Hello All,

Is anyone out there feeling a stigma toward an online degree?  I'm happy with my decision to pursue my degree online but I'm getting some mixed response from people. 

I would love to hear what other experiences people are having.

 Best,

Elizabeth

It depends on the school.  Many people have a stigma against online degrees, because when they think of them, they think of all the online diploma mills where you can buy a degree for $500.  However, many well respected brick and mortar colelges have online degrees so if you get a degree from them nobody will know you got it online.  Stanford, Harvard, Duke, and Columbia all have online degrees.   I highly doubt anyone would dare question a degree earned from these schools.  With that said, however, I would avoid some of the online schools that get bad press, specifically the University of Phpenix and the DeVry Institute. 

If you read my profile you'll see I've gone from an Associate's degree to a Masters all online.  Never once has the validity of my degree been questioned because it was earned online.  It's also very, very rare that anyone bats an eye when they find I earned it online, more often than not, they are curious.

It would be nice when people realize that earning a college degree is essentially the same whether you earn the degree  online or sitting in a clasroom.You both earn the same credit and the same coursework to earn it . 

I'd be willing to bet that 9.9% of people would agree that an onine degree is the same as an on campus degree, .01% would disagree and 90% don't care. 

Some people DO CARE if the degree IS earned online or on a campus .I wil be willing to bet 90 percent do care where it was earned  and 10 percent don't care . 

Well, it is understood that in today’s world online education becomes necessity, but it’s only good for short term courses.Giving four years courses or professional courses like Engineering, Medicine and other professional courses online mean, end of so called education.

Education is not just reading material online, its a relationship between teacher and student, relationship between student and the school environment, relationship between student to student.Imagine what you would tell your children tomorrow that you did your master from Harvard University and you didn’t have a single friend, because you completed the course online.

I think there should be some limit to everything, but replacing the traditional education with online is end of the education itself.

Hi all,

The question has been under discussion since the stablishment of the open university. But I think since the globalization is playing a big role in our lives, the presence is less require in many sectors. Viodeconferences have replaced the classic meetings in the same way virtual classrooms have replaced the classic universities. At the end of the day the education is not the only sector that have changed in the last decades, and theses changes are perceived by the people in some dimension.

This is the reason why I am doing my thesis about "Stakeholders perception of an attitude toward the online open universities in Europe". If anyone (as a student or as a teacher) is interested in participating on the research, please contact me at:

eva.bellet@mac.com

 

 

frdsmth9:

Education is not just reading material online, its a relationship between teacher and student, relationship between student and the school environment, relationship between student to student.Imagine what you would tell your children tomorrow that you did your master from Harvard University and you didn’t have a single friend, because you completed the course online.

I think there should be some limit to everything, but replacing the traditional education with online is end of the education itself.

Funny you should mention that.  I have actually had more conversations and interaction with my professors in online classes than I ever had in a traditional classroom.  The professors online are only an email or IM away, in the classroom settings I had to schedule an appointment, show up, wait for a while and 1/2 the time the professor would have to cancel and reschedule or it was a quick in and out.

Anyhow I do not think that online learning will ever fully replace resident learning.  That being said I think it is a tool which will be used with greater and greater regularity, even if just as a supplement to classroom learning.

Oh and that 90% to 10% thing...it was meant to be a joke, not a serious opinion.  That being said I don't think most of the American public has an informed opinion on education in general, much less higher education, much, much less on higher education online.

ElizabethG:

Is anyone out there feeling a stigma toward an online degree?  I'm happy with my decision to pursue my degree online but I'm getting some mixed response from people.

Are those people potential employers?  If not I wouldn't worry too much about it.  I completed my Bachelor's by distance and did a Master's by distance and don't recall having any problems with them.

-=Steve=-

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B.S., Info Sys, Charter Oak State College
M.A., Educational Tech Leadership, George Washington University
Doctor of Health Education, A.T. Still University, in progress

frdsmth9:

Well, it is understood that in today’s world online education becomes necessity, but it’s only good for short term courses.Giving four years courses or professional courses like Engineering, Medicine and other professional courses online mean, end of so called education.

Education is not just reading material online, its a relationship between teacher and student, relationship between student and the school environment, relationship between student to student.Imagine what you would tell your children tomorrow that you did your master from Harvard University and you didn’t have a single friend, because you completed the course online.

I think there should be some limit to everything, but replacing the traditional education with online is end of the education itself.

 

Considering that the many college courses can have 50+ students, I doubt there is going to be much of a relationship between an individual student and the professor.  Heck, the professor probably won't even know your name!

frdsmth9:

Education is not just reading material online, its a relationship between teacher and student, relationship between student and the school environment, relationship between student to student.Imagine what you would tell your children tomorrow that you did your master from Harvard University and you didn’t have a single friend, because you completed the course online.

You would tell them the same thing you would tell everyone else - that you graduated from Harvard.  The achievement stands on its own merit, regardless of how many  BFFs you accumulated while you were getting the degree.  Besides, the true value of Harvard connections resides in networking rather than companionship.

I'm not sure why, but we seem to have developed this romanticized notion of college as a transformative and enlightening experience.  A 4-year quest for knowledge taking place on campuses filled with Robert Redford-esque professors leading profound discussions and reaching out to the bright and talented, yet increasingly cynical young student and inspiring said student to great achievements.  While this may actually be what happens at ivy league schools (I would personally have no idea), I can assure you that it does not happen on the campuses that 99% of the rest of us attend.  

The reality is that there will always be students who don't really care and are there because it is what is supposed to come next, their parents made them, etc.  There will always be 200+ student lecture halls led by professors more worried about their research than the quality of their instruction.  There will always be grad student TAs teaching the labs and classes that are not important enough for instructors with doctorates.  And worst of all for the college fallacy, the previously mentioned talented and cynical student will be seen as an unappreciative brat wasting an opportunity that others dream of.

I'm not sure why we maintain this view of college - but I can take a guess.  With the awkwardness  of high school over, we are suddenly thrust into a new world filled with 20,000 other people with the same age and thirst for new experiences.  Throw in copious amounts of alcohol and an environment of non-regret and near-epic levels of awesomeness will ensue.  So, of course 10 years down the road when we have boring, full-time jobs and kids we will look back with nostalgia for those crazier days. 

The unfortunate side to all of this is that the nostalgia is causing us to miss oportunities to make learning more effective and achievable.  Technology has changed the way we make friends, conduct business, etc.  So why is it that you are so sure that technology cannot possibly change an educational model that we have been using for 100+ years?

Glor, that was poetry in motion.  What a great essay on the subject!

-=Steve=-

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B.S., Info Sys, Charter Oak State College
M.A., Educational Tech Leadership, George Washington University
Doctor of Health Education, A.T. Still University, in progress

SteveFoerster:

Glor, that was poetry in motion.  What a great essay on the subject!

-=Steve=-

I'll agree, good job Glor.

Thank you for the kind words.  I didn't intend to go on for so long...you can tell I drank a lot of coffee that day.