Tag Archives: online education

Why I Chose an Online Education

Color photograph of guest blogger Jason James, a 2012 graduate of the UO AIM Program.Today’s post is written by Jason James, 2012 graduate of the AIM Program. We asked Jason to share his thoughts on his experience with online education.

In 1996, I was a junior at Auburn University majoring in management information systems. Like many college students, I couldn’t afford to go to school full-time and cover all of my living expenses. Bar tabs, video games, and framed pop art can really eat into a student’s budget. I was working over 30 hours a week at a value added reseller (VAR) upgrading, repairing, and selling personal computers and peripherals while balancing a full course load. That same year, I was presented the opportunity of buying the company I was working for. After much deliberation, I took the opportunity. I quickly realized that being an entrepreneur means working 80 hours a week for yourself so you don’t have to work 40 hours a week for someone else. The workload was overwhelming and I decided to drop out of school to focus on my career. Besides, that worked for Bill Gates and Michael Dell, right?

Fast forward to 2002, and I was director of IT for a growing global software company in Atlanta, GA. While my career was on solid ground and growing, I felt that something was missing. Keep in mind, not having a degree never impacted my work nor kept me from promotions. Even though I had years of hands-on technical and management skills, I felt I needed to have a degree in order to remain competitive.

Going back to school to finish my degree would prove challenging. After all, working in technology often requires long hours with plenty of unforeseen issues. It’s difficult to make it to a 6:30 p.m. class when a server in your data center goes offline at 6:00 p.m. While more colleges were embracing non-traditional students, class schedules were fairly rigid. In 2002, more colleges were offering online studies, but only a few had online degree programs. Out of hundreds of schools I researched, only about 10 or so had fully online degree programs that did not have at least some on-campus requirement.

In 2002 I started my online education. After years of sleep deprivation, I finished an associate’s degree from the University of Wisconsin Colleges, a bachelor of science from Oregon State University, and in 2012 I finished my master of science in Applied Information Management (AIM) from the University of Oregon, all entirely online and without ever stepping foot on campus. Don’t tell anyone, but the only time I have ever been to Oregon was to attend the commencement ceremony when I completed my bachelor’s. I should probably visit Oregon soon.

Online education has given me a competitive advantage. In the last decade or so I have been able to grow my career without sacrificing my education. The flexibility of online courses allowed me take classes while working in India, China, Japan, Germany, France, and the UK. Mark Twain is often quoted as saying, “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” Well, choosing an online education never let schooling interfere with my career.

Making Education Accessible and Affordable

book of knowledgeHow can we creatively make higher education more affordable and accessible? I am wrapping up preparations for a course on innovation later this month and my thoughts turn to ways to apply innovative ideas to higher education. There are some new ideas that have developed over the last several years such as online delivery, but they have not always been implemented in a deliberate and holistic manner. I am hoping that you will weigh in and help me figure out how we can create new solutions to this long-standing problem.

What Is Our Mission?

Harvard professor Clayton Christensen suggests that there are really three purposes of higher education and that we as universities and colleges often dilute our focus and try to cover all three areas with a confusing combination of products. The three suggested areas are:

  • knowledge creation, or research;
  • knowledge proliferation, or teaching; and
  • preparation for life and careers.

Christensen claims that universities use three different business models to deliver these value propositions, creating confusing products in the process. He suggests that we be clear and purposeful about our mission, our value proposition, and how we deliver our product. This clarity can help reduce program administrative costs and therefore help reduce tuition.

Innovations in Education

Universities and colleges have been working through different delivery methods in recent years to make higher education more accessible. Several of these have been centered around online delivery. Correspondence courses have been available since the mid-nineteenth century and as technology and networking improved, these morphed into online courses. To make education more accessible, massive open online courses (MOOCs) were developed that enrolled thousands or even tens of thousands of students in various subjects. These are free or low cost but do not generally grant credit. Some universities such as Stanford are experimenting with hybrid MOOCs whereby a student can take the online course and apply and pay for credit. The University of Pittsburgh is experimenting with what they call a HOOC or a hybrid open online course. In this model, the course is offered online and onsite simultaneously and at some point during the course, the online students can join the onsite students synchronously, often offering input through tweets or other discussion applications. Online education—in all its forms—has made learning more accessible to those that are not near a college or cannot take courses at the time prescribed.

Employer Criteria

One of the most important factors in aligning higher education with employment is understanding what an employer wants in an educated worker. Are they looking for someone with a broad four-plus year education and exposure to many ideas and thoughts, or are they looking for someone that has proven mastery in a particular area? Would a series of technical certificates prove the worth of a potential employee, or do they need to produce an advanced degree from a recognized college or university? I believe the problem is two pronged and we need to address both areas. As mentioned earlier, universities need to develop expertise delivering in a prescribed area rather than trying to cover all business models. Additionally, employers need to be precise in their requirements for employment and not add layers of education that are unneeded. If we can tackle these two areas, then we can come closer to matching delivery to expectation and drive down the overall cost of education while increasing accessibility.

