According to officials from the University of Georgia, the school is pushing to offer more online degree programs, the Athens Banner-Herald reports.
The school recently announced the launch of a new online master's degree program in reading education, which is only the institution's third web-based curriculum. However, officials told the news provider that the university is not heading toward a future where students sit in their dorm rooms, turn on their computers and take a class.
Instead, school administrators see online learning as a way to attract more students to the university, particularly in graduate programs. Web-based postsecondary curricula are becoming increasingly popular because they allow working professionals to continue their education while remaining employed.
Online learning "has been a largely dormant opportunity here," Jere Morehead, UGA provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, told the news source. "I think we have a lot of opportunity there."
A 2009 report from the Sloan Consortium reveals that 4.6 million students were taking at least online online course during the fall 2008 semester, which represents a 17 percent increase from 2007.
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Officials from the Chadron State College, which is located in Nebraska, recently announced that enrollment has increased by nearly 3 percent since last year, KCSR reports.
School officials attribute the recent success to new online programs and the growing number of students who are seeking masters degrees. Enrollment in the school's graduate programs has increased by nearly 6 percent over the same time period.
Currently, the school offers online masters degrees in science, math, community and school counseling, history, business administration as well as organizational management, among others.
Officials told the news source that the school's online masters in organizational management degree program has become more popular in recent years because it offers focus on human services, natural resources and sports management.
“Masters and graduate students are often people who are in the workforce already," Gary White, dean of the school, told the news source. "The eight-week format works better for them because it is online.
A 2009 report from the Sloan Consortium shows that approximately 4.6 million students were taking at least one web-based course during the fall 2008 semester.
]]>Echols left the company but not for another job. "I knew I never wanted to be in that situation again, with some unqualified caveman breathing down my neck, telling me what to do, my career in his hands," says Echols. "An MBA degree seemed to be the best way to avoid that scenario."
He did his homework and found out about the benefits of a master's of business administration. Most programs took only 2 years. Courses would teach higher-level strategy and skills reserved for executives. Coming out of an MBA program, he could make more than $80,000 annually. "Best of all, there would be no limit to my career," Echols says. "Once I had that MBA, I could go as high as I wanted. I could be a CEO one day."
Echols looked at both online and on-campus MBA programs and found a slew of convenient, affordable programs online. "I liked being able to take classes from my computer and absorb the material at my own pace," he says.
Two years after leaving his company, Echols returned with a MBA and became the department manager overseeing his former supervisor. "The look on his face when I walked in the door was priceless," recalls Echols. "But I'll take it easy on him."
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