A budding avenue for obtaining higher education is through online courses. As the world becomes more and more digital, the same trends holds true for education. Once viewed with a certain stigma, online college degrees are becoming more widely accepted by employers and society at large. Here are some key things to know about online education in healthcare:
Who Pursues Online Courses?
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Online degrees are available to every educational level – certificate, diploma, associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and even Doctorate degrees. The common thread for distance learners is their desire to complete their degree in a flexible, fully online format. Here are some common health and nursing degrees students pursue:
- Clinical Laboratory Sciences
- Communication Disorders
- Dental Hygiene
- Emergency Management
- Food & Nutrition Science
- Health Care Administration
- Health Care Management
- Health Informatics
- Health Information Technology
- Health Office Administration
- LPN to BSN
- Medical Assisting
- Medical Coding
- Nursing
- Pharmacy
- Physical Therapy
- Physician Assistant
- Public Health
- RN to BSN
The flexibility of online health degrees permits students to attend to other responsibilities and jobs while pursuing a degree. You can log on from anywhere and attend class – the one requirement for students is to have a functional computer with a strong Internet connection.
How Online Courses Work
Your classes are not constricted to a set time of day, though you will have weekly deadlines. Your courses will be delivered to you in an online portal, and each week, your online instructor will post required reading and assignments, and then it is up to you to fulfill the course obligations. Lectures are delivered through videos, online presentations, or plain text. Coursework usually takes the form of essays, projects, worksheets, required readings, tests and quizzes.
Due to the fact that many health courses require taking science/biology classes, your online program will be highly interactive with video, images, and online laboratories to ensure that you are obtaining a parallel learning experience to a classroom counterpart.
What to Look For in Online Schools
The first and most important thing to look for is a quality school – which can be determined by its accreditation. Online schools hold the same accreditation as their traditional schools counterparts – and there are multiple resources out there to research a college’s accreditation. The second thing to consider is the college’s support network. Look for a college that has premier technical support, faculty, and even post-graduation career support. Lastly, ensure that the degree you are pursuing works within your personal schedule and will position you for your desired role within a healthcare organization.
Though the modality may differ, online nursing degrees and traditional nursing degrees have definite alignment. They require a deep commitment and hard work.
About the Author: Allie Gray Freeland is the Editor in Chief of CollegeOnline.org, a network of online health and nursing degrees.
