Distance Masters Degree
Distance education, also referred to as distance learning, provides scholastic training to students who are not attending a physical school. This being the case, teachers and students are virtually having classes via non-traditional means such as broadcasting and online schooling. (1) But among the types of distance learning, the latter seems to be the most prominent.
Because of the convenience online schooling provides, more and more people prefer to take up distance learning masters degree over the masters program offered in regular schools. This is one proof that online schooling has been a very effective strategy towards a masters degree. However, due to the popularity of the online education concept, a lot of fake schools-non-accredited at that-have surfaced, which promise to provide quality education. The problem is, every year, a lot of students, whose only aim is to acquire a distance education master degree, are persuaded by these sham schools. (2)
Avoid Fake Schools
There is only one way to avoid these fake online schools: be very scrupulous. If you are currently scouting for an online school, it would be helpful to look at the following reminders.
1. Go for an accredited online school. While a lot of online companies convincingly promise to provide distance masters degree, not all of them can actually deliver this claim because, quite simply, they are not accredited. Accreditation, which is granted by accrediting bodies, is awarded only to online schools with programs that are based on established standards. (3) As such, accreditation is sort of a school label, which says that a particular online school can deliver quality distance learning master degree. Take note, however, that there are also fake accrediting bodies established by alike fake online schools.
2. Avoid online schools that don't provide sufficient contact information in their websites. A legitimate online school should be confident enough to display its physical address and telephone numbers.
3. Be wary of ads that shout "Earn a distance learning master degree in so and so days" because most likely this is untrue. A distance education masters degree, or any degree for that matter, requires thorough studying and, therefore, cannot be completed in just a few days.
If you happen to encounter such online schools, don't be convinced by their impossibly perfect claims. Their goal is not identical with yours; they just want your money.
Literary Citations & Article References:
1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distance_education
2) http://distancelearn.about.com/od/choosingaschool/a/6snares.htm
3) http://privateschool.about.com/od/administrators/f/accreditation.htm