Does an Online Degree Carry Less Clout?

The answer is, yes it does. Universities build and maintain reputations, mostly from students who have graduated, made themselves famous, and brought credit to the university because of their achievements. This applies to community colleges, big-time universities, and any online school.

Degree prestige. Grayson Community College in Denison, Texas does not carry the same amount of prestige that, say, The University of Texas at Austin has. There are many differences in education and standards between the two. One is a two year school and the other is a four year university. GCC hires high quality professionals to teach their students, and U.T. hires only the best in the nation, because they have more prestige and more money and can afford such an elaborate expense. Grayson's athletic scores may not make it outside of the state of Texas, whereas Longhorn football is world renowned.

Common online degrees. Online degrees are pursued to facilitate higher education along with a busy work schedule or from the comfort of your own home. What are some common online degrees? Master of Business Administration is the most common one followed by Psychology, Criminology, just about any Business degree whatsoever, Medical Transcription Specialist, Medical Billing, and just about anything which does not require hands-on experience.

What does having a degree mean? A degree from any accredited college is noteworthy, because it means that you have a well-balanced and varied educational experience to back you up. Anything you learn in class, even if it is very dissimilar to your job, can help you in the workplace. This is like approaching a career from a thousand different viewpoints over the course of four or more years, and bringing it into perspective while adding your own contributions to the company.

Does an online degree carry less clout? Yes, it does. However, it can greatly add to your repertoire of tools to use in your job or to increase your job potential. It shows that you began and completed a field of study and minor fields of learning around it. It demonstrates your prerogative in relation to developing yourself and increasing your potential. So, even if it does carry less clout these days, it does contain substantial merit.

Online degrees are thought to be idiotic, playful, not as educational, not as valid, and provide less experience, all because you are not sitting in class with a bunch of other students, listening to your teacher in real time. This is incorrect. However, be careful when picking your online school. Some curriculum can be too easy to spend money on.

Sources:

http://www.onlinedegrees.org/undergrad.htm