According to the National Association of Student Financial Aid, over 350,000 people are estimated to fall victim to scholarship scams on an annual basis, leading to losses of around $5 million.
The Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection has identified warning signs for students and parents to beware of.
Claims of a scholarship being guaranteed or your money back. Irrespective of your qualifications, a scholarship can never be guaranteed.
Information not available anywhere else. There is no dearth of free scholarship resources, both online as well as in local libraries and college career services centers.
Asking for credit card or bank account numbers to book a scholarship. There is never any need to give out credit card and bank account numbers simply to hold a scholarship.
Claiming to do all the work. Nobody but you can do all the work of filling out applications for scholarships and grants.
Charges for a scholarship. Scholarship is meant to be free money that you don’t have to spend a single penny on.
Being chosen by a national foundation for a scholarship or being made a finalist in a contest you never entered. Check the facts to determine whether the foundation or program is legitimate or not. Online degrees info reports:
Great. So along with the pressure of having to come up with money to pay for school and searching for scholarships, I have to worry about being scammed? Unfortunately, yes. The National Association of Student Financial Aid estimates that more than 350,000 people are defrauded by scholarship scams each year, losing some $5 million. Don’t be one of them!
In 1992, the 50-percent rule came into force which excludes Title IV eligible institutions from offering federal financial aid if over 50 percent of its classes are in distance education, more than 50 percent of its students are pursuing distance courses and more than 50 percent of its courses are in distance education.
The 12-hour rule was originally conceived as a means of combating fraud by diploma mills. The rule requires that non-traditional, higher education programs must offer a minimum of 12 hours of teaching per week for students to be able to apply for federal financial aid.The teaching can be in the form of instruction, examination or examination preparation.
The Distance Education Demonstration Program of 1998 came about to review the rules for financial aid in distance education. Several colleges and universities were exempted from the 50-percent and 12 hour rule to enable increased access for students to Title IV funding.
The Buckley Agreement or the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 lay down federal guidelines to ensure privacy of student records. It gave students the right to review educational records, request corrections in the records, give consent on revealing personal details in their records and lodge complaints with the US Department of Education on FERPA violations. Online degrees info reports:
The 50-percent rule was created in 1992 and continues today within the 1998 reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. This regulation excludes Title-IV eligible institutions from offering federal financial aid if: it offers more than half its classes through distance education, has half or more of its students enrolled in distance learning courses, or offers correspondence and telecommunications courses that amount to half or more of all courses. The 50-percent provision is a statute that can be revised or eliminated only by Congress.
Working professionals with commitments to work and family have a very viable option in online study as a means of advancing education that can be scheduled to their convenience and pace. An online MBA degree is mainly a huge advantage due to the time and money you can save on it with the added incentive of more personal interaction with instructors.
There are a number of ways why an online MBA degree can be highly practical for graduate students. For one, the need to travel is completely eliminated which conventional education programs require. There is no fixed venue for the lessons as they are conducted online which means all you need is an internet connection to access classes from anywhere at all.
Another major advantage is the flexibility of schedule. The entire program whether studying, participating in discussions and assignments can be done at any time of the day or night as and when it suits you.
Curiously enough online MBA programs are more likely to enable better interaction between instructors and students due to the lack of hurry of rushing to class or rushing home after one. Studies prove that online students are more likely to learn more than in a traditional classroom setting. Online degrees info reports:
If you are a busy professional, with work, family and a host of other commitments, online study offers you an opportunity for educational advancement on your own schedule and at your own pace. Earning your MBA degree online can prove to be a major advantage in its ability to save you time and money and even bring your interaction with instructors to a more personal level.
There are plenty of good course finders currently available on the internet which can be the best way to locate a specific course being sought by the student. Of late most colleges have started offering distance or online education courses of some sort. By logging on to a college website, one can search for an online course.
In choosing a college or course, make sure it is accredited as all reputed ones are either accredited or in the process of getting accreditation. However be on your guard against diploma mills that are nothing moré than scams selling diplomas for cash as well as the unaccredited ones.
If you happen to have developed a course that you wish to offer online, you could get in touch with the many organizations online who specialize in developing courses and reselling them to educational institutions. You can also find vendors and consultants who may either want to buy your course for themselves or help you to sell it. Online degrees info reports:
The best method of locating a specific class or course, is to use one of the many excellent course finders listed on my classes page. Some of these search engines list 10′s of thousands of classes worldwide.
In addition, the majority of colleges these days offer some type of online or distance education courses. Use one of the college finders, also listed on my classes page, to locate the college or university in which you are interested. Go to the college web site and do a search for distance education or learning.
Every system of education has the primary purpose of imparting knowledge. Which means education begins with the principles of learning and how students learn, the implications of which needs to be thoroughly understood by educators before developing learning material.
The importance of this fact is heightened in the case of online learning which involves separation of the instructor and student. In designing practical online learning, the emphasis needs to be on established and effective theories. Rather than the medium of delivery, the quality of learning is determined mainly by the course design in terms of effectiveness.
No single school of thought forms the basis for designing the online learning methods and it takes a number of different theories into consideration. Therefore the recommendation is for a combination of various different disciplines of learning theory to develop the learning materials. Based on a number of different approaches, the developer needs to pick the most suitable strategy that will prove effective in achieving the desired objectives. The strategies chosen should therefore fulfil a number of criteria including motivation, interaction, feedback, contextual learning and constant support throughout the process. Online degrees info reports:
The goal of any instructional system is to promote learning. Therefore, before any learning materials are developed, educators must, tacitly or explicitly, know the principles of learning and how students learn. This is especially true for online learning, where the instructor and the learner are separated. The development of effective online learning materials should be based on proven and sound learning theories. As we discussed above, the delivery medium is not the determining factor in the quality of learning; rather, the design of the course determines the effectiveness of the learning (Rovai, 2002).
