eLearners Talks to an Advisor
And Gets the Answers You Need to Have!

eLearners:
"Talking about selecting a school, I've often wondered, and I guess this question is for both undergraduate degrees and graduate degrees. Is an expensive school really that much better than an inexpensive school? And just how do you value a program anyway?"

Su:
"This last question is tough because there are a number of different things to consider and each one may carry different weight for different people.  As for the first question, there is no direct connection between cost and quality.  In a large sense (therefore not always true), cost is connected with public vs private schools - since public colleges and universities get state funding, the cost to the student is lower; private schools don't get that kind of funding and so the students need to pick up more of the cost.

But other criteria go into thinking about how good a school is:

• How good are the professors at teaching? This one of the most important but also one of the hardest to know ahead of time. If you can find current or previous students, talking with them is a good way to get a sense of this.
  
  
• How well do the administrative aspects of the institution work - Is it easy to find information you need?  Is it easy to figure out who to talk with?  Are your questions answered in a reasonable amount of time?  This is particularly important if you are doing the courses via distance learning.  Since you can't walk into an office and ask everyone there for help, you need to be able to get what you need easily and quickly by phone or computer.
  
  
• How friendly is the school to students who are working part-or full-time?  Are advising or administrative services offered in the evenings?  Are class schedules flexible in offereing evening or weekend or online courses?
  

There is a lot to think about, but you will be putting your money and time toward this so it's worth spending time considering all aspects."

About Su
Su Flickinger is the Chief Academic Officer at Learningforce, Inc., where she helped create the unique self-help tools for adults returning to college you’ll find at www.DegreeSeeker.com Check them out! Su has a Ed.D. in Education, has advised thousands of prospective adult students like yourself, and just completed an additional Masters Degree (in Conflict Resolution) as an adult learner herself! Su and Learningforce, Inc, are independent and are not affiliated with any particular colleges or universities.