This is a myth that’s floated around by uninformed people. They heard someone say it and then they repeat it and who they repeat it to starts mentioning it and eventually people don’t know WHY they said it in the first place, and for all they know if could be because of some academic slacker’s bad experience with a university.

I don’t’ know of any online universities, but I do know of universities that offer online degrees. My current private, for-profit university offers one online degree and it also offers online classes. It offers everything from a certificate to a PhD. It’s accredited. The accreditation is all that matters. Schools don’t get this accreditation unless it’s classes meet certain standards. So as long as the school has accreditation then I don’t really care much if it offers classes online or on-campus. Plus, the local public university in my city actually lost accreditation for a bit of time. So, going to a state or public university does not mean you’re getting the best education.

I’m wondering if you’ve actually taken any online classes. Because the ones I’ve taken were heIIa hard and no, contrary to what you seem to be insinuating, the professors (some of whom have PhDs) did not grade on a curve or give a free pass to students. The work was just as hard as it was on campus (I’ve taken both online and on campus classes, and I’ve been enrolled in the only online degree my university offers) and the professors did not give a free pass to students just because they’re taking classes or the degree online. I didn’t get a grade that I did not earn through hard work. Taking online classes is actually more challenging then on campus because you don’t have the professor holding your hand and walking you through the assignments; you have to comprehend the assignments in writing. Like on campus, you have mid terms and final projects (some of which might have a time-limit). The research is just as rigorous and time-consuming. And, for some classes, like some math classes, it’s much harder to take those classes online than on campus. The only difference is that you can’t meet your teacher or other students face-to-face and you can’t take advantage of the schools physical resources (library, etc) unless you live near campus. A good advantage of taking online classes is that you can work independently and log into your class at any time to do your work. But, you also have to log in a certain number of times a week for attendance, and the teacher might require all students to attend a live-chat/discussion through the online program on a certain time and day.

I don’t have a problem with online classes, for-profit universities, or online degrees as long as they come from an accredited school. My small, private for-profit university is actually quite respected in my community, and I know this because every time I’ve been on an interview the hiring manager has given me compliments for having a degree from this university, because people who tend to graduate from this university are well prepared for their chosen fields. This is actually something the school likes to brag about, but I didn’t believe it until I graduated and started going on interviews and saw firsthand how respected my degree was.

The only people who are trying to creating a class system are those who somehow think they’re better than people who take online classes or get their degrees online. Do you have any studies or statistics to back up your feelings/thoughts that your degree is better or worth more or that you put in more sweat and blood and hard work to achieve it compared to your online counterpart? Anyone can have a thought or feeling, – no matter how illogical – but it’s not worth much unless you can prove that it’s true.

Your argument for being against online degrees is pretty weak. If anyone "bought" their degree then they wouldn’t have had to put a lot of hard work into it. And, another thing I look for in a university’s degree program are the staff’s credentials, and I’ll be happy to have a PhD and someone with a lot of experience in the field teaching me online any day! No offense, but your argument is as silly as some guy who argued that people should stay away from night classes because they’re inferior than day classes and no one respects those classes. He obviously made that ignorant comment without even knowing why schools offer evening classes – this is because most bachelor degree students work 9-5 jobs and can’t go to a 10am class. This is to make it more convenient for the student and the coursework is the same! It’s the same with online classes; it’s to be convenient to students who can’t travel to campus or who works such odd hours that they can’t make an on-campus class.

And, lastly, contrary to what Kayla says, online classes tend to cost more than on-campus classes…
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