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Nearly twenty years ago, I remember spending many a night
at my grandparents’ house while my mother commuted
almost an hour each way to campus while earning her doctorate’s
degree. As a single parent, working full-time, I’m
sure she would have loved to have had the opportunity to
do the majority of her work online. I can say, I wouldn’t
have minded it either, but since internet degrees at that
time were still in the distant future, we suffered through
those years together.
Getting a doctorate degree can be a trying time, and may
be one of the hardest things you ever do. So if you happen
to be considering getting your doctorate
degree online, here are some pros and cons to doing
so.
PROS
CAREER/LIFE BALANCE
Getting you doctorate degree can be an immensely time consuming
venture. Balancing your career, family life, and education
can be difficult. As you may have noticed from the previous
mentioning of my mother’s example however, the ability
to get your doctorate online has made this balancing act
easier to accomplish. By not having to spend time commuting
between work and school or home and school, you can devote
more time to living your life, caring for your family, staying
career focused, while also completing your education.
PROGRAM OPTIONS
One of the fantastic aspects of an online doctorate program
is that it lifts the weight of geographic location limitation.
By getting your doctorate online, you may have access to
programs that could otherwise have taken you away from your
job, your family, or forced you to move to a completely
new city, state or even country. An online
doctorate program might also allow you to choose a program
more customized to your specific needs, giving you a more
optimized education.
STAY CURRENT
By getting you doctorate online, you can utilize technology
that you might not encounter should you choose to get your
doctorate degree the old-fashioned way. This technology
can help keep you current on the latest tech trends and
could also be beneficial if you become a professor. Having
a background in such educational methods can help you teach
others, and you will understand what it is like to learn
online, which may make it easier for you to relate to your
students and for them to relate to you.
CONS
YOUR LEARNING STYLE
Not all students might be comfortable with an online doctorate
experience. Some people tend to learn better with a more
hands on experience. Not everyone may have the discipline
or knowledge to be able to navigate an online doctoral program,
and some might find it is easier to attend a class and work
with their mentor in a face-to-face atmosphere rather than
over their computer.
AN ONLINE DOCTORATE?
Unfortunately, sometimes the title alone is a con to getting
an online doctorate. When you tell people you obtained your
doctorate online, they might seem incredulous, reacting
with the question, “You can get a doctorate online?”
It’s probably not that they want to be rude, maybe
they just don’t realize that getting a doctorate online
is possible. Or it could be that there is a connotation
that goes along with online degrees due to bad publicity
from shady institutions where students can pretty much ‘buy’
degrees rather than actually earn them.
PROACTIVE
By reaching a point where you’re ready for a doctorate,
you’ve likely proven you’re a hard worker, but
this is a doctorate degree we’re talking about here.
You’ll probably have to push yourself extra hard,
be super motivated, and very proactive when it comes to
your education. When you encounter software issues, internet
connection problems, or issues with your coursework, you
may be more likely to be responsible for getting the issues
solved yourself, with less assistance from others. This
might not be an issue for everyone, however, it’s
certainly something to consider when deciding if an online
doctorate is right for you.
If this sounds interesting, take a look at all the schools
that offer an Online
Doctorate Degree
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