More pursuing online degrees

As the economy continues to take a toll on the job market, more people are going online to earn college degrees.

According to the Sloan Consortium's 2008 report on the state of online learning in U.S. higher education, more than 3.9 million students took at least one online course in the fall 2007 term, a 12 percent increase over 2006. The 3.9 million students represent 20 percent of all U.S. higher education pupils, according to the report.

The Sloan Consortium is a professional leadership organization dedicated to integrating online education into the mainstream of higher education.

The University of Phoenix is the largest accredited online university in the world with 385,000 students, about 100,000 of which are enrolled in online degree programs.

Michael Bard, vice president of the Phoenix, Ariz.-based university's Harrisburg and Philadelphia campuses, said that during the last year, there has been a boom in the number of students enrolling in online degree programs.

"This is the latest trend in higher learning," Bard said. "With the economic changes and higher fuel costs, people are finding it more sensible to get an education from home."

Bard said he expects online degree programs to become even more popular for one reason: traditional colleges will run out of space.

"The demand will outweigh the supply," Bard said. "Schools won't be able to house students. Online education has cast a wider net."

Betty Vandenbosch, the dean of Kaplan University's school of business and management, said 44,000 of the 48,000 students enrolled at the Davenport, Iowa-based school are pursuing online degree programs. Seventy-five percent of the online students are women.

"It's just gone gangbusters," Vandenbosch said.

Kristie Underwood, who is pursuing an associate degree in interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis in early childhood development, takes online courses through Kaplan.

Underwood, 36, of Lancaster, enrolled in the program in September 2007.

The single mother said earning a degree online was ideal.

"I had a social anxiety disorder for quite a while," Underwood said. "For me to be in a regular classroom would have been quite the stretch."

Another reason Underwood decided to enroll at Kaplan was because she thought it was time to set a good example for her children.

"I was a stay-at-home mom receiving (Supplemental Security Income)," Underwood said. "My son asked me one day if he would be able to sit home and collect checks after he graduated. Then a light bulb went off.

"I wanted to teach my kids what a responsible adult is and what they should do on a day-to-day basis," she said.

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While online degree programs have gained notoriety, Vandenbosch said she doesn't think an online education is right for all students.

"People should do what's best for them," she said.

Vandenbosch said one misconception about an online education is that it is less expensive than a traditional education. But that is not always the case.

She said the cost of earning an online bachelor's degree at Kaplan University is about $64,000, which she said is the average cost of a four-year traditional public university.

Money had little to do with why Jackie Ramos enrolled at Kaplan.

On Tuesday, the 30-year-old Lancaster resident logged in to her final class to earn her associate degree in business.

Ramos said she is extremely proud of herself.

"It feels great," the single mother of a 9-year-old son said. "It's something I've been planning on a for a long time."

A supervisor in Lancaster Regional Medical Center's business office, Ramos enrolled in Kaplan's business program in January 2007.

Before enrolling, she said she thought about attending local schools such as Harrisburg Area Community College and Millersville University. She said she decided she needed the convenience of an online education.

Ramos said Kaplan University was obviously the better fit.

"What I liked is that I had so many class times to pick from," Ramos said.

While flexibility with class times was a huge bonus for Ramos, she also came to feel like part of a very close-knit cybercommunity.

"We had weekly class chat sessions," Ramos said. "Instructors put their instant messenger addresses on the syllabus. We had study buddies. I loved it."

Ramos said when word spread that she was working toward earning her degree, her supervisor gave her a promotion because she did not want Ramos to leave for another job.

Now that Ramos has earned her associate degree, she said she will take a break and start work on her bachelor's degree in the fall.

As for Underwood, who is on track to finish her degree work in August, she's balancing working full time at a local day-care center while taking online classes.

Underwood said it's not easy, but it is worth it.

"I use my time very wisely," Underwood said. "I get the kids straight, get dinner and its off to bed to get ready for the next day."

Underwood also is heeding the advice of one of her professors.

"She said use the gift of time," Underwood said. "Now if I have 20 minutes or 30 minutes sitting in the doctor's office I am doing schoolwork."

If her only recourse was to attend a traditional college, Underwood said she wouldn't be getting an education at all.

"With my life, my schedule, it wouldn't have fit in," Underwood said. "I wouldn't have had time to travel. This is very convenient. I love the experience."

E-mail: mpennino@lnpnews.com