How credible are on-line education courses?

Question:

I am thinking about studying online so I can either move forward in my current career or change career paths all together, how credible are online courses? and can I study through an american college online if I live in australia?? I want to go further career wise, but cannot afford to go to Uni or college full time (I only have myself for financial support no-one else, and need to work full time during the day to live) and also have a difficult roster with my work (45hour week),kickboxing, going to the gym etc to be able to go to set classes, so want to be able to study at night when all that is done.. Are the certificates you get from these online courses looked at the same way as if I went to tafe or uni or are they not worth the time? has anyone completed an online course, what did you think?? or are you an employer? would you employ someone with online credidentials? Thankyou!

Answer:
I do not know how it would be viewed in Australia, but in the States (I reside in NY) most of the organizations I worked for frowned upon them especially the more advanced degrees. At my present and last place of employment the only time they were viewed as the equivalent was if the course(s) was being offered from an accredited well-known institution (Pace U., NYU, etc...) and it also depended upon the type of course(s) (Ex.: computer courses were not recognized.) If you are serious about advancing your career I would suggest you cut back on the kickboxing or gym time. That has nothing to do with career advancement and also makes me wonder how serious you are about career advancement. School is not a life long obligation. You will have the chance between school breaks to double up on your extra curricular activities.

I'm not sure about how employers view them, but credibililty depends on the program. There are definitely some good programs and some bad such as "buy your degree online" type stuff.

I took many online courses along with on campus courses at my college. The quality of the classes really comes down to how much effort you put into it. By being online they give you the opportunity to slack off, but if you put full effort into it then you can potentially learn just as much as you would have in a traditional on campus class.

How credible are on-line education courses?

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