Online MBA Degree Alternative - Is Online MBA Degree right for you?

It is always good to see people interested in furthering their education. It does not matter what career you have chosen, ongoing education is important. Regardless of whether you want to simply expand your knowledge, or drive up your income potential, an online MBA degree can pay dividends long term. In this economic environment, you can bet that employers look closely at employees who work to better themselves. When hiring or moving someone up in pay and level of responsibility, continuing education can play heavily in your favor.

The majority of those who want to get their MBA degree online are motivated by money. The income potential is well documented. The downside is the expense, the time and the commitment. When considering an online MBA, you want to be sure that the risk is worth the reward. When completed, what is the payoff? What can you honestly expect from getting your degree? It would be a good idea to discuss this with the appropriate individuals within your organization before making the choice to move forward. If you decide not to move forward, do not despair. There are alternatives. You just need to think outside the box and zero in on what you really want to achieve.

If your aim is solely to increase your income, consider a forward thinking alternative to an MBA degree. Forget online professors. What if you had the opportunity to be mentored by top Fortune 500 business leaders who have proven themselves year after year? And what if these same world class business leaders taught you on a daily basis how to implement and execute a strategy for exploding your income? What if one of these top leaders happened to be the top tax adviser in the United States who was willing to show you how to save $5,000- $50,000 per year in taxes?

Obviously the same business leaders would have a lot on the ball as it pertains to personal development and business skills. What if they also held classes for you that taught you every technique they have used over the years to ensure their success? It is an interesting comparison, don't you think? An online classroom with you in front of a computer toiling away essentially alone in pursuit of an MBA degree, or you in front of that same computer learning from the world's top business minds how to become a success in every aspect of your business life.

This scenario is not to demean those who offer online MBA degree programs, or those who are adamant about pursuing their degree. It is simply to help you to realize that in this day and age, there are alternatives if you just look a little closer, expand your mind and consider viable alternatives. Regardless of the path that you take; whether it is a traditional approach or a progressive one, the fact that you are continuing your educational journey is something to be celebrated.

If you would like to implement a strategy for continuing your education and building your income without the expense and long term commitment of an MBA degree, visit our website today @ http://www.iLearningGlobalVideo.com. The world's top business leaders are waiting there to show you a new and powerful approach to ensuring your financial freedom.

Article Source: Ezine Articles

5 Benefits of Online Degrees/Online Learning

By: Kris De Leon

If you are pondering whether to take online degrees courses, consider the following benefits:

1. Flexibility and Convenience:- we live in a fast pace world, and can find it quite difficult to integrate education and continued learning into our busy schedule. With online learning, you can take these classes during your lunch break, or when your kids are watching television. You have 24-access to course materials, and can easily focus more time on areas that are difficult, and less time on the areas that you can grasp rather quickly.
2. Location:- online learning allows you to complete your coursework from the comfort of your home, your office, at a coffee shop, or anywhere where you have access to the Internet. You have the convenience to take the course work anywhere you want.
3. Lower Costs:- since you can study at the comfort of your own home, you don't need to spend the extra costs on meals, transportation costs, or hiring a babysitter if you have kids. Companies and institutions who provide the online learning program have lower operating costs, which allows them to pass on lower program fees to their students.
4. Increased Technical Literacy:- since you have to navigate around an Internet environment, you can master the technical competencies needed to work online. You can become more technical savvy and can apply new skills to both your personal and professional life.
5. Increased Interaction with Classmates and Instructor:- many students are uncomfortable asking questions out of fear of sounding uneducated. The Internet alleviates this fear and lets you ask questions directly to your instructor by submitting e-mail queries at anytime, without having other students know that you have asked this questions. Online learning can also encourage you to interact among other classmates by offering them online spaces to work together.

Kris de Leon is a Global Executive Recruiter with a passion for online learning and digital media. You can check out his articles in his blog http://www.onlinelearningarena.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Distance Learning Can Really Be Rewarding As a Regular Course

By: Richard J.S. Johnson

The concept of correspondence education was prevalent in the late 19th century. Education took place by sending and receiving paper through regular mail due to the development of postal service. There was literally no other channel of communication. After the Second World War, the lifestyles of the common people changed drastically. Off-campus courses came into existence in the U.S.A in the early 50's. Today, with the advent of the internet, the world of education has changed dramatically. Two-way interaction became possible with the help of internet. Lectures are now being delivered in the form of video on the net.

