Slowly more PhD and masters programs are being offered online, and students are taking them. However, this raises the question for both students, educators, and employers alike – can a degree done online ever substitute for one that was done in a traditional brick-and-mortar school?
How Distance-Learning is Difficult
Many are turning to online PhD and masters programs in an effort to gain the benefits of the degree on their resume while still managing their current lifestyles and/or careers. However, in some disciplines it is easier than in others, and the sciences and engineering are finding great difficulty in designing online programs that work. “It isn’t simple to create a programme that meets all the requirements” for scientific graduate work, says Kenneth Green, founder and director of the Campus Computing Project.
The difficulty lies in the fact that it is very hard to set up an online program that sufficiently reproduces adequate lab work – essential in the sciences. Students cannot attend their campus’ lab when living across the country from them. It is also hard to work on a team and gain opportunities of collaboration your lab-mates would likely to provide in a traditional setting. You also cannot bounce ideas off classmates in the lab, and supervision of students by senior professors and experts is very difficult. For skeptics, this makes it impossible for distance learning to ever replace a traditional learning experience. Arthur Motta, a nuclear engineer at Pennsylvania State University who teaches online and campus-cased courses to graduates, takes this view, “online definitely works for certain master’s programmes, but it’s not good in my view for the PhD.”
Making It Work
This hasn’t stopped universities pushing the cyber-envelope, however. Many universities continue to experiment with online distance learning and various hybrids of on-campus and off-campus learning. Some of the innovative solutions include brief on-campus residencies during an online course, having students work at partner institutions such as a national laboratory, or having them do research within the students’ very own workplaces. There are now even virtual labs, where students can do work within simulated labs or remotely controlling instruments in distant facilities. As these various options become more widespread their acceptance will likely also increase.
Are There Quality Programs Out There?
Online degrees still have yet to prove themselves to many, who are suspicious they are likely to be deceptively acquired. With public figures such as Bishop State Community College President, James Lowe, undergoing this kind of investigation, it is no wonder.
However, many studies have shown that there are very high-quality online programs out there. A 2009 report conducted by by the US Department of Education compiled 99 studies on all sorts of online instruction, and found that the online programs compared favorably with their on-campus counterparts. You are just as likely to have a stellar experience online as you are with an on-campus education.
So it seems it all depends on the student, their situation, and what they are looking for in their education – and how much time they can spare. As of now, some disciplines are easier to do graduate work in than others, but it may not be that way for long.