Potential Employers: Do They Respect Online Degrees Differently?
Online education is becoming an increasingly popular way for students to earn online degrees and certifications. The question many prospective students may have, however, is how employwers see online degrees. If competing for job opportunities with graduates from traditional, brick-and-mortar institutions, will employers be more likely to hire the traditional graduates?
Not according to a recent study by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).
The 2010 research study titled, Hiring Practices and Attitudes: Traditional vs. Online Degree Credentials, polled employers throughout the United States about their experiences hiring online graduates and their overall opinions regarding the educational quality of online degrees.
According to the study, more than half of the respondents indicated that it made no difference whether a graduate earned his degree online or on a college campus. What are most important to employers, the study found, are the quality of the education and the reputation of the institution itself.Elizabeth Meyer, Director of Online Learning at the University of California San Diego agrees. "What's most important is what institution the students are coming from. If the institutions are on par with their educational quality, it is less relevant if a student earns an online or a traditional degree."
"One thing that does concern me is the rush of some institutions to go online," Meyer said. "It's very important for students to consider who the faculty is and what their research focus is. Faculty is the crown jewel of online education."
Having a physical campus attached to an online degree does make a difference. While the SHRM study found that 91 percent of employers polled viewed online degrees from public, brick and mortar institutions favorably, only 42 percent of employers were favorable of online degrees from purely online institutions with no brick-and-mortar campuses.
Online students have characteristics desirable to employers
Successfully earning an online degree makes it necessary for students to attend lectures, participate in classroom discussions and complete assignments just as students must do on a traditional college campus. What is strikingly different, however, is that online students lack the accountability that comes from showing up to class each day - a factor which can make it difficult for students to complete their online studies successfully. "Graduates of online programs have a great degree of self discipline, time-management skills and initiative," Meyer said.
Another advantage of online learners is their knowledge and comfort with technology. "I can't think of an industry where that isn't relevant," she said.
Marita Rosado is an alumna of the University of Phoenix Online MBA program and president of Rosado Accounting Services. "I have hired employees who had earned both traditional college degrees and online degrees, and I've found it very interesting to learn the differences when working with these employees," she said.
According to Rosado, online degree holders are self-starters who are better at prioritizing tasks. They are also better problem solvers who think outside of the box. Traditional students, on the other hand, usually wait for instruction before working, she said. "They are somewhat policy-oriented."
A shift in opinions about online degrees
87 percent of respondents in the SHRM poll agreed that online degrees are viewed more favorably than five years ago and 79 percent have hired at least one employee who had earned a degree online.
Part of this shift has to do with the increasing number of highly regarded colleges and universities that have begun offering online learning in conjunction with their traditional degree programs. Public universities such as the University of California, the University of Massachusetts and Pennsylvania State University all offer a wide range of online degree programs. So do private schools such as Harvard University and Boston University.
Meyer said that even professors at the University of California San Diego who were initially critical of online learning changed their minds once they started teaching. Once they spent the time setting up the online curriculum and materials, they realized they were free to spend more time with students interacting in the forums and contributing in class discussions, she said. "I really believe we are circling back to the apprentice/mentor model of learning," Meyer said. "Online education is a great example of that."
Whether a student earns a degree online or on a college campus, the most important thing they need to consider upon graduation is how to demonstrate what they know to employers. According to Meyer, when resumes are received, they generally go through an initial filter to ensure that each applicant has a college degree. Then, the second filter is where the degree is from and what the applicant knows. "Prospects need to be able to demonstrate what they know," she said.
Sources:
Hiring Practices and Attitudes: Traditional vs. Online Degree Credentials
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