One of the sure boons of the internet is the unrestrained access it provides every one of us to know each other! Take the case of different world languages, for instance, sitting at home, now you have access to tons of free language courses, including the ones you never heard of, say, Saami, Kanddana – ever heard the names before? I’ll be honest, I didn’t. Our forefathers never dared to imagine the kind of life we live today, and how could they? Since this series of silent revolutions began just 20 years ago. In less than two decades our world zoomed and there was no looking back ever since.

Learning about different people, their language and culture can’t be easier than it is today. There are literally hundreds of websites that provide you scores of courses on foreign languages. And if you are interested in any culture or civilization that is far and seemingly out of your reach, the internet is always there to help you gain insight into that alien culture: their values, norms and traditions. Unfortunately, we don’t appreciate this blessing of being able to learn so much for free: we take them for granted, as if browsing the internet is our birth right.

This invaluable access to a zillion bits of information that we cherish, comes with the help of internet. And we don’t tend to value this kind of online education. Browsing online, we can now reach the farthest corner of this planet in no time, and this is not a joke. No matter how simple and obvious it is, the power of the internet can never diminish in terms of value and relevance.

The problem lies in our attitude. We don’t value any activity that doesn’t pay us back in monetary terms. We work hard and acquire an accredited degree so that we can find a lucrative job, fine, It’s OK. But try to imagine the free benefits that we enjoy everyday without expense as well. I don’t buy the premise that e-learning happens only when you pay for a college to enroll and take classes under a trained teacher. The billions of articles, reviews, gossip posts (on almost every subject under the sun) that are available on millions of websites to be read by vagabond surfers like you and me does play a part in our lives that we unthinkingly ignore. I believe they deserve at least some credit for the contribution they makes to our reservoir of knowledge.

The words may have reduced the linguistic impact but they certainly convince most of the prospective students that online learning is all about chilling out at home, browsing the internet for a couple hours everyday (which is again fun for most people) and acquiring an accredited degree after a certain period of time.

Today, as an online student I know how childish and illusionary these perceptions are, and I can only wish they were true. I completed my high school in 1998. Though I never liked the very concept of learning like a POW, confined within the four walls of a classroom but now I cherish my high-school days. Because what I have found is e-learning at online colleges & universities is more taxing in terms of discipline than traditional education.

I am not trying to say that the format does not provide you any flexibility, it obviously does, and it also fares better than traditional education in convenience, but the worrying part is that your progress solely depends on you – your ability to drag yourself out of procrastination and generate the required motivation – this is difficult, at least for me. I clearly remember my school days, when as a mediocre student, I use to be humiliated in front of the class, girls giggling, boys booing and me standing mortified holding my earlobes. I hated that feeling back then, but now I miss it because now I know that my high school teachers did not have anything personal against me, they just wanted me to be disciplined. But they failed in their purpose! Today as an undisciplined man, who is unable to hold himself from drifting to numberless distractions, I am finding it extremely hard to allocate a certain number of hours signing in to my Blackboard Portal.

This is my story, it’s me, but there are tons of success stories as well, which actually inspired me to enroll in an online program. No doubt, there are people working in fortune 500 companies, climbing the corporate ladder with an online degree in their bag. I honestly don’t know what they take for dinner or which magic wand they swirl to ignite the passion to learn online. But one thing I would definitely want you to know is that after reading all those “free tips” at online review websites about taking this journey, you should first ask yourself, are you truly online education material? Are your goals and objectives clear and luring enough that it will propel you to sit and enjoy studying for a few hours every week. Are you the kind of person who enjoys arguing issues, sometimes just for fun. Eventually, before making the ultimate decision, it is better that you – Know Thyself!

This is one question which bothers and agitates numerous people and at times even stops them from going for online degrees. There seems to be a particular stigma attached with the concept of online education that the degrees will not be productive or help them secure good jobs which prevents people from even considering the option. However, the truth is that online degrees are now being widely accepted across the world by top-notch organizations, if only the degree has been earned from a well-reputed and accredited institution such as Stanford University etc. Numerous organizations now give online graduates the same priority as those who have acquired degrees by attending regular classes. This is because the organizations realize that online degrees are not acquired by simply paying the online college or university a particular amount of money. On the contrary, the acquisition of online degrees requires hard work, determination and the curriculum taught online is the same as the curriculum taught on-campus which makes student participation and input absolutely necessary.
So what exactly are the perceptions of employers over online degrees?

Basic Concerns of Employers
The only thing which concerns employers is whether online students receive the same rigorous training as on-site pupils or not. This legitimate concern, considering that even though the notion of distance learning has been around since decades now, but online education in general has made good name for itself by providing quality education and training.

Employers believed that online education did not prove its effectiveness when it came to hands-on training considering that personal interaction between students and the faculty is limited in online degree programs. But these fears are now being rubbed-off by online institutions as steps are being taken to ensure that online learning is the same as conventional learning.

Acceptance of Online Degrees
What you need to know is that the acceptance of online education and degrees is dependant on students’ grades and how well they do in the program. All employers look at credentials very critically so students need to make sure that they take online education at all online degree levels seriously and not just consider it any other degree.

What they need to do next after being employed is perform the best they can. The acceptance their degree would then be dependant on their performance in the organization. In other words, if you have passed the basic apprehensions against online education and got employed, then it is up to you to live up to your reputation of being equally trained compared to campus-based students.

There are certain organizations and businesses which are more receptive of online degrees and understand the advantages of online education. These include online businesses; technology based firms, the media, and marketing and communication industries. On the other hand medical, law, education, government, and finance degrees do not receive as much acceptance, but then again individuals can always acquire jobs in these fields on the basis of their skills, capabilities and by proving that they have the same experience as traditional students.

What individuals can do to make organizations accept their online degrees is acquire ACCREDITED ONLINE EDUCATION. The more accredited online graduates there will be, the more inclined organizations would be to consider them on the same footing as traditional degrees, thereby raising their value in the global job market.