Online college degrees is an academic degree (usually a college degree,
but sometimes the term includes high school diplomas and non-degree certificate
programs) that can be earned primarily or entirely through the use of an Internet-connected
computer, rather than attending college in a traditional campus setting.
Improvements in technology, the increasing use of the Internet worldwide, and
the need for people to have flexible school schedules while they are working
have led to a proliferation of online colleges that award associate, bachelor's, master's,
and doctoral degrees.
The goal of educational accreditation, according to the UnitedStates Department of Education, is to ensure that programs provided by institutions
of higher education meet acceptable levels of quality.ENQA, the European
Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, describes the role of
external quality assurance in education as one that "combines both
accountability for the reassurance of the public and an objective and
developmental role for enhancing quality in institutions". In the area of online
education, it is important to avoid unaccredited diploma mills that
offer fake degrees, as these are unfortunately common. Students seeking valid
online degrees should obtain proof of accreditation from an appropriate
national or regional accrediting body.
In the United States, online colleges that are fully
accredited have earned a widely recognized form of university accreditation
from one of six regional accreditationboards.Each of six geographic
regions of the United States has one of these boards, a non-governmental agency
that oversees and accredits degree-granting institutions headquartered in their
areas. The U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher
Education Accreditation (CHEA) recognize the Distance Education and
Training Council (DETC) as the accrediting organization for distance
learning institutions and education programs that offer online degrees.
However, DETC accreditation is commonly (though not universally) viewed as
inferior to regional accreditation, and regionally accredited schools may
refuse to accept transfer credit from DETC-accredited schools more often than
they would refuse credit from other regionally-accredited schools.
Outside of the United States, other national and regional standards ofaccreditation hold, and may be highly supportive of, distance education. For
example, the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, or Open University of
Catalonia, has been accredited by AQU, the Agency for Quality Assurance in theCatalan University System (a full member of ENQA), since its inception in 1995,
and has been called a "significant success story" as "the
world's first continuous, and sustainable, virtual university".Similarly,
in Ireland, the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC)
has accredited a number of online colleges and degrees, e.g. Setanta
College.
Online education enables individuals living with physical
disabilities, busy full-time employees, soldiers, those living abroad, and
stay-at-home parents, among others to have access to accredited higher education.
The perception of the quality of online College degrees compared to on-campus
degrees varies. While most major online colleges are regionally accredited, the
public estimation of their quality is in dispute. A national survey of hiring
representatives showed that a preference toward on-campus degrees exists. In
some instances, hiring executives were unwilling to consider applicants with an
online degree.Some experts argue that degrees in certain fields are more
accepted online than in others, while some programs are less suited for
online-only schools.
A survey by the Distance Education and Training Council found
that 100% of employers who responded felt that distance education program
graduates performed better on the job as a result of their degree (as compared
to their previous performance). Additionally, employers felt that an employee
receiving a distance education degree compared favorably, in terms of knowledge
learned, to someone with a resident degree.On the other hand, TheChronicle of Higher Education reported in January 2007 on a Vault Inc.
survey that found 55 percent of employers’ preferred traditional degrees over
online ones. Forty-one percent, however, said they would give "equal
consideration to both types of degrees".
The Sloan Consortium, an organization funded by the Alfred P.
Sloan Foundation to maintain and improve the quality of distance
education, publishes regular reports on the state of United States distance education.
In its 2006 report "Making the Grade: Online Education in the United
States, 2006," it stated that "in 2003, 57 percent of academic
leaders rated the learning outcomes in online education as the same or superior
to those in face-to-face. That number is now 62 percent, a small but noteworthy
increase".
In some instances, an online degree may be effectively indistinguishable
from a degree earned in a campus-based program. The instruction is often
exactly the same, with the online degree containing no special designation. An
example of this is the degree offered to Columbia University students
who earn a degree through the Columbia Video Network (CVN) versus the
campus-based program.The professors, courses, homework, tests, and eventual
transcripts and diploma are identical to that of on-campus students.
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) conducted
a distance education study based on the 2001-2002 academic year at United
States 2-year and 4-year degree-granting institutions that were eligible for
U.S. federal student aid. The study reported that 56 percent of institutions
surveyed offered distance education courses. The study also found that public
institutions were more likely to offer distance education than private
institutions were.
The Sloan Consortium, based on data collected from over 2,200 U.S.
colleges and universities, reports that nearly 3.2 million students took at
least one online course during 2005 (a significant increase over the 2.3
million reported in 2004). According to the same report, about two-thirds of
the largest institutions have fully online programs.In 2010, more than 6
million students were taking at least one course online.
Until 2006, United States students enrolled in
online degree programs were not eligible for federal student aid unless
at least half of their programs were campus-based (a law established in 1992
and known as the 50-percent rule).In February 2006, that law was repealed,
making federal student aid in the form of federal loans, grants, and work-study
available in the U.S. for students enrolled in an eligible online degree
program at an accredited Title IV-eligible institution.
DurhamCollege understands that some students learn best in a classroom setting while
others would benefit from the flexibility of off-site learning. We’re pleased
to offer you the option to study online at home or at a remote facility.
Alternatively, you can work on your online program at the Oshawa campus in our
E-Lab!
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