I live in Indiana and I am thinking about going to Columbia College located in Columbia, Missouri.  What is the disadvantage of this?

I don't think there really is a disadvantage there.  If you're talking about distance education then that's one of the perks!  You're afforded the opportunity to go to any college regardless of the location.  You might want to take a look at the Guide to Online Education.  You might find something useful in there!

What do you want to study at Columbia College?

If you have any other questions please don't hesitate to ask!!

If your resume lists that you attended a school in Missouri while you were working in Indiana, a potential employer may ask "How were you able to take classes in Missouri while living in Indiana?"

You will have to answer that you took courses over the Internet. If your interviewer is biased, or simply doesn't understand distance learning, s/he may assume that your academic program didn't require as much from its online students as its campus students.

We all know that's not true, but that may be one instance of a situation you may encounter after earning your degree.

Another downside is that you may not be able to benefit from in-state tuition breaks because you are attending a college outside of Indiana. I'm originally from Indiana, and I couldn't take advantage of any in-state benefits because I went to college in Massachusetts.

What degree program are you interested in? Are you looking at Columbia because it has a specialized degree?

jwl84:

I live in Indiana and I am thinking about going to Columbia College located in Columbia, Missouri.  What is the disadvantage of this?

Hi I am in the same situation and there is no disadvantage.  I have always listed the city and states of where my degrees came from and I have had 1 employer ask how did I manage to attend a school in Arizona, while I was in North Carolina and I replied via distance learning.  If anything my employer was impressed that I could obtain a masters online.

I agree with what everyone has said, if you encounter some stigma, it may be from people who resist change or have only focused on the negatives about distance learning.  I always tell students that have questions or issues with distance learning or are afraid to enroll in such a program, that many top ranked colleges and universities such as Harvard, Duke, Stanford, and Columbia all have distance learning programs.  I normally show them the person the school's website also that lists their distance program offerings.  I have found doing this, normally helps a person get over the distance learning stigma real quick.

I don't think there's a significant disadvantage, but if you're worried about it you don't have to add the date when you list the degree on your resume.

-=Steve=- 

I am "attending" a university in another country right now.  No disadvantages here at all in my opinion.  In fact, this is the entire advantage of on-line, distance eduction.  I could not find any university in Canada offering the degree I wanted, either in class or by distance education.  I found some in both the United States and United Kingdom.  I went with the less expensive option (they both seemed equally credible).

I have my eye on another Masters program out of Ireland next (an M.Sc. in Maritime Archeology out of the University of Ulster).

I love the ability to take advantage of global resources from the comfort of my home.....

Thanks for all the comments.  I want to obtain a Business degree.  Most colleges offer this degree, but I was considering the college itself along with cost. 

jwl84:

Thanks for all the comments.  I want to obtain a Business degree.  Most colleges offer this degree, but I was considering the college itself along with cost. 

That's always wise.  Out of curiosity, which way are you leaning?  Are you considering other schools as well at this point or are you deciding what you think about Columbia College and then either looking elsewhere or not based on that?

For what it's worth, I think Columbia College is a perfectly fine school and a good bargain.

-=Steve=- 

Well, I have been doing a lot of research on all the different colleges. I have done so much research, I have actually gotten confused.  Originally I was considering Penn Foster, but the highest you can go is an associates.  Not only that, exams have to be proctored and that would make it difficult for me due to me career.  From my understanding, some instructors at Columbia also proctor exams.  I will have to find out more about that, hopefully I can work it out.