Why online courses might be worth looking into

Getting an education is one of the most rewarding things we can do for ourselves. Be it completing high school, doing an apprenticeship, going to TAFE, going to university or doing online courses: our futures selves will thank our past selves for it down the track.

One particular form of education that is looking to be at the tip of the wave of future trends is online courses. With the modern advancements in technology, students can now take an entire university equivalent course completely online or via correspondence, as it’s sometimes called. If you’re the kind of person that can’t get out of bed for those nasty 8am lectures, or are working full-time, then doing online courses could give you those sleep-ins you love.

A bit about online courses New Zealand

Online courses are currently disrupting formal education and have opened a new genre of outreach on certain topics. They deliver a series of information and teachings to web browsers or mobile devices to be accessed by students at any time.

Students who choose to do online study have access to a large variety of programs and courses. They can generally study these online courses for a fraction of the price of traditional university courses. Along with an array of options at cheaper costs, online students can also enjoy a more comfortable and flexible learning environment.

Online classes can be taken at any time of the day, from anywhere in the world. Therefore, if you’re the type of person that likes to do their study on the couch at 10 o’clock at night, you can do exactly that. Apart from self-inflicted distractions and natural procrastination, conducting your study online will also eliminate many of the unavoidable distractions that are associated with going to lectures.

Another bonus of doing online courses is the fact that you can still work a full-time job if you wish. Unlike attending classes at university, online courses don’t require you to take each class at a certain time. Therefore, you won’t need to carry the usual stress of cash flow that many students bare on their shoulders throughout their studies.

How do you study online?

Online study is much like other traditional forms of study in the sense that you enrol in the classes that you want to take and submit assessments for those respective classes. The biggest difference is that you just don’t have to go to a campus and attend classes, all the information is shared via an online portal that you log into. Learning material generally includes reading material, podcasts, discussion boards and other interactive online forums.

All online learning institutions will have a community of other online students and teachers for you to chat to. You can interact with students who are taking the same subjects are you as well as talk to your teachers about any questions or issues you have about the curriculum. You’ll do this all online, when it suits you.

When taking online courses, you won’t necessarily need to stick to a traditional course guide. Generally, you have to option to pick and choose your subjects that are most suited to your interests and ambitions. You can basically design your course yourself.

What is online distance learning?

Distance learning is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school or university. It generally involves studying away from your academic institutions, usually in the comfort of your own home. These online courses can also be taken while you travel New Zealand or internationally.

Distance learning is a great opportunity for students who might live in remote areas to study at universities in more urban areas. It also allows students to study at universities in other countries, without having to move.

It’s basically just a way for students to study remotely without being in regular face-to-face contact with a teacher in the classroom. Such learning has its roots in students learning through correspondence courses.

Is an online degree or qualification respected?

There used to be a time when the value of an online degree was uncertain at best. In more recent years, online courses have begun to challenge the traditionalism surrounding universities campuses.

Many universities have even begun offering classes through online learning. Some will offer a whole degree completely online. Others will just offer certain subjects within a degree. There are also institutions that exist completely online. As well as international universities that offer online courses for students in other countries a swell. This is known as distance learning.

Whatever type of university you are enrolled to study with online, your studies will be classed as completely credible. Most employers are now embracing online education. They will hold an online degree to the same standard as a traditional campus-based degree. The fact that there are more and more trusted universities starting to offer online courses means that respect for these online course is starting to grow.

Throughout New Zealand, most employers don’t view online courses any differently than campus based courses. This is the same in Australia as well, for those of you who are thinking of taking your online qualifications down under.

What’s in a name?

Online study doesn’t necessarily place you in a different category than campus based study. However, it is still important to consider the university that you choose to enrol with. When you submit your resume through to an employer, chances are it’s going to be competing with a couple of dozen other resumes. What’s the first thing employers look at? Well, your education. If you’re applying for a digital marketing job but you have a degree in interior design, it’s likely they won’t look too much further into your resume.

Let’s say you’re applying for jobs that are in the field that you studied, then the next thing the employer is likely to look at is your experience. After that it will be the university you attended. This doesn’t mean that they’ll look at whether your completed your degree online or on campus. It means they will look at the name and reputation of the university you ‘attended’.

The harsh truth is that universities and educational providers have reputations that speak for themselves. Therefore, as unfair as it may seem, many recruiters, while sifting through hundreds of resumes, will most likely put forward the candidates that studied at well know and well thought of institutions.

How to find respected online courses

1. Reputation – Don’t just enrol in the first online course that pops up on your google search. Do your research and make sure you look into universities that you’ve already heard of. If you’ve heard of the, it’s likely that the employer would have heard of them.
2. Accreditation – Accreditation is essential to credibility. Make sure that the online courses you choose to study are recognised with the Ministry of Education New Zealand.
3. The length of your degree – Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither was your degree. Be wary of online courses that offer the opportunity to earn a full degree in mere months. You definitely don’t want to fall victim to an online scam.
4. Success of the universities graduates – Do some research into the quality of the institutions graduates in terms of what employers think of those graduate. One great way to determine the success rate of the university is to look at its job placement rates.

What are the best online learning sites?

• Massey University – This university offers internationally recognised university qualifications. About 14,000 students study by distance at this university each year.
• Udemy – This institution is a global marketplace for online study. It offers over 55,000 courses that can be taken completely online from anywhere in the world.
• Open Polytechnic – This institution offers a range of qualifications and courses to study by distance and online learning. Students can choose to study certificates, diplomas, degrees and graduate degrees.
• The Career Academy – Offers qualification courses from animal behaviour, to business, to working with  renewable energy, to psychology and counselling.  Students can earn various certificates as well as study full diplomas.
• Distance Learning Portal – This site allows you to find and compare 44 online short courses at universities in New Zealand. You can also search for international bachelor degrees, Masters degrees, PhD’s, short courses and preparation courses from universities all around the world.
• YOOBEE School of Design – If you’ve got knack for design and want to be able to study it from home then YOOBEE school of design offers a wide range of online courses. You can study a certificate in digital media, HTML and CSS, 3D Modelling for Game Online and many more design classes.

Are online classes hard?

Online courses are no different to traditional course in terms of the difficulty of the content. Online study will be as difficult or easy as you choose to make it. You will need to have a basic knowledge of computers. However, most people over the age of 5 have that so it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.

The thing that will make online courses difficult is the students motivation to take the time to do the work. You are not required to show up to classes. Therefore, it is up to you to do the necessary amount of study to do well in the assessments.

Although attending university classes comes with many distractions, being at home can also do the same thing. Perhaps you’ve had a long day at work and your couch and television have never look so good? But you’ve also got an essay due next week and you haven’t even started research. Online study requires discipline which is something you should make sure you have before enrolling.