Online Colleges - Growing In Popularity

"Online colleges compare favorably with campus-based instruction"

Online colleges are advertised all over the print and electronic media. There exist literally thousand of online colleges out there, which often leaves prospective students confused as to which are the best ones.

Included below, are a list of some of the best online colleges around and their advantages and disadvantages. This should help you decide which of the large number of online colleges is best for career.

However, before you go enrolling in any of these institutions, you should ask yourself certain questions.

Firstly, are you ready to go back to school? Do you understand the various ways online colleges deliver their lessons? Do you know whether the online school you want to attend is accredited?

We have the answers to these and other freqently asked questions. Take the time to read them before you make a decision as to which of online colleges below you should register for.

If you've already decided on the course you want to do, you can do an online degree search.

Two Year Colleges	Four-Year Colleges
Online colleges like Iowa Cental, Central Florida College, and Cleveland Institute of Electronics	Online colleges like Devry  University, Northeastern University and  Post University Online
Over the past five years, two-year colleges account for over 50% of enrollment in online colleges.	Over 45% of all high school graduates enroll in four year institutions.
Two year colleges provide, diplomas, certificate and associate degree programs. Usually they provide: (a) adult continuing education (b) general and liberal education and (c) technical and vocational education.	Four-year online colleges offer bachelors , masters and doctorate degrees in a variety of disciplines. Professional and  MBA degrees  have become some of the more popular programs offered.
Advantages	Advantages
Accept students with academic records, allowing them to work towards a college degree. Substantially lower tuition cost when compared to four-year colleges. Great for lower income families. In some states, regulation exists where associate degree holders can automatically transfer their credits to bachelor degree programs at almost any university within that state	Generally considered to be more recognizable and elite Likely to attract elite faculty members who are engaged in research since these colleges have a larger budget. Students will have greater access to these people as some would be lecturers. Greater variety of  degree programs offered. These degrees  are in greater demand in the workplace.
Excellent Choice For	Excellent Choice For
Students with less than average academic records  who are unable to get into a degree program. Good for students on a very limited budget.	Students who want an advanced degree and have good academic records. Students who desire to enter into professional fields like accounting and law at positions higher than entry level
Private Colleges	Public Colleges
Online colleges like Everest University Online, Bellevue University and University of Scranton	Online colleges like University of Maryland University College, and University of Florida
Make up 70% of the post-secondary schools in the United States with an enrollment of just under 5 million	The large majority of college bound students attend these institutions, around 70%
Advantages/Disadvantages	Advantages/Disadvantages
More expensive. Most of the elite universities in the United States including the Ivy Leagues are private universities. Many of them also have online colleges associated with their campuses.	Less expensive, state-run and hence get government financing. Public online colleges are even less costly than campus-based public colleges
Some private colleges are not accredited but are simply diploma mills geared at scamming students out of their hard earned money. Some online colleges are guilty of this.	Out of state students pay a higher tuition that home students. Usually not the case with private online colleges - both home and out-of-state pay the same.
For Profit Colleges	Not For Profit Colleges
Online colleges like Argosy University, Kaplan University and Jones International University	Online colleges like City University, Nova Southeastern University and Marist College
About 1.5 million college students (6%) attend for-profit colleges. Almost 50% of them are minorities. Online Colleges level the playing field in that a student's background is irrelevant	About 16.5 million  tertiary students (94%) are enrolled in degree-granting  not-for-profit colleges, whether public or private. Just over 30% of them are minorities
Advantages/Disadvantages	Advantages/Disadvantages
Enrolls almost 20% more minorities than not-for-profit schools	Lower-income college bound students with high academic records sometimes denied entry  to prestigious colleges. Less likely to serve minorities
Reputation sometimes takes a hit because they tend to market their schools too aggresively. Online Colleges are particularly guilty of this	More elite and overall have a greater reputation in the eyes of the public.
In general,  tuition is more costly than  public non-profit colleges, but less costly than tuition at private, not-for-profit institutions.	In general, tuition is more costly at private, non-profit colleges - some of which includes the Ivy Legaue institutions.

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