Distance learning is a mode of education which is more popular than ever today, reason: convenience and flexibility. In Distance learning, the student does not have to travel to the campus to attend classes on a daily basis. It is specially aimed at those people who are unable to attend campus for the classes. It increases the accessibility and broadens the area of study. The learning material can be exchanged between the learner and the teacher through regular correspondence and/or via net.

Hundreds of colleges, universities and institutions all over the world are offering countless Online Degree courses these days. Degree courses as well as vocational courses and professional courses are all available to students. These courses are especially popular among youngsters who can continue to study while working full-time to earn. This type of learning helps them to fulfill their career objectives at the same time gaining experience. With this mode, students get to study at their own pace, saving a lot of time that could have otherwise gone into waste for traveling to the campus and a lot of money that could have otherwise gone into waste for miscellaneous expenses to stay in the campus. Sometimes students of this particular mode of study do better than regular students who attend classes at the campus everyday.

The United Kingdom has developed and expanded their education system, offering innumerable courses to cater to different sections of students. Even professional courses like business, media, engineering, law etc. are being taught through UK distance learning. If you want to study in this mode, you have to develop yourself into a self-organized student. This mode has proven to be a blessing for thousands of students worldwide who could not have otherwise came to the UK for studying their much sought after British degrees. These are prestigious credentials that the students from all over the world want to achieve. Many courses offer an extensive range of materials including videos, computer disks, audio tapes and annotated texts while some colleges have opened up internet-based classes. But there is one criterion that is just indispensable if you want to achieve your desired degree through this mode of learning, which is self-discipline. Since, the onus of completing the course and getting the degree to advance your qualification or job mobility, you need to be self-disciplined to the core.

Before you get yourself enrolled in a college/institute/university that offers these kind of study programs, check a few things like whether or not the degree is recognized by a government body, the course content and structure, the assessment process, and most importantly, financial assistance. Once you get all these things clear, you can start with your dream lessons.

I am an educationist and self published author. I believes that distance learning courses are no way different than traditional courses. For more information on distance learning, UK distance learning, online education, and online university I recommends you to visit: http://www.RDI.co.uk

Article Source: http://www.EzineArticles.com/

Are Online Degrees Valid to Prospective Employers?

By: Rose M

Online distance learning has gained rapid popularity with the advent of the internet, which has proven to offer great supporting facilities and convenience for online education. However, just like everything else with pros and cons, the internet has also opened doors for the widespread sale of bogus online degrees. According a report by USA Today, there were already 400 diploma mills in the year 2003 and the numbers are rising. In fact, many of these unscrupulous operations are run by organizations in an industry that is worth $500 million a year.

However, amidst the negative hype about online education, there are actually many distance learning colleges offering valid degrees and diplomas. These institutions do not sell bogus certificates, but actually aim to provide quality education as alternatives for on-campus higher education. Valid online courses with online video lectures as well as online library facilities and test examinations conducted are often deployed to ensure that students truly qualify in their areas of study and graduate legitimately. Sadly though, many employers only see the negative side of things, and easily brush off online education degrees as equivalent to bogus degrees.

In view of the confusion, the National Education Board of the U.S. government has authorized 6 accreditation agencies to provide institutional accreditation to education institutions, as a measure to differentiate legitimate universities from the crooks. This means that students choosing their universities will be assured that these universities would have met minimum criteria set forth by these agencies for learning institutions. Additionally, there is also The Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) which provides accreditation specifically for distance learning institutions. The DETC is an accreditation agency that is recognized by the US Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Furthermore, there is also specialized accreditation for specific programs of different areas of specialization. These programs which are found to have attained excellence will be awarded accreditation by various professional accrediting agencies depending on the area of specialization. For instance, the International Association for Management Education (AACSB) gives accreditation to accounting related programs while health programs are accredited by the American Health Information Management Association. It is also important to know that only accreditation agencies recognized by the Department of Education or CHEA are considered accreditation agencies which are acknowledged.

