Because of the ease and convenience of online course being available to anyone from anywhere there is a common misperception that online courses are easier than courses which are offered in conventional classrooms. This is not true. Students who are serious about their course would find they are equally challenged to keep up with reading material, homework and assignments as they would in a conventional classroom.

Because of so much SPAM mail offering people degrees overnight, basically buying a degree, there is also the misperception that online degree programs are ‘gimmicks’ and are not of the same value as degrees earned in an conventional classroom environment.

All types of people from all walks of life take online courses; In general most online courses are taken by mature students, i.e. over 25 years of age. Most online students are already working and already have qualifications in other areas.

The is no required physical contact with fellow students taking the same online course. Sometimes courses will group students together to do a ‘group assignment’ but that is conducted entirely over the computer.

If students wish they can phone or email outside of the online course. Your email address is usually available to other students on the

It depends; when a student enrolls for an online course they can register as a ‘no grade’ student where they are not required to achieve a certain grade in order to complete the course. If the student has registered for an online certificate program or an online degree program then it is required that the students complete the course with a certain grade, usually a C or higher in order for the course to count towards the degree program.

Grades are usually awarded accumulatively from assignments and homework completed during the course and not by one ‘final’ exam.

The cost of online courses varies form location to location and depends on the duration of the course. It is good to shop around for the best price and schedule that suits you. On average one online course lasts 8 to 10 weeks and costs between $350 and $500 dollars, not including text books.

Some colleges and universities offer the same student discounts and student aid programs that are available to students that are attending conventional on campus classroom courses.

If you enroll in an online degree program or and online associates degree program there is usually a once off enrollment fee. Then for each course taken in the program you may get a ‘return student’ discount maybe 5% reduction. You should calculate the entire cost if you intend to enroll for an online degree program, price per course, price of text books. For an online degree program you are likely required to take at least 20 courses – 20 courses at $500 each costs $ 20,000 and that does not include text books. It is a good idea to shop around for the best quality and prices of online courses.

Well, as with all things that are advertised, read carefully what is written about the course, the course description etc. but more importantly be aware of what is NOT written. For example it is usually written how often a student is recommended to login to an online course but in my research in is rarely stated what are the requirements of the instructor to login (and in my experience some instructors login in very infrequently) It might be a good idea to make inquiries on the requirements of the instructors not just how often they login, are instructors required to give feed back and /or intermittent grades so that you are not frustrated later during the course.

Without having taken every online course offered by every learning institution this is a difficult question to answer but indeed in my opinion is THE most important question when selecting an online course.

When an online course is advertised they will give a brief description of the course and what will be covered. Most online courses will state the name and credentials of the online instructor (and if they don’t - be warned!). Online courses are usually given by an ‘instructor’ which does not indicate if the instructor is trained in teaching and indeed many are not.

Online courses offered by universities tend to be run and managed by a separate department of the university and does not follow the same university hierarchy as one finds on campus. Online courses are not for example under the supervision of the Dean of the faculty.

Yes; some colleges and universities offer programs of online courses where a student can achieve a diploma or Bs degree on completion of the required online courses.

Often referred to as an online degree, an online degree program would roughly follow the same requirements of course completion and required grades as a conventional degree program on campus. As well as that some online course credits are transferable to other online learning programs.

To get specific details on what is involved and what is allowed in online degree programs one would have to contact the university or college directly. I don’t know for example if it is allowed to do an online degree program and have some courses taken on campus or if you start off with an on campus degree program can you transfer to an online degree program. This sort of questions is specific to the college or university involved.

Some colleges and universities which offer online learning and online course are open to anyone of any age or educational background and it is not required to submit any educational records in order to be eligible to take a course. Online courses will recommend that students have high school English reading and writing skills and some basic computer knowledge in order to keep up with the course material.

If you are interested in an online degree program then it may be necessary to submit your high school diploma and or have certain GSE’s. Some online degree programs have age restrictions

Most of the courses which are offered online are purely academic and obviously do not require any lab/practical work. Courses such as technical writing, business studies, law, management studies, English ligature, languages, some computer and mathematics are typical examples of areas on which online courses are offered.

If you have a particular subject in mind that you would like to study online then you would have to ‘shop’ around and see if it is available online.

Some colleges and universities which offer online courses are more flexible that others. If you are seriously interest