Students of online education should, from the very beginning be well aware of the precise results they can expect from online education, in order to avoid over expectations and subsequently, disappointment. By being informed of the extent of benefits they can realistically expect, they can eventually determine for themselves the gains they have made from their online lessons.
Students need to be tested for all the knowledge thay have gained from the education. This will help determine whether they have been able to achieve the objectives set initially or not. This makes it important that online testing or alternative methods of testing and assessment are a part and parcel of the online course. Based on this, feedback can be generated.
Proper utilization of learning materials should be available and organized into proper sequence for the learning process. The sequence itself could be progress from simple to complex, known to unknown and kniowledge to application.
Feedback is crucial, as students can make it the basis for assessing their performance and making the necessary alterations if required. Online degrees info reports:
Learners should be told the explicit outcomes of the learning so that they can set expectations and can judge for themselves whether or not they have achieved the outcome of the online lesson.
Learners must be tested to determine whether or not they have achieved the learning outcome. Online testing or other forms of testing and assessment should be integrated into the learning sequence to check the learner’s achievement level and to provide appropriate feedback.
In online education programs accreditation can make all the difference in making your choice. Firstly it is necessary to understand what accreditation involves.
Accreditation essentially means the recognition granted to an educational institute or program that has proved its ability to meet minimum standards of educational quality.
In confirming the accreditation of a particular online program, there are a number of factors to check. The Council for Higher Education Accreditation is the authority that recognizes agencies granting accreditation to institutes. In case you encounter difficulty in finding out about this detail, it’s best to ask the school directly.
Any program that requires you to make only a payment for admission is likely to be a scam. What they should ask for instead, are test scores and GPA. Also if career achievements and life’s experience are the sole basis for earning degrees, you need to be on your guard.
The US Department of Education lists authentic institutes. So if you come across a school operating out of a foreign country but granting substantial degrees to US students, find out if it is listed there. The Better Business Bureau is another body to consult for any registered complaints against a particular institute. Online degrees info
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Did you hear the one about the cat that earned an MBA online?
No, it’s not a joke, it’s a true incident that formed the basis of a $100,000 lawsuit filed in early December against “Trinity Southern University,” run by two Texas brothers who have been subsequently accused of selling fake degrees and prescription drugs using spam e-mail.
In the next few years more than 2.3 million US students are expected to pursue distance learning courses. Convenience and accessibility are two primary reasons for the overwhelming success of online education. All one needs to participate in an online education program is a computer with internet access.
There are innumerable choices for everything from Bachelors and Doctoral degrees to specific skills or interest subjects. People’s desire to pursue education is normally hampered by lack of time and convenience which are where these courses hit home.
Numerous studies have been conducted to gauge the effectiveness of distance learning versus the traditional brick and mortar education. The results have repeatedly revealed that in terms of academic gains, the difference was negligible.
For somebody who can’t leave his job, a stay at home parent or anybody interested in getting further education without upsetting their existing routine, distance learning can be ideal.
One of the biggest challenges involved in elearning is to find the right program that is not only credible but in tune to your needs. With a plethora of options which can prove to be no more than scams, it is most essential that you find a program that is legitimate. Online degrees info reports:
Distance Learning Programs are an increasingly developing opportunity that more and more people are taking advantage of. Over the next few years there will be over 2.3 million US students taking distance learning courses. Why the mass increase of popularity?
Who’d have thought that there would come a day when earning a university degree could be done right from your home? Online learning makes it possible.
Firstly beware of spam emails offering online education as more often than not it will turn out to be a scam. A majority of online degree programs are associated with existing brick and mortar universities although there are specialized institutes dealing exclusively online. Practically every course offered in a university is likely to be available online. But extensive research may sometimes be necessary to find the courses you have in mind.
Never enroll for any online degree program before confirming the authenticity of the degree. What’s the use of a degree that is not recognized by employers and other universities after all the time, effort and expense that go into it. The institute needs to be accredited preferably nationally or regionally.
Prior to making your choice, give a great deal of thought to yourself, your interest and schedule. The beauty of online learning lies in its flexibility to schedule it around your life according to your convenience. But be warned, online learning takes as much effort, if not more, than conventional education. Online degrees info reports:
The idea of earning a university degree from the comfort of your home may seem too good to be true. With online learning, it doesn’t have to be. There are a few things to consider, though, before you enroll.
There are a number of factors one needs to keep in mind to get the most out of online education. First on the list, is to make the right choice. Today there are countless options for online education on the Internet, some of them worthwhile and many being merely money making scams.
Among the most important requirements of a student in online education is self motivation. There is absolutely no one but yourself to push you to complete the course and finish assignments on time.
Most courses offer facilities like interactive tutorials and communication tools. Even if they sound intimidating at first, you need to participate in them for getting the most out of the program.
Finally there are the basic requirements that everybody needs to have to participate in an online education program. A computer is naturally required, as is an Internet connection, preferably a high speed one like broadband. More advanced skills may include familiarity with multimedia and video conferencing. It is advisable that you inquire and find out about minimum technical skills required before signing up for any program. Online degrees info reports:
There are numerous online programs available and selecting the right one is important. One way to weigh the options is to visit www.mco.mass.edu, a site with information about all the institutions in the state with online offerings.
