I am going to grad school this fall. There is school that I can go to and it's mediocre, but its in-state (if I'm going to be going to classes in person it has to be in-state as I have a mortgage and have to work full time at a local job).
That being said, I can attend a more prestigious university but I can only take classes online (the whole degree would be online as the school is 1,000 miles away) because of my situation. What should I do? Opinions? I know that I will get a better experience going in person and that it would be more fun, but, that being said, is it worth the sacrifice in prestige? There are no prestigious universities that I can attend locally for my area.
Thanks, Kris
I think this is a tricky situation where considering what you want from the degree might help you decide what to do. Are you aiming for a master’s or Ph.D.? In science or another discipline? Do you plan to do experimental research for your thesis? What kind of job do you hope to get when you’re finished?
I don’t know anyone who has done an online advanced degree in science, but I know someone who is starting one in the fall. Like you, she didn’t want to move, but she couldn’t find a suitable program where she lives. In her case, she wants a master’s to get the credentials for industry jobs she can’t get with a bachelor’s only, but she isn’t especially interested in the grad school experience or becoming an academic.
I think a PhD based on lab or field work would be extremely difficult to do remotely unless you currently have a job as a technician or something that you could transition into grad work, making your boss your research advisor while taking your classes online and having an academic advisor at the remote university (this is what I did but with a local university). Motivation is difficult enough when you are surrounded by other students and have your advisor around for accountability and guidance. Doing it on your own, especially if you are keeping another job, will probably take a LOT of discipline and self confidence.
As far as I can tell, the importance of prestige varies by field. Some fields seem to have a well structured hierarchy defined by prestige. I think it's more about the lab in my field. Sure, there are some departments in my field that really rock out, so students graduating from them tend to be highly qualified with better networks and they often get good jobs. But for the most part, it’s the advisor’s reputation that’s vital. There are stellar labs in crappy departments that graduate excellent students who launch enviable careers. So you might find a star in an otherwise mediocre university or you might find that online program loses some of the prestige of the university if it’s not tied to a big cheese advisor. Can you investigate how important prestige will be for your career?
I think one of the biggest things you might lose with an online program is access to your advisor’s network. Given that you don’t want to move for grad school, are you willing to move once you graduate? If not, the prestige of the remote university may not help you find a local job as much as the contacts you would make by attending a local university. If you think you’ll be more mobile after you have the degree, then maybe the clout that comes from the Prestigious U’s online program would be beneficial.
That’s just my opinion. What does everybody else think? Anyone have experience with online grad school?
12 comments:
Well said, EGF. Especially that last paragraph about moving after your job. I never would have thought of that, but that's a really good point!
Some family members have done the online degree thing while I pursued more traditional student paths. The people who successfully completed their online degrees on time did not have children in the house. Also, online programs tend not to have flexibility with what classes you can take. My own personal bias is that I like having people to interact with directly.
I am doing field work in another country, and so I am taking some classes online this year.
I personally like the flexibility of doing courses online because there is not a definite time of day when I have to attend a lecture. However, I agree with academic that I do miss interacting with people (esp. classmates, academic groups, academic advisor) face-to-face.
Having said that, my personal bias is that a degree from a prestigious school, despite getting it online, might be more worthy of your time than a degree from a mediocre school.
EGF put it very nicely. It's important to know what you wanna do with the degree.
I think it depends a great deal on the field. Ed.D? No problem. Also on how much work the grad school thing is going to be. While working full time... either the classes and grad work have to be easy, or this person is going to be utterly miserable.
I also think it depends why one is getting a degree. To be an academic? For a promotion? The school's reputation matters in different ways: mine has an ivory-tower reputation, but UC-Boulder is THE place to go for mining/engineering, etc.
EGF said it well. For an MS, pick the local university if you want to work in that region, because that's where your advisor will have contacts for you. Also, you'll get a chance to interact with fellow grad students at the local place. They can be an invaluable source of support.
JFS: I believe you mean either Colorado School of Mines or Colorado State. UC Boulder is not the place to go... :)
EGF makes sense here. I would emphasise that you need to be really clear about why you are doing a graduate degree and what you plan to do with it afterwards - get a better job in your current area/company? Get the quals needed for a complete geographical and career change? You need to know why you're doing it to cope with the inevitable stresses and strains and crap along the way - I'm taking undergrad courses by distance learning whilst working a full time job and it's very very hard - I have a PhD, I'm doing second year undergrad courses equivalent to a half-time load this year, and I'm struggling...
Also, listen to advice about the job market - one student who is doing a research degree in my department has been happily telling people that he will get an academic job. He's been heard telling other students that his advisory committee are just plain wrong to say that getting a PhD will make him less employable than having a Master's because that's clearly silly. The fact that the advisory committee, particularly his main advisor, all have decades of experience of watching what happens to their students once they leave the uni is apparently irrelevant because it will be different for him... and he's not even that bright. Sigh. If he wants to do the degree because he's having fun doing research, and appreciates that it might be possible to get a related job later but is by no means guaranteed, then I'd back him all the way. But to declare an ambition (an academic job) and then declare that all advice/feedback is 'wrong' is a little problematic...
If the degree is clearly needed for your career path or opens up a varied job market or you can't imagine not doing it for its own sake, go for it! And have a great time. EGF made sensible points about how to choose between your institutional options. But if none of the above reasons hold true... think long and hard about the cost and committment you need to make
EGF, I think you're right about attending a less prestigious or average school in person rather than online. One can create a good portion of the experience one gets in grad school - at any school - by doing extra assignments (that is, I mean those 1-credit, open-topic 'classes' you can sometimes create to suit any need), by meeting people and building references and contacts, and by doing any kind of research you want provided that the library is a good one.
Well-known doesn't hurt, but well-known online looses some of the advantages, I would think.
Sciencewoman: right, that! :) Not a geologist. Doh.
I wrote a long comment, but apparently I have reading comprehension problems. So based on Kris's actual situation...
It sounds like you're officially tied to where you are, and I'm guessing you need a relatively well-paying job (i.e. a TA/RA wouldn't cut it). I don't know field you're in, but I'm assuming you'd be doing a course-only degree if you went with a prestigious institution. You may technically be able to do a project where you live, but the logisics get sort of crazy.
In my experience, an advanced degree that is coursework only (i.e. no thesis) looks somewhat less impressive, thus cancelling out the advantage of a bigger-name school. Since we don't know the details, I would really suggest that you contact someone in academia that would know how important a name really is, like your undergrad advisor.
If you're planning on staying in the area after graduation (i.e. working in industry), then area employers will be familiar with your predicament. If you're not planning on staying, why not wait a couple years? You should be able to find a school that is acceptably prestigious and not on the other side of the continent.
If not, the prestige of the remote university may not help you find a local job as much as the contacts you would make by attending a local university.
I'd made a complementary (unposted, so far) point at Young Female Scientist, which is that the gap in "prestige" is a lot less relevant if she stays local than if she moves to someplace where they've never heard of the local institution.
But, yeah -- without knowing more about what "grad school" means and what she wants it for, it's impossible to answer this.
I would think going to graduate school online would be incredibly hard. My professors whoop my bootay while i give presentations, i work 12 hours a day, i talk with other students, basically im learning what it means to be a scientist. It's not really about what facts you learn, but more about how you can process facts and turn them into new scientific ideas. You change the way you think in graduate school...and thats why i think it takes so long...and why i think it is so important to be there in person.
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