What does accreditation mean to a student? An institutional accreditation agency evaluates the various aspects of universities or colleges against minimum standard criteria to determine if the particular institution meets their list of basic requirements and quality of education. College accreditation is necessary to ensure that the education, facilities and support provided by a college or university adheres to basic levels. On the other hand, specialized accreditation evaluates excellence in individual program regardless of which institution the program is being delivered within. In this type of accreditation, course content and program curricula is evaluated against pre-set standards of the institution.

All accreditation does is to assure employers, students and parents that the graduates who are awarded degrees from accredited colleges have undergone quality and adequate training in their respective areas of specialization. This also means that colleges that are not accredited by the proper accreditation body would not have met the standards imposed by the agencies. However, courses taken by prospective employees that are accredited by the respective agencies would have met standards imposed on the respective specialized areas.

It is totally up to the judgment and decision of the employers on evaluating the validity of an online or on-campus degree. With the recent hike in bogus degrees, employers can't help but be stringent in their applicant screenings and consider those with degrees that have been accredited. This may prove tedious and sometimes employers may get confused. Therefore, if your accreditation is provided by an agency recognized by the US Department of Education, then you will need to explain to your prospective employers on the background of the accrediting bodies. This way, you can avoid employers from sidelining your application based on something that they may be unclear about and increase your chances of being short listed for a job interview.

About the Author:

Rose Musyoka is the editor of http://www.distance-learning-college-guide.com where you find answers, information and advice on distance learning colleges, accredited online degrees and online courses. See more related information on distance learning colleges and why college accreditation is important.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rose_M

Real Degrees From Real Colleges on the Web - Really!

By: Scott McQuarrie

A national poll from 2006 revealed that only 60% of Americans believed that young people should be taught the value of hard work and studying. One writer commenting on this statistic tried to spin it positively, by revealing that the figure was less than 40% among Europeans. But there is one group today where just about 100% would support the notion of hard work and study - people who are working for an online college degree.

With the explosion of the "virtual world" of the Internet over the past decade and a half, we have witnessed the construction of a whole parallel world, except instead of brick and mortar and 2-by-4's, the buildings are made of bits, bytes and computer graphics. The grocery store down the street, the movie theater downtown and the bookstore at the mall all have counterparts, as well as competitors, in cyberspace. And now that colleges have made the move, people have a choice of sitting in class for two or four years or studying in a more flexible way, from home, to get an online college degree.

Brave new world, indeed.

Getting a college degree is not an easy thing to do, online or on campus. The research indicates that a person who goes to an online college for a degree is less likely to drop out, gets higher grades and has fewer disciplinary issues. These were the same findings some 30 years ago when an educational research group studied junior college students. Because they were older, more settled and knew what they wanted to do, junior college students, like today's online students, were more motivated, focused and, ultimately, successful in school.

There are economic and practical reasons that getting an online college degree is becoming a more popular option. People who previously could not afford college are finding lower-cost online alternatives. Parents of young children who could not get away even to a nearby campus can now study from home. Workers who had to keep their jobs and support families are scheduling their classes for evenings and weekends.

Online colleges, trade schools and training institutes have actually performed a remarkable public service by making higher education, in the form of an online college degree, available to more people. This in turn increases the talent pool available to American industry and, along with continuing technological advances, raises worker productivity, economic forecasts and, ultimately, the gross national product.

An educated populace is required for the survival of any free, prosperous nation. America is fortunate that, even though some 40% of the population no longer respects the value of hard work and study, there are enough people who do to keep us going and growing. Those are the kind of people who work hard, get an online college degree, get back to work - and then make a difference.

After founding his first security firm in 1990, Scott McQuarrie built several security-related companies into regional and national powerhouses over the ensuing years. Since 2000 he has focused his sales and marketing efforts on the Internet, which opened up a virtually unlimited, international market for his flagship product line, EZWatch Pro.

The EZWatch Pro brand has come to stand for world-class expertise in electronic security, video surveillance and the myriad technologies involved in both fields. From small houses to gigantic international airports, there is an EZWatch Pro solution to meet any and every residential, business, commercial and government security challenge.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_McQuarrie