Monday, April 9, 2012

Triumphing in a Masters Degree Online

Universities provide a masters degree online to learners who opt for the Web-based choice in their graduate courses. Even if many identify distance learning immediately as the convenient choice, they should keep in mind that it is not without certain hurdles. There are no classrooms, classmates or teachers, for instance, although to most people, not having these is a good thing.

There is no dearth of universities offering this type of education nowadays. Such programs may be found even in such Ivy League schools as Harvard nowadays. It has come to the point where any college that has not Net-based programs is in the minority group.

A crucial drawback, for some people, is that distance learning permits no competition to prod the student. The simple truth of the matter is that the presence of your fellows can push you to work harder. The presence of competitors can drive you forward.

Competing with others can really help people have a better gauge on their performance. That competitive spirit will drive learners to be more dedicated to their work. The constant attempts to outdo each other lead to the people in the class raising the bar for their own learning higher an dhigher.

These competing energies tend to fuel each other. This is not present in the Internet-facilitated program, however. Because you cannot sense the sort of competition you would in a regular campus, it can be hard to drive yourself to do better and better.

The opponent in this race, then, must necessarily be the only person present in this type of education: the student himself. This can actually be positive, as it is the sort of thing you have to learn to do once you begin to work. Your yardstick is yourself, so your previous performance is what you need to beat.

Another challenge is the absence of a teacher, mentor or guidance counselor. You have to set your own finish lines and make it to them under your own abilities. The ability to seize one's own chances and complete one's tasks absent pushing is crucial.

Online schooling trains learners to be responsible, proactive and independent. It is the person's duty to see to it that he handles all his tasks and assignments absent dependence on others. Often, doing these may involve additional research and side-reference studies.

A person in these programs also needs to know how best to juggle more than one thing. Indeed, why else would you choose a distance learning program otherwise? You are thus expected to know how to manage your time well for yourself.

There are also some times when the school shall ask you to make time for a class exercise that must be taken all at the same time. These little departures from the flexibility of the course cannot be left out. All these obstacles, though, are merely small bumps on the road: they shall only enhance your victory after completing masters degree online.