you have at least 2 degrees.

And you, my dear, are an idiot. I bet you have a GED.

No, I don't. But if I did, that wouldn't make me an idiot. I imagine that it is more difficult to cram for one test full of randomness, than it is to fart your way through 4 years of high school. I applaud those who decide do further their education despite nitwits like you who would seek to discourage them. I love education. It is a great thing.

So, not only are you dumb and living in 1980, but you are also a snob. You probably make a living encouraging 18-year-olds to take out 80,000 in loans for a basket weaving degree because "college grads make a million dollars more than non-graduates." I hope you sleep well at night knowing full well that the debt and interest will be like a chain around their necks for a lifetime.

Good for you. Give yourself a pat on the back.

UoP UoP UoP! Yeaaah!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is sad. The purpose of education should be to master the subject- not to get a job. But perhaps you enjoy the system as it is- paying through the nose for little value.

And you know this how? Tell us about your practical experience, not what you've read in the funny papers.

Are you really asking this question in 2013?

Wow, you are dumb. I bet you have at least 2 degrees.

And you, my dear, are an idiot. I bet you have a GED.

No, I don't. But if I did, that wouldn't make me an idiot. I imagine that it is more difficult to cram for one test full of randomness, than it is to fart your way through 4 years of high school. I applaud those who decide do further their education despite nitwits like you who would seek to discourage them. I love education. It is a great thing.

So, not only are you dumb and living in 1980, but you are also a snob. You probably make a living encouraging 18-year-olds to take out 80,000 in loans for a basket weaving degree because "college grads make a million dollars more than non-graduates." I hope you sleep well at night knowing full well that the debt and interest will be like a chain around their necks for a lifetime.

Good for you. Give yourself a pat on the back.

I have a University of Maryland grad degree, and I don't write "at Baltimore" next to it. Who does that? I would just write "University of Maryland." And that looks great IMO. And lots of employers don't comb transcripts.