Most Active Topics
- Bachelor Degree
- Best Paying Majors and Degrees
- Business Degrees
- College Ranking Services
- Ivy League – General Info
- Tips and Advice for Online Education
- Online Colleges and Jobs
- Scholarships Tips and Advices
- Top 20 Schools – By Program
- Scholarship How to Guides
- College Scholarship
- Online Colleges
- Top 20 Schools – By Degree
- School and Academics
- School Involvement
- Ivy League Schools
- Masters Degree Programs
- Nursing Programs
- Online Schools
- Private School
- Public Schools
- Scholarships by Type
- School Scholarships
- State Scholarships
- Top 10 Online Colleges
- Top 20 Colleges
- Top 50 Colleges
How to Pick the Right Online Graduate School
- January 22, 2011
- Graduate Programs, Online Colleges
- Posted by
- Leave your thoughts
If you are a working professional, you know how important a higher degree can be. A master’s or a doctorate degree can be your key to a better job and a higher salary.
With the trend of online degrees and schools growing each day, you can finally earn your graduate degree from the comforts of home or at the office.
However, because there are many online schools available today, you need to know how to pick the best online graduate school for you.
Choosing the right graduate school is very important because:
• It is the first thing your current/potential employers will look for.
• You deserve high quality education for the money you’re spending.
• Only the best schools will provide you with facilities like financial
aid, scholarships, etc.
So, before you decide on enrolling in a graduate school, make sure that it has these features:
Experience
A college with years of experience will know how to design courses, train faculty and provide online students with the best services. Thus, if you are betting on a college with only a few years in cyberspace, you won’t be getting your money’s worth.
Track Record
While visiting the website of any online school, you can easily be taken in by the smiling faces used on the site. However, it is the school’s graduation and drop out rates that indicate whether or not the school is really what it claims to be. Sometimes, a high rate of drop outs may indicate that the school doesn’t provide the high quality of education it advertises.
Accreditation
While searching through online colleges and universities, make sure to check those which are accredited by the National Educational Association or one of its six regional counterparts.
Accreditation means that the graduate school complies with the current educational standards, thus it is a very important aspect for your potential employers as well as any other college you may decide to enroll in for your PhD.
The Class Strength
Because graduate programs require that you communicate with your instructor quite often, you should always aim at looking for schools with low student to teacher ratios. An online school that has too many students enrolled in a program will not offer you the special attention this degree requires.
Financial Aid
Graduate school isn’t cheap. In fact, despite online graduate programs being cheaper in comparison with regular on-campus courses, you will have to pay a considerable sum to get your master’s or doctorate degree. So, you need to find a school that offers financial aid in the form of scholarships and grants.
Tech Support
Because you will be studying online, you need to have access to tech support whenever you need it. Since you will be studying after the college’s usual hours, you should make sure to ascertain that someone will be available to help you even after the college closes down for the day.
Facilities
Many online graduate schools offer different facilities, such as chat, online social clubs, etc., to students to ensure their involvement with the school. Find out which graduate school offers you the most for your money; after all, you won’t be studying all the time.
