Insure Your Employment During A Troubled Economy With An Online Degree!
May 29, 2010 by Natasha Bright
Filed under Online Colleges
Adults and young adults are reportedly setting out for career training at a time when unemployment rates are high, the economy is sluggish and record numbers of students are completing high school. What many are finding is that the flexibility of distance college is allowing them to get their college degrees online as they continue their life obligations.
These colleges are said to be growing in programs and enrollment numbers online and on campus. Students who participate in associate degree studies might be able to choose from programs designed to help fill local business needs, as well as worldwide demands. If you need more information about college degree, look on the internet.
Community colleges can be cost-effective, and when the economy worsens, these colleges tend to see enrollment increases, the Pew Research Center noted. But this new spike in enrollment might also be attributed to record proportion of young adults who have graduated high school or completed equivalency tests, as well as low dropout rates and unemployment being the highest it’s been in more than a quarter of a century, according to the research center. A WWJ Radio Great Lakes IT Report noted also that displaced workers are seeking career changes and that new government incentives are encouraging people to return to school.
Online enrollment at community colleges alone accounts for more than half of all online course enrollments in the past five years, according to a Sloan Consortium report cited in a February edition of Community College Review.
Community colleges cost less than four-year public and private colleges and they tend to see enrollment increases as the economy worsens, the Pew Research Center noted. But this new enrollment peak comes at a time when a record proportion of young adults have graduated high school or completed an equivalency test, when dropout rates are low and when unemployment is the highest it’s been in more than a quarter of a century, according to the research center. Additionally, displaced workers are setting out to change careers, and new government incentives, such as a Post-9/11 GI Bill, are encouraging people to return to school, according to the Great Lakes IT Report.
A Bureau of Labor Statistics report forecasts that occupations requiring some advanced education are to experience higher growth rates into 2018 than those that call for on-the-job training and that positions requiring associate degrees category are to see higher growth rates. The report listed medical and physical therapy assistants, home health and personal and home care aides, physical therapy aides, dental hygienists, veterinary technicians and dental among the fastest growth positions that require an associate degree or less, with median annual earnings that in 2008 ranged from $19,180 to $46,140. This is not surprising as baby boomers, a large percentage of the population, age.
Rhode Island’s community college has been working to establish or expand programs to meet statewide demands now and in the future, the Providence Journal article suggested. The Lane Report, a Kentucky business publication, reported in May of an associate degree program that’s accelerated, taking as few as 20 months to complete and offered even within the places where students work. There is an abundance of information about online degree programs on the web.
The time associated with obtaining a degree can affect the number of people who succeed in doing so, according to an expert cited in the May/June edition of Washington Monthly. The article told of Tennessee’s community college system, where technology centers with strong graduation rates and positive job placement services offer one-year certificate programs in fields that are in high demand.
The ability of students to continue working or family care while they get their college degree online means more can start or return to school. These online bachelors degree means everything from associates degrees to an online masters program can be taken and then used to better one’s job environment.