Online Degrees, are they worth it?

What do you guys think of "online" degrees? Do you think they are laughed at by employers or actually good? Also, what's a reputable school that offers online degrees preferably for information technology.

do you mean the ones that you see on pop up ads? the kind that offers Phd's and MBA's in 3 weeks?

uhhh...

I don't know about online degress, but Athabasca University (based in Alberta) is a good, reputable school for distance learning. They may have the degree program you're looking for..

Personally, if I was hiring for a position and I had two applicants, just fresh with a degree, one with an online university, and the other with a degree from a known university, I'd take the student with the degree from the well known university without a second thought.

There's things you gain in going to a regular university that you just don't get with online courses, interaction with your peers, working and communicating with others etc...

But in all honestly, I don't trust ANY online degree, hell I don't even like DeVry, or any of those "specialty" schools, as far as I'm concerned they just rob you of your money and give you a sub-par education in a shortened timespan.

--Mark

^^^^ Would you trust an online degree from Waterloo? (Reputable school) ^^^^

The thing is I'm doing a 3 year college program now.. if I do university after, it might be another 3 more years. That's more schooling then I would of ever thought I would be doing. And if I did another 3 years, that means another 3 years freeloading off my parents. I want to move out and goto work, this is why I don't want to be in the classroom setting fulltime.. if I did part time, that's just going to be a long time.

I was thinking of getting a online degree from a school in America since they got degrees for shorter programs. Obviously I'm looking for a reputable school though.

And No, I wasn't thinking about the PHD degrees in three weeks lol.

EDIT: Also, on a resume it would say _________ College/University. I wouldn't state it was an online one of course

Yes, I think online degrees are fine as long as they are offered from a reputable school.

Wait, are you talking about distance ed? If so, I'm honestly not aware that you can do an ENTIRE degree from Waterloo through Distance Ed...

I also thought you were talking about those Online Only schools, that doesn't actually have any physical school.

But either way, if you're looking to do an entire degree, it'll still take some fair amount of time, you can't really pull off a degree in one year.

--Mark

not recommended

Originally Posted by xwar

not recommended

Care to elaborate at least a little bit?

It looks good on paper, that's about it.

Originally Posted by Seveneighty

I don't know about online degress, but Athabasca University (based in Alberta) is a good, reputable school for distance learning. They may have the degree program you're looking for..

I took classes from Athabasca U and it was favourably looked upon.

I also took classes from SAIT, in IT and my former employers were impressed with my motivation to do the classes from home.

Online classes are good if you do not want to show up to a class or be stuck doing tons of time consuming group work.

Also, alot of school will let you transfer or add the online credits to your reg university degree!

Originally Posted by Tharyn

Wait, are you talking about distance ed? If so, I'm honestly not aware that you can do an ENTIRE degree from Waterloo through Distance Ed...

I also thought you were talking about those Online Only schools, that doesn't actually have any physical school.

But either way, if you're looking to do an entire degree, it'll still take some fair amount of time, you can't really pull off a degree in one year.

--Mark

No I was just using waterloo as an example. It's a reputable school. I'm looking for purely online, looking for a school in the USA though.

I simply can't just put in another 3 or 4 years full time in the classroom. I'll be like 26 by then.. like I said above, that's a lot more education then I was expecting.

Also for above, I'm not looking for something to pull off in a year. Probably two years or three. I heard in he USA, you get a degree for a two year course. I think a degree from the US, and a diploma from a college in Canada would look great no?

Originally Posted by skating girl ottawa

I took classes from Athabasca U and it was favourably looked upon.

I also took classes from SAIT, in IT and my former employers were impressed with my motivation to do the classes from home.

Online classes are good if you do not want to show up to a class or be stuck doing tons of time consuming group work.

Also, alot of school will let you transfer or add the online credits to your reg university degree!

Did you transfer credits? How long did it take you to finish the course? And about how much money did you spend?

Originally Posted by CSR

It looks good on paper, that's about it.

Pretty much, employers aren't exactly thrilled with the "I went to school, except I didn't really go anywhere" method of learning.

For most fields, college/university is to prove that you have the dedication and work ethic to survive. Companies have their own ways of doing things that they expect you to adjust to; your fancy education's methods are pretty much thrown out the window if they don't match.

Originally Posted by spfdz

What do you guys think of "online" degrees? Do you think they are laughed at by employers or actually good? Also, what's a reputable school that offers online degrees preferably for information technology.

it's a waste of money. i hgihly doubt that employers are gonna take these online phd seriously.

Originally Posted by ttt

it's a waste of money. i hgihly doubt that employers are gonna take these online phd seriously.

I didn't plan on getting a PHD...