Did a sudden emergency at home make you give up that course you always wanted to do and take up a job to run your home? Did marriage or kids or the responsibility of your house, prompt you to quit education? Does studying in a foreign country make you homesick yet that course in that distant land continues to tempt you? If you are in any of these situations, you probably haven’t seriously considered distance education!
Distance learning is a convenient and smart way to educate yourself and learn something new without giving up your current responsibilities. Distance education is a popular way to study for people engaged in homes and full-time jobs. For the ones with geographic and physical restrictions, distance education is a boon. If you are in a remote corner of the world and distance is a barrier, distance education transcends all restrictions. Read on to know about the top merits of distance learning.
If you are a distance learning student, you are not bound by rigid study hours or a schedule or even a set place. The world becomes your classroom and you are the master of your time. With distance education, you can set your own pace of study and also decide where and when to. Distance learning gives individuals the flexibility to fit studies around your domestic or professional commitments. Although you govern everything and self study is the key, you are not alone. You could always get online support. Opting for distance education helps you choose from a range of options. You get the opportunity to study more subjects and enroll in programs that are not in your area. With distance learning, you not only widen your horizons and get exposed to newer things but also get to network and make connections with newer people in other locations. Distance education also helps you save on traveling, lodging and boarding expenses. Distance education helps you get the luxury of staying in your own country, in the comfort of your home and still get excellent education. You also save on the huge fees most full time courses usually charge. Online courses generally cost lesser and help you keep a better work life balance. Distance learning also enables students to learn from some of the most prestigious institutions and professors. With distance learning, students also gain useful, transferable skills that not only help them seek better prospects but also add meaning to their life. Distance learning programs also come with student support services that work as troubleshooters and helps individuals stay motivated.
Distance learning makes education accessible to different kinds of people caught in all kinds of circumstances. Distance learning too like everything else has certain limitations that majorly gets magnified or eliminated depending on the seeker’s intent. If you are someone who is motivated to manage work and study, distance learning is surely going to work for you!
They say it is never too late to pursue your dreams. This is especially true when it comes to career and education. Unfortunately, not all can afford to quit their jobs and go back to school. This can make it difficult to pursue higher studies or certain courses that can enhance skills. Fortunately, there are several free online learning platforms that allow anyone and everyone to be able to have access to good quality learning resources.
Here are some of the best websites for free online education that you can sign up for.
Coursera
Coursera is one of the most popular platforms for taking free online courses. It features classes, both free as well as paid, on a variety of different topics. This platform is currently being used by over 35 million learners that have access to 150 university partners, 2,700 courses, 250 specializations, and four degrees. These courses are curated in partnership with leading universities and organizations from around the world, such as Stanford and Harvard.
edX
edX is a platform that was founded by Harvard and MIT that brings together top-ranked universities. This platform was founded to help eliminate the primary barriers that prevent people from pursuing education, i.e., cost, location, and access. Along with free courses, edX also offers certain specialized courses for a specific fee. The platform can be accessed by interested educators and technologists through Open edX if they wish to assist in developing new educational tools.
Udemy
Udemy is another online learning platform that is quite similar to Coursera in terms of the format of the courses. The unique aspect of this platform is that it allows users to build their own custom courses by compiling individual lessons so that these can be taught online. There are over 100,000 courses in 50 languages on this platform that are taught by 42,000 instructors from around the world.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed is a platform made by TED to help share ideas and knowledge from teachers to students. This award-winning platform has a global network of more than 250,000 teachers that teach several free courses on a variety of categories and themes. The lessons are taught using animated videos and interactive content so as to make them more interesting for the students.
If you are planning to pursue an accounting degree, you should consider doing it online. There are more than 580 institutions in the country that offer master’s degrees in accounting, and many of them offer their courses online. Therefore, you can pursue this course without shifting to a different state, and you can also continue with your current job. Here are the top picks of online master’s degrees in accounting that you can consider if you are interested in this field.
Auburn University
The online master’s degree in accounting at Auburn University is open for you if you hold a Bachelor’s degree in accounting or business, and if you meet all the prerequisites for the business and accounting department. Students who enroll in this program receive study materials, instructions, and assignments that are similar to the on-campus course. The schedule is extremely flexible and can accommodate working professionals as well. Full-time students of this course can complete it within one year. They get to select electives like real estate finance and information risk analysis, among others. This course also prepares students for the Uniform CPA Exam. This whole program is available online, including the exam. However, students have to complete a three-day on-campus residency during their final semester.
University of North Carolina
The University of North Carolina offers an online Master of Accounting (MAC) degree through its Kenan-Flagler Business School. This school accepts students from all undergraduate backgrounds. However, students who have business or accounting backgrounds may get course waivers. Students who enroll in this course can choose a concentration in Tax or Audit. If you take up the full-time course, you can finish it in less than 15 months. You can start this course either in June or December. This way, even if you miss the application deadline for one semester, you do not have to wait for an entire year to enroll in the course. The MAC degree is entirely online, except for a one-week leadership immersion on campus, which is mandatory and takes place at the beginning of the course.
University of Connecticut
An online master’s degree in accounting from the University of Connecticut is one of the best online courses in the country. This university offers a Master of Science in Accounting (MSA) program. Full-time students can complete it in two semesters. Working professionals who enroll in this degree take two courses per semester. The University of Connecticut also offers you electives like Forensic Accounting, Disclosure for Not-for-Profit Entities, and Fraud Examination among others.