Will an Online Business Degree Have the Same Prestige as a Traditional Business Degree?

Although online business degrees are becoming more popular, there is one very big concern. Is an online degree as good as one earned in the traditional way? Often, when people think of an online degree there is the thought of correspondence schools that existed years ago. People would continue their education through the mail and be awarded a degree. This degree would be from a school no employer would have heard of before, so the degree would not be worth much when searching for a job. Online education is much different.

Degrees earned online are often exactly the same

Many colleges in the United States offer online degree programs to students that are literally identical to the campus degrees. This is because the classes offered are taught by the same instructors that are teaching in person. The lectures are on video, and the text material is available online. The result is that the same material is being taught. It is only being delivered in an electronic format.

The diploma makes no mention of online learning

When a student earns a degree from a university that also offers a traditional campus environment, the degree earned looks the same whether it was earned online or offline. When an employer looks at the diploma, it will have the name of the university.
There is nothing indicating offline or online. In fact, at many campus universities, students are taking courses both online and offline. If you take all of your classes online, it will make no difference on your diploma.

Private online universities

There are some schools that offer exclusive online education. There is no physical campus to attend. Naturally, these schools will make no mention of an online degree; however, there may be employers that recognize the name of the university and know that it is an online school. These degrees are just as valuable as one earned on a physical campus. There may be a handful of employers who are ignorant of online college degrees and not think of it as being as good as one from a traditional university, but the number of employers with this attitude is very small. Private, online schools are no different from offline schools; there are good programs and bad programs. You need to make sure the online school is accredited and has a good reputation.

The main difference is the technology

The main difference in online and offline business degrees is the technology of the Internet. This has allowed people to earn a degree that is accomplished within their schedule. By not having to fit their life into the traditional campus schedule, it has enabled many people to get a college degree.

Conclusion

With rare exception, an online degree is every bit as valuable as one that has been earned offline. As long as the institution that you are learning from is accredited and has a good reputation, you will be able to obtain all of the benefits from your degree from online learning as you would with the traditional offline college degree. Do not let the thought that an online degree is not prestigious stop you from earning a college degree. An online college degree can change your life.