Online degree

An online degree is an academic degree (usually a college degree, but sometimes the term includes high school diplomas and non-degree certificate programs) that can be earned primarily or entirely through the use of an Internet-connected computer, rather than attending college in a traditional campus setting. Improvements in technology, the increasing use of the Internet worldwide, and the need for people to have flexible school schedules while they are working have led to a proliferation of online colleges that award associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. An online degree is an academic degree (usually a college degree, but sometimes the term includes high school diplomas and non-degree certificate programs) that can be earned primarily or entirely through the use of an Internet-connected computer, rather than attending college in a traditional campus setting. Improvements in technology, the increasing use of the Internet worldwide, and the need for people to have flexible school schedules while they are working have led to a proliferation of online colleges that award associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. The goal of educational accreditation, according to the United States Department of Education, is to ensure that programs provided by institutions of higher education meet acceptable levels of quality. ENQA, the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education, describes the role of external quality assurance in education as one that 'combines both accountability for the reassurance of the public and an objective and developmental role for enhancing quality in institutions'. In the area of online education, it is important to avoid unaccredited diploma mills that offer fake degrees, as these are unfortunately common. Students seeking valid online degrees should obtain proof of accreditation from an appropriate national or regional accrediting body. In the United States, online colleges that are fully accredited have earned a widely recognized form of university accreditation from one of six regional accreditation boards. Each of six geographic regions of the United States has one of these boards, a non-governmental agency that oversees and accredits degree-granting institutions headquartered in their areas. The U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) also recognize the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) as the accrediting organization for distance learning institutions and education programs that offer online degrees. Outside of the United States, other national and regional standards of accreditation hold, and may be highly supportive of, distance education. For example, the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, or Open University of Catalonia, has been accredited by AQU, the Agency for Quality Assurance in the Catalan University System (a full member of ENQA), since its inception in 1995, and has been called a 'significant success story' as 'the world's first continuous, and sustainable, virtual university'. Similarly, in Ireland, the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) has accredited a number of online colleges and degrees, e.g. Setanta College. Online education enables individuals living with physical disabilities, full-time employees, military personnel, those living abroad, and stay-at-home parents, among others to have access to accredited higher education. The perception of the quality of online degrees compared to on-campus degrees varies, but has been increasing in recent years. While most major online colleges are regionally accredited, the public estimation of their quality is in dispute. A national survey of hiring representatives showed that a preference toward on-campus degrees exists. In some instances, hiring executives were unwilling to consider applicants with an online degree. Some experts argue that degrees in certain fields are more accepted online than in others, while some programs are less suited for online-only schools. A major issue for accredited and reputable online programs is the proliferation of proprietary online-only programs that have come under fire in recent years. A survey by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) found that 100% of employers who responded felt that distance education program graduates performed better on the job as a result of their degree (as compared to their previous performance). Additionally, employers felt that an employee receiving a distance education degree compared favorably, in terms of knowledge learned, to someone with a resident degree. On the other hand, The Chronicle of Higher Education reported in January 2007 on a Vault Inc. survey that found 55 percent of employers preferred traditional degrees over online ones. Forty-one percent, however, said they would give 'equal consideration to both types of degrees'. The Sloan Consortium, an organization funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to maintain and improve the quality of distance education, publishes regular reports on the state of United States distance education. In its 2006 report 'Making the Grade: Online Education in the United States, 2006', it stated that 'in 2003, 57 percent of academic leaders rated the learning outcomes in online education as the same or superior to those in face-to-face. That number is now 62 percent, a small but noteworthy increase'. According to Steve Lohr's article in the New York Times, a major study was done in 2009 that was funded by the Education Department. The collected research was from a 12-year period and concluded that online learning on average beat face-to-face teaching by a small but statistical margin.