| Getting an online education college degree is | | | | technologies. More options will gradually |
| the wave of the future! The increase in | | | | become available to students as online |
| adults going back to school has jumped from | | | | education access speeds up - such as online |
| 28% in 1970 to 39% in 2006. In 2001, 92 | | | | access to evaluations of their homework, etc. |
| million (46%) adults participated in | | | | |
| educational ventures. (Statistics may be | | | | 3. Costs will decrease. As more online |
| found at eLearners.com) But, the largest | | | | education programs evolve, competition will |
| group of online education participants is the | | | | increase, and costs to students will |
| one earning online college degrees. Here is | | | | decrease. |
| a summary of the levels of degrees, types of | | | | |
| degrees, and majors, as well as "10 | | | | 4. New degree programs will develop. New |
| Predictions for Online Education in 2007." | | | | degree programs, related to online education |
| | | | will develop. Such programs might include: |
| Four Levels of Online Education College | | | | online student counseling, online education |
| Degrees: | | | | site debate/discussion host, etc. |
| | | | |
| Associate Degrees. | | | | 5. More students will enroll in online |
| | | | education programs. Each year the enrollment |
| Bachelor's Degrees. | | | | in programs continues to increase and will |
| | | | continue to do so. More than 1.6 million |
| Master's Degrees. | | | | students took at least one online course in |
| | | | 2002. In 2003, 1.9 million students took |
| Doctoral Degrees. | | | | online courses. In 2004, more than 2.3 |
| | | | million students enrolled. In 2005, the |
| Types of Online Education College Degrees | | | | number of online learners increased to almost |
| & Majors: | | | | 3.2 million students. (Source: Making the |
| | | | Grade: Online Education in the United States, |
| Arts & Humanities Degrees: | | | | 2006, Sloan Consortium) |
| Liberal Arts, Humanities, Design, Writing, | | | | |
| Communications, English | | | | 6. Specialized programs will begin to |
| | | | emerge. Students with learning disabilities |
| Business & MBA Degrees: | | | | will be able to take advantage of special |
| MBA, Management, Human Resources, | | | | online programs created just for them. |
| Marketing, Finance, Accounting | | | | |
| | | | 7. Attitudes toward higher education will |
| Computers & I.T. Degrees: Information | | | | begin to change. The general public will |
| Technology, Web Design, Networks, Technology | | | | soon see degree programs as accessible to the |
| Management | | | | average person, rather than just the highly |
| | | | intelligent. |
| Education & Teaching Degrees: K-12, Early | | | | |
| Childhood, Administration, Special Education, | | | | 8. The time to obtain a degree will shorten. |
| Curriculum/Instruction | | | | It will take less time to obtain a degree as |
| | | | students will be able to work year-round, at |
| Health & Nursing Degrees: Nursing, | | | | any time of the day or night, transfer |
| Psychology, Counseling, Health | | | | courses from other programs, and earn course |
| Administration, Human Services | | | | credit by challenge exams. Two years is |
| | | | generally the minimum amount of time in which |
| Science & Engineering Degrees: Engineering, | | | | degree programs can be completed, although |
| Technology, Mathematics, Aviation | | | | this varies, based on any time off between |
| | | | courses and previous classroom work. Many |
| Social Science Degrees: Criminal Justice, | | | | students complete a degree in two to three |
| Paralegal, Law, Psychology, Public | | | | years, but it can take four or five years or |
| Administration, Political Science | | | | more, depending on the pace. The more |
| | | | credits transferred, the faster the degree |
| Some careers require only associate degrees | | | | will be completed. You can earn credits from |
| (equivalent to the first two years of a | | | | professional training, the College Level |
| college education). These include: physical | | | | Examination Program (CLEP), or previous |
| therapist assistants, dental hygienists, | | | | college courses. (Source: "Frequently Asked |
| forensic technicians, veterinary | | | | Questions") |
| technologists and technicians, diagnostic | | | | |
| medical sonographers, occupational therapist | | | | 9. Most online colleges will begin to offer |
| assistants, cardiovascular technologists and | | | | course credit for life experience. More |
| technicians, paralegals and legal assistants. | | | | credit will be given for life experiences, |
| As these jobs require only a two year | | | | especially to older students. |
| degree, they are paid well and well | | | | |
| respected. | | | | 10. New programs will begin that are |
| | | | hybrids. New programs will be developed that |
| 10 Predictions About Online Education in 2007 | | | | combine traditional on-campus education with |
| | | | online education or work/online study |
| 1. Online education programs will continue | | | | programs. |
| to grow and expand. More programs will be | | | | |
| offered online to earn online degrees and | | | | Getting an online education college degree is |
| those programs currently offered will grow to | | | | the wave of the future! Use the 10 |
| include additional areas of study. | | | | predictions about online education in this |
| | | | article to begin your search for the online |
| 2. Technology will advance. Technology is | | | | education college degree that is best for |
| continually improving and replacing older | | | | you. |