21-Year-Old Security Guard Weighing Online Physics/Math Degree Options

[bjjfighter]

im 21 and curently a security guard. my dad go hurt and i had to get a job straight out of high school to help support my family doing so putting my education on hold.My question is if the Bachelor of Science (BS) in Interdisciplinary Studies - Math and Physics at Ellis College online would be a good place to start or if i would just wasting my time and money on an online degree in physics and math.should i just switch to another field. I live in a small mining town in west virginia and online schools are about my only option with my familys situation.any advice will help.

 

[J77]

Some online schools could just take you money.

However, some are affiliated with established universities.

There was a thread here a while back, I'll try to find it...

 

[stewartcs]

Online degrees, as long as they are accredited, are generally the same as the degree you get when you physically attend a university.

I don't think they actually say "Online" anywhere on the degree. Of course on your transcript they may have a special notation indicating that it was a distance education course but that is no different than taking a night course which would have a different section number than the day course.

I would definitely say it is not a waste of time as long as it is an accredited institution (and degree).

 

[J77]

Here was the example of an accredited institution I was thinking of: http://www.online.uillinois.edu/

 

[stewartcs]

There are plenty to choose from in the US, like the one J77 has indicated. Unfortunately, most of the large universities limit their technical (engineering and similar types) online programs to graduate degrees. However, some do offer undergraduate degrees in engineering, but they normally require a two year degree prior to you attending.

Business degrees and similar types are offered in quite a few places though.

 

[bravernix]

I would say that if you choose any program that would normally involve laboratory components (physics, engineering, etc.), you would be cheating yourself if you did this online instead. There are also a great many unaccredited online which would be a waste of time and money. Online learning might be great for some majors, but I do not think scientific fields are part of that category.

 

[ktm]

I don't understand all this hype about how online courses are a waste of time and money -- it even sounds like a kind of elitism on the part of those attending college. If it's a well-selected, accredited course then you still get access to professors and TAs, indications of your learning progress, and other valuable resources. The benefits of online courses definitely intersect nontrivially with those from attending colleges.

Whatever you do, I think it's a good idea to learn math and physics if you're interested in them.

 

[notagenius]

i'm aware of very few engineering and physics programs for undergrads. FSU has a computer science program though. several places have math courses: number theory, complex analysis, differential equations, etc.

 

[bravernix]

I don't understand all this hype about how online courses are a waste of time and money -- it even sounds like a kind of elitism on the part of those attending college. If it's a well-selected, accredited course then you still get access to professors and TAs, indications of your learning progress, and other valuable resources. The benefits of online courses definitely intersect nontrivially with those from attending colleges.

Whatever you do, I think it's a good idea to learn math and physics if you're interested in them.

Umm, if you actually read my message, it has nothing to do with "elitism." How is one supposed to perform laboratory experiments when taking online courses? That seems like a pretty obvious benefit that you cannot get online. Also, it can greatly help your learning to have other students to work with. Also, what about research experience? I could go on, but I think you get the point.

 

[ktm]

bravernix,

1. I wasn't just responding to you. I was saying that well-selected, accredited online courses can provide very valuable resources for learning. But I do agree that attending college provides more resources to the student.

2. He said that "online schools are about [his] only option". He is wondering whether it is worth it to enroll in online courses or not, without the option of attending courses. You are arguing that attending college is better than enrolling in online courses. Thus what you are saying is irrelevant.

 

[bravernix]

2. He said that "online schools are about [his] only option". He is wondering whether it is worth it to enroll in online courses or not, without the option of attending courses. You are arguing that attending college is better than enrolling in online courses. Thus what you are saying is irrelevant.

Fair enough, but I still wonder if it is worth the money. If the OP is motivated to do so, it would be possible for him/her to at least self-study calculus and introductory physics and perhaps attend college in the future? I do not know goals of the OP, but if one simply wants to learn physics/math and wants some assistance, then perhaps online college is one answer. However, I think that career prospects would be severely limited without possible research experience, laboratory time and other things such as networking.

To the OP, it sounds like you are in a difficult situation. Before you decide to enroll in an online college course, it would be wise to determine what your end goals are. For example, if you wish to attend graduate school, you might contact some graduate programs and ask an adviser about the likelihood of gaining entrance with an undergraduate online degree. It would be unfortunate if you were to spend loads of money just to end up back in the same position, especially since it seems that your financial situation is tough as it is.