I have completed my Master's degree in Industrial Engineering!!! This degree was completed via distance education, namely NC State University's Video Based Engineering Education program.
I now plan to continue my work toward a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering. I will obtain this degree via distance education from Colorado State University and their CSUN (Colorado State University Network for Learning) program.
In addition, I am working very slowly toward a Master of Humanities degree from California State University, Dominguez Hills via their Humanities External Degree Program. Again a distance education format.
Some of my friends and colleagues have told me that it is folly to pursue two degrees at one time. I feel, however, that it is a perfectly rational thing to do. I will be taking one class from each institution for the next three years. This is equivalent to two classes per semester, not an extraordinary number of classes. My work on my MA in Humanities will be complete before beginning my dissertation work for the PhD, thus there is no conflict in research time! I am willing to let both degrees take longer than normal (the MA could be complete in less than two years and the PhD in four) to achieve both. I believe that I can adequately complete both degrees within 6 years! This would not be possible without Distance Education.
I am a big believer in education -- the more you get, the better you are! Many things can be taken away from us today, but the learnings we put into our head are difficult to lose. I believe that distance education will better the lives of many people that would otherwise not get a chance at an education.
Distance education (DE) is not what has alway been called "correspondance classes." Correspondance classes have a very bad reputation for being shoddy and second rate...distance education is simply a set of new delivery methods for truly academic studies. It typically involves doing somewhat independent study that is guided by an instructor. The delivery methods vary from Web based to video tape based to true independent study. If you believe that this would be an easy way to earn a degree, better think again. DE forces individuals to be able to think for themselves, to "crack the code" with only the support of your instructor and your family. Distance Learning is not easy!! I have seen several of my friends and colleagues try this method and back out. They found that attending classes on campus was easier than doing it yourself.
Should you want to learn more on this topic, check out the Usenet Newsgroup alt.education.distance or check out one of these pages:
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