Thoughts

Do you have specific thoughts on innovations that will help lessen tuition and make education more accessible? I know that greater minds than mine are working on this very problem and I welcome your input and ideas. Perhaps together, we can come up with a solution.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

Tips for Successful Online Students

Jon Dolan and Bart Sumner, 2013 AIM Program graduates

I read a report earlier this week titled “What We Can Learn from Unsuccessful Online Students.” However, I prefer to focus on the positive, so this week I would like to present tips from successful online students. This comes from my own experience as an online student as well as from teaching successful online students.

Time Management

I have found that the number one predictor of a successful online student is the ability to manage the twenty-four hours that they are given every day. Online students do not have to attend an onsite class in a physical building at a particular time, but they still need to set aside a discreet block of time to study. When students try to squeeze studies in between other activities, often that time is co-opted by other pressing or higher priority items. One has to be realistic about how many hours a week it takes to review lectures, participate in discussions, and complete assignments. Set aside enough time to produce quality work without being rushed by deadlines.

Priorities

Successful online students are skilled in balancing their schoolwork with other activities and responsibilities. School does not have to be the number one priority, but it should be in the top tier. Family, work, health, friends, and service are also possible high priorities, but a successful student realizes that each has their place and time. If family is high on the list, you may need to block out time for schoolwork after 10 p.m. when the house is quieter. If friends are of a significant importance, you may need to balance an active social calendar with schoolwork. If they are good friends, they will understand your priorities. Work to set aside the time for the things important to you and prioritize the things that must get done.

Support

Build a support network. It is difficult, if not impossible, to complete online studies in a vacuum. Engage your friends, family, a spouse, or colleagues. Help them understand why reaching this milestone is important to you and enlist their assistance in achieving your vision. Let them be invested in your success. Let your support network compensate for your weaknesses. Is your writing rusty? Find at least one—I often recommend two—proofreaders to catch mistakes and help polish your assignments. Are you not confident in your technical abilities? Approach your favorite tech person and offer something in return for helping you set up applications and infrastructure. Some of the best tech people I know will work for food. A well-cooked meal beats chips and energy bars any day. Create a support network and let them celebrate successes with you.

Ask Questions

Be humble enough to realize that you are not an expert on every subject. You are pursuing online education so that you can learn, grow, and become better at your chosen profession. Don’t be afraid to ask questions of the instructor, the other students, or of your support network. No one will think you are dumb. You left that thinking back in high school. Colleagues, friends, and instructors genuinely want you to succeed and are there to help—all you need to do is ask.

Thoughts

Time management, discipline, a support network, and the ability to reach out for help are all success factors in online education. It will not necessarily be an easy journey, but it will definitely be rewarding as you grow in your new skills and accomplish important milestones such as graduation. Learning is life-long, and while milestones are important, it is equally important that you are continuously growing and learning. What are some of the factors that have made you successful? Let me know.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional, adjunct faculty for the University of Oregon, and academic director of the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

The Future of Online Education

Online education has crept into every level of the academic system, from grade school to graduate school. It is now even prevalent in the corporate world as a viable means to train the workforce in areas such as safety, security, and corporate policies.

History

Online education is really just an offshoot of the old correspondence courses, which allowed people to take classes by mail. With modern technology, it is much faster and more efficient than the days of mailing in your test. There is an informative infographic at straighterline.com which chronicles the history of higher education up to the modern day.

I taught my first online course in 2006. I will admit that I was skeptical at first. How can I be the “sage on the stage” when there is no stage? How can my brilliant wit come shining through emoticons? I was pleasantly surprised after I taught my first course. The students learned as much, if not more, than had I been at the front of the room at the center of attention, and that is the point. Once I removed myself as the only expert in the room, the students shared experiences and learned from each other. It is very important to set up the course correctly in order to stimulate dialogue and interaction but, once it starts, get out of the way and let the learning begin. The instructor then becomes a guide as much as a lecturer.

Current State

Today, most public and private universities offer at least one online course and many offer entire online degrees. Employers are accepting online degrees from reputable universities, just as if someone had spent that same time “in the seat”. Many are using the same tools as part of their corporate training. They recognize the quality and efficiency that distributed education brings. If the tools and curriculum are high quality, they can easily rival traditional education.

Tools

Course management systems such as Blackboard and eCollege have been around for at least ten years and provide the instructor with a structure for creating and housing online courses and provides the class structure for shared discussions, file repositories, and impromptu virtual meetings. These tools promote open learning and discussion while maintaining the structure of a traditional course. Course development and presentation tools are being refined constantly and new versions are available for the mobile platform.

Future State

New tools are coming online that facilitate learning, either for a credit bearing degree or for a life skill or interest. Online education is going mobile and is going very broad. With the advent of MOOC’s or Massive Open Online Courses, companies such as EdX or Coursera are providing the structure for offering courses from prestigious universities such as MIT and Stanford. It is still to be determined how one obtains credit or a certificate from these courses and whether these will be recognized by an employer or another university. With the opening of these courses and online courses around the world, education has come out of the traditional classroom and is now available to any new or continuing student. This is one genie that won’t go back in the bottle.

Let me know what you think the future holds for online education and for education in general.

 

About Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional, adjunct faculty for the University of Oregon, and academic director of the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT topics that keep him up at night.