distance/internet ed. ?

[Pyrovitae]

i'm looking into doing accredited university courses right now - either distance or online. does anyone have any experience with this? obviously, you're not getting the same interactive familiarity and learning environment as you would at a lecture with real live human beans. any pros/cons?

are online courses, even if they're offered from a university, taken seriously? is it hard to find something to take online that can be applied to a particular major?

i'm trying to find a feasible way to continue to work towards my degree at u of t, even though i won't be in this country. i've made an appointment with a career counselor but thought if anyone here could relay personal experiences it would be incredibly helpful.

 

[deep]

Originally posted by Pyrovitae
even though i won't be in this country.

what

 

[Pyrovitae]

i'm moving to the uk in six months, deep. i've already started to gather the paperwork necessary for my application.

i have to know if i can make this work with owen, otherwise i'll wonder about it for the rest of my life. short of marriage, permanent immigration or a few other routes, the easiest option is for me to get a work permit for a year.

but i don't want to give up school.

 

[labRat]

i've heard of this place:
http://www.athabascau.ca/

i'm pretty sure it's completely legit and fairly good. not 100% tho'.

 

[Pyrovitae]

thanks craig.

 

[Muad'ib]

Depends on how many credits you have right now and what you are studying at U of T. If you go the Athabasca route chances are you won't get a U of T degree, if that really matters. I'd look at transferring to a uni in the UK.

my two cents

 

[labRat]

np.

there may also be another based out east, but maybe i'm confusing that with the athabasca one.


also, i hear that sally struthers also has courses available where you can learn to be a cook, a secretary, an astronaut, a stupid dumb washed up bitch ... and more! all you need to do is lick some stamps and send them to her. and you'll get your diploma after four easy payments of $999.99!!!

 

[labRat]

Originally posted by Muad'ib
I'd look at transferring to a uni in the UK.

i think that'd be expense.

 

[Pyrovitae]

$20,000 a year expense in uk school, with no gaurantee that credit can be transferred. that lidicurous! kekeke.

(sally struthers needs to be kicked in her nonexistant junk.)

 

[Pyrovitae]

Originally posted by Muad'ib
Depends on how many credits you have right now and what you are studying at U of T. If you go the Athabasca route chances are you won't get a U of T degree, if that really matters. I'd look at transferring to a uni in the UK.

my two cents

thanks for your informed opinion, i've decided to entertain every notion in this thread instead of talking to my career counselor.

 

[zoo]

finish your U of T degree in a year when you come back?

make owen live here for a year or two while you get an edumacation :0)

 

[starr]

Actually Nat, my friend Julia took courses at Athabascau or whatever and counted them toward her degree at U of T.

You are only allowed to have a certain number of transfer credits though (maybe under 4 full courses?). She really liked Athabascau and I've been considering taking a few courses through them. She talked me into it really, and it's not like transfer credits limit your chances of getting into graduate school or whatever. In fact, she's in law school in Europe right now.

If I were you I'd definitely check out the online option and then have a meeting with the registrar to see what they say.

Have fun in Europe

 

[Renton]

Originally posted by Pyrovitae
$20,000 a year expense in uk school, with no gaurantee that credit can be transferred. that lidicurous! kekeke.

(sally struthers needs to be kicked in her nonexistant junk.)

U of T might have a transfer agreement with a UK University where you can go to school there and pay the same tuition as you would here. I know Ryerson has several programs like that, I imagine U of T would be the same.

 

[juice]

Originally posted by Renton
U of T might have a transfer agreement with a UK University where you can go to school there and pay the same tuition as you would here. I know Ryerson has several programs like that, I imagine U of T would be the same.

UofT does indeed have this as I have a number of friends that have gone to school in England and paid the same price that they did at UofT. They all had great things to say about the exchange program.

 

[Pyrovitae]

thanks guys. trust me, i have looked into exchange programs abroad and they are ridiculously expensive. for a uk or eu student tuition is 1100 gbp a year, for an overseas student it's 10,000 can a semester. you forget cost of living and an individual holding a student visa cannot hold a work visa, it's one or the other. buh bye income hello debt.

a one credit student exchange through u of t for a summer program is in excess of 5,000 can. that's my tuition for a year in canada, and that IS the amount that's paid to u of t.

as michelle mentioned, u of t is willing to allow up to 5 transfer credits from another university. i imagine since 81% of canadian universities offer online and distance education courses those can be applied as accredited courses. if anyone's interested, i found a link with all university offerings in canada.

http://olt-bta.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/resources/institutionsx.html

(i appreciate the advice but if i'm considering moving to another country, i've researched tons of options, believe me.)

 

[labRat]

just move to london, ontario. almost the same. less schooling hassles.

 

[bambam]

A friend of mine was in a similar situation last year, and took distance courses from the Open University in AMsterdam. They have quite a good rep for that, but ultimately I'd think your decision would turn on what you specifically want to study.
I also know people who have done the onlin course thing, and it hasnt really worked out very well for them.
good luck...

 

[stargurl*]

I've done distance and online from UWO, in fact I'm planning on finishing my degree this way.

I feel really distanced from the whole academic experience, this way you get a package of notes/tapes/whatever in the mail and send in assignments for certain duedates and show up for exams when you're supposed to. There's little to no discussion (some with web courses, none with print/cassette courses) so it's just you and the material. Sometimes I wonder where my $1000 is going.

Also, you'll have to check for residency requirements, I know with UWO you have to be in Canada or the US while you're taking your online course and have to show up at one of their exam centres - no independent proctors allowed anymore.

 

[silver1]

I finished my degree from UofWaterloo through distance ed. One of the courses was onlilne and the other 2 were regular "independent" type courses.

Mind you they weren't any of the core courses needed for my degree. Just electives that I needed to get the last number of required credits.

I also had to take the exams at one of the perscribed "exam centers" as well as mail in my assignements. So I wouldn't have been able to do it if I were out of the country.

 

[Muad'ib]

Originally posted by Pyrovitae
thanks for your informed opinion, i've decided to entertain every notion in this thread instead of talking to my career counselor.

Thanks for the sass, I was only trying to be helpful.

The U of T will actually accept 10 transfer credits as long as no more than 1.0 of them are at the 300/400 level. If you are in your first or second year so you may be able to do some courses through Athabasca U and then complete your degree requirements here. Again, I don't know if this helps, flame me if you must.

 

[gollum]

Originally posted by labRat
i've heard of this place:
http://www.athabascau.ca/

i'm pretty sure it's completely legit and fairly good. not 100% tho'.

My good friends (Russ and Nic, you've met them I believe) did some of their degree at Trent through Athabasca.

They loved it and would definately reccomend it.

I would definately research UofT's transfer requirements though, as they are very pretentious, and don't easily accept transfer credits from other places (at least in my experience).

Good luck Nat, when are you thinking of heading out? You better hook up with April.

cheerio