Many colleges have invested in virtual lands in Second Life, but doesn’t use it all. The University of Phoenix, which is one of the largest online universities in the country, offers students virtual learning via the university own spaces, and not using Second Life.

Still, it’s considered that many of the students that gets their degree online will have to get used to these kind of virtual environments, since their usage will grow substantially in the upcoming years.

via [Daily Dispatch]

One student for example is Christy LaBadie, which is starting to learn medical administration in Northampton Community College. She estimates that getting her degree online saves her about $50 a week on gasoline. According to the Sloan consortium which represents more than 2,500 colleges and universities around the country, 20% of the students take today at least one online course.

via [Pocono Record]

The five tips that can be taken from the article are:

1. Make the time to learn – You’ll need 10-20 hours of work each week for a year or two, in most online programs. So take that into consideration before enrolling. Will you be able to make the time in order to learn.

2. Be prepared to sit a lot in front of the computer – recorded lectures, discussion groups with other students, reading a lot of material. In the core of online education lies the participation of the students.

3. Online degrees can cost as much as regular degrees – but there are savings in the form of gasoline from the unnecessary trips to the university. Anyway, you can always find programs that meet your budget. Take into consideration that you will might want to take a few days off from work from time to time, so you might need to consult with your employer first.

4. Check if the program is recognized by your employer – you will also want to find a program that will show the added benefit of education to your current position. Many online program are recognized by employers for tuition reimbursement.

5. Beware of fake programs – You can check the accreditation of the programs with the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Don’t be fooled by promises to a quick and easy online degree. If it looks too easy – it’s probably not the education you want.

More [NY Times]

The first graduating class of Insight School of California-Los Angeles was held a couple of days ago. It was all like a similar ceremony in school, except for the fact that this was the first time the students really met each other.

An online high school could seem like the ultimate fantasy for teens. Not having to get in the morning and studying all day long on the computer playing games while explaining to their parents they are "studying". But in reality it’s far from it.

All the studies in Insight went online including assignments, projects and tests. One of the students, Harini Kompella, said that school was much like any other school, just required more time management and motivation.

For Kompella, Insight was a great opportunity, since she couldn’t’ attend regular high school due to health problem. With a GPA of 4.3, she is showing that commitment and will power will be able to get you to results, no matter if you learn it online or offline.

What do you think, will we see more online high schools in the future, and will they replace the regular ones? Share your thoughts with us.

via:[The Signal]

More: [Insight School]

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Got more free online courses websites to recommend? Use the comments to add them.

Tens of thousands of students in the UK were conned by three men who opened an online college named "National Distance Learning College" and ran away with the money. The men have made millions of pounds from the students, but only 18 students got their qualifications.

The three men told students that the online degree will be accredited by national bodies – something that wasn’t true. They’ve also got some grants from the government as a result of the number of students they had – and took the money to their pockets.

What can you learn from this lesson? First of all to check and double check the college you are enrolling to. If the college says they have recognition by regional bodies, don’t just count on their word – check it with the regional bodies. Another good tip is trying to postpone the payments as much as possible, and paying part of the money only after getting the degree.

Getting an online degree is getting more popular these days, and with the popularity comes the scams, so do your best to check everything before you enroll.

Via [Metro]

Older students are filling up colleges. According to a study by the department of education, Student starting or returning to college later in life are the fastest-growing educational demographic in colleges.

According to data from Florida community college in Jacksonville, people with a college degree increase their salary to $34,000 from $18,000. With incentives such as the opportunity to almost double your salary, getting back to college seems an easy task.

Of course, these busy adults usually with kids have less time to attend classes. That’s where online degree program can help. With online degrees you can continue your regular day job and study at your own convenient hours.

An article at the Jacksonville tells the story of Cheryl Healan who wanted to attend college but "things kept coming up". Today, she can "fold laundry, cook dinner and clicks through courses online - sometimes at the same time".

Source: [JacksonVille]

The problem is that most people make the mistakes when choosing an online degree that should help them with their career. A new tool from eLearners allows you to get the right online degree for your career. After answering a few simple questions like which activities you like and dislike from a pool of 100 activities. It may sound long, but it’s actually fun, and the results may surprise you. You can start the assesment process in LiveCareer.

You may also want to take eLearnes tool for choosing the right online college, base on the conclusions you’ve got in the career advisor.

You’ll get a list of recommended online degrees that are best suited for your choices. If you still need some help in choosing the right degree, get a look at our 10 tips for choosing an online degree.

A single mom for example can attend classes during the late evening and night, getting a degree that can help her in finding a better job. According to study published by the U.S. Department of Education, parents with kids under the age of ten, are attending colleges in record numbers. Most of them are women.

New online programs offer up to PhD degrees in the convenience of your own time and home. That’s without worrying for a babysitter or if your kid feels sick in a middle of a class.

This five universities offer programs that are designed especially for working moms:

* Kaplan University - Click here to request info and fill out their form.
* University of Phoenix - Click here to request info and fill out their form.
* AIU - Click here to request info and fill out their form.
* Colorado Technical University - Click here to request info and fill out their form.

Via [ClassesAndCareers.com]