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From...
Keyboard campuses
September 4, 1998
Web posted at: 3:00 PM EDT
by Bill Holton
(IDG) -- In March of 1997 Cassandra Shaffer was studying elementary education at Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota. She was midway through her junior year when her Army reserve unit was called up to serve with the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Bosnia, forcing Cassandra to drop her five classes. Stationed in Hungary, she resumed her algebra studies via a correspondence course. After learning Cassandra would have e-mail access, her psychology professor encouraged her to complete the class over the Internet.
Cassandra's professor e-mailed her class notes, reading lists and discussion questions, which Cassandra answered by e-mail. "The work was hard, but sometimes it was my only connection with the real world back home," she recalls.
Cassandra earned a B in her course on human growth and development. Today she's back at Northern State University, where she hopes to complete her degree in another few semesters.
Cassandra's story is by no means unique. Across the U.S. there are hundreds of thousands of people who would eagerly pursue higher education, if only they had the time and opportunity.
The good news is that now many reputable colleges and universities are making at least some of their curriculum available to students online. Most of the work can be completed from the comfort of your home or at the office, and you can usually set your own schedule. At many institutions it's even possible to earn your entire degree without once setting foot on campus.
"This isn't the wave of the future; it's here now," says Terri Hedegaard, vice president of the University of Phoenix's online campus, one of the oldest "distance learning" centers in the U.S. Stanford, Duke and George Washington universities are just a few of the top-notch schools where you don't always have to physically go to class. And when you finally earn that degree, it will usually be the very same diploma the school hands out to its traditional on-campus graduates.
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Back to school
Sandy Lloyd of Reno, Nevada, dropped out of college in the early 1980s to work in her family's military-surplus company, but she always had a goal of going back to school and completing her business degree before she turned 40. In 1990 Sandy and her husband, John, moved to Las Vegas, where Sandy took a job teaching safety courses at the Nevada Test Site, some 95 miles from her home. "I had to leave every morning at 5:30 a.m. and didn't get home until after 7:00 p.m.," says Sandy. "I didn't have time to attend classes." Even if she could have found the time, Sandy wanted to study organizational development and training, and there was no university that offered such a program on an undergraduate level. When a fellow employee told Sandy about the Union Institute, which has its home campus in Cincinnati, it turned out to be a double blessing. Not only was Sandy able to complete her bachelor's degree at odd hours on her computer, she also wound up designing three quarters of her own courses with the advice and assistance of several adjunct professors, all of whom are experts in their fields. Today, she's a manager with Target department stores. "Without my diploma, I never would have qualified for the job," says Sandy, who completed her business degree a full four years before her 40th birthday. Most desktop universities employ a wide variety of computer technologies, including e-mail, online databases, videoconferencing, message forums and electronic chat sessions. And though you can usually set your own schedule, don't expect to breeze your way through Cyber U."You can't slink into the back row of the classroom and tune out," says Pam Dixon, author of Virtual College: A Quick Guide to How You Can Get the Degree You Want With Computer, TV, Video, Audio and Other Distance Learning Tools. "You've got to participate or you won't pass the course," says Dixon.
Distance-learning students frequently must do twice the reading and write two times as many papers as students taking comparable courses in the classroom. "On the plus side, you'll also learn twice as much," notes Dixon.
At many prestigious universities, admission policies for online study can be just as rigorous as traditional entrance requirements. "You'll need the same college board scores, the same transcripts and personal essays," says Phillips. But if your grades aren't quite up to snuff, take heart. Many smaller and less-well-known schools are more willing to accept marginal students into their online programs--especially older students who have demonstrated their abilities and commitment in the workplace. You can even earn credit for advance-placement testing and documented life experience. "This can be a wonderful way to get a second chance at a degree," says Dixon.
Jim Palmer dropped out of college twice during his early 20s. Recently he had been working as an appliance salesman. "It was a dead-end job, and I was going nowhere fast," recalls the 35-year-old father of three from Riverside, California. "I knew I had to do something with my life, but without a degree my options were severely limited."
Surfing the Net one day, Jim found the University of Phoenix's online program. His application was accepted, and he even qualified for financial aid. Today Jim carries a 3.6 grade-point average and is just five courses shy of a bachelor's degree in business-information systems.
In November 1996 Jim applied for an account-executive job with Lucent Technologies. "At first I didn't get the job, but when they learned I was working toward my degree online they decided to give me a chance. They've even picked up the tab for several of my courses."
After graduation Jim hopes to transfer to one of the company's technical divisions as a programmer. In the meantime, whenever he goes out of town, Jim always brings along his notebook computer so he can keep up with his studies.