When you’re choosing a program, first decide what it is you want to do with your life. Once you’ve done that, the rest is relatively easy. To paraphrase an ancient Chinese proverb, knowing where you’re going helps you plan the trip and prepare for the journey. If you’re undecided, try planning backward from where you’d like to be when you retire, and what you’d like to be able to tell your great-grandchildren that you’ve accomplished.
Maybe the first thing to do is learn more about yourself and your learning styles. There is an outstanding questionnaire at eLearnersAdvisor.com. In fact, the companion website, eLearners.com is one of the best, in my opinion, to learn about distance learning degree programs.
Whether you’re going for a degree, a diploma, or a certificate, you want to make sure you’re choosing the program that is ‘right’ for you, and that it’s from a university of college with proper accreditation. Unless the tuition is coming out of your pocket, whoever helps you finance your post-secondary education will want some assurance that it’s from a properly accredited institution.
As you might expect, you can find a lot of advice and guides online. Some sites worth taking a look at are ‘Major Decisions: For students who are exploring majors’ from Penn State; ‘How to choose a major and a career’ by the president of Capital University; and ‘Questions to ask before you enroll’.
While you’re narrowing your list of schools and programs, read ‘Five tips for choosing an online school’ and check out a few of the resources from various organizations dedicated to distance learning. When you have made your decision take a final look at Andrew Gansler’s article ‘You’re ready to go back to school if…’ and feel confident in the decision you have made.
