What is Online Graduate Education?

People are so busy nowadays to go to a brick-and-mortar outlet to further their studies. It's no wonder then that online graduate education is the current craze. But before signing up for one, do ask yourself why you should choose online graduate education. The thing is having a degree clearly shows to your employer that you have drive and you are an expert in your field of study. With that paper qualification, you should be able to command a higher salary and even get a better job position. Self esteem and confidence will climb a few notches, and your standard of living may be much better. A study in the US last year showed that full-time workers who have a graduate degree earn more than those with normal degrees, so graduate degrees are great from the financial perspective. With technology continually evolving, the number of colleges/universities offering online graduate education has mushroomed too. They are much sought-after because students can get the degrees at a lower cost, can study at their own time, do not have to attend classes, and can continue to work full time! Do you know that you can reach the master and doctorate (PhD) levels through online graduate education? Among the kind of master degree courses available are Master of Arts (MA) in social sciences and humanities, MBA, Master of Early childhood education, Master of Engineering and even Master of Justice Administration. For the doctorate level, a vast amount are available, including Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), Doctor of Computer Science (DCS) and Doctor of Criminal Justice (DCJ). The amount of credit hours you need to cover differs from course to course, but for a master degree you may be looking at 30 credit hours of study. This includes exams and coursework. Studying for a master degree usually takes two years to complete but in the case of online graduate education, you may complete it earlier or later then that. For doctorate candidates, you may be looking at a five year time frame. Students need to go for seminars and do independent studies. Most institutions of higher learning require a student to have a master degree before they can pursue a PhD degree. But such requirements are usually listed on the website itself so check this out because registering yourself. Since there are so many universities/colleges around, you need to pick your school carefully when pursuing online graduate education. Things to look out for include the school's reputation, accreditation, faculty, fees, past students' opinions and whether their course can prepare you for that dream job you are eying.