Is Online Biology Curriculum Enough for a College Degree?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the adequacy of online biology curricula for obtaining a college degree, exploring the availability of online courses and their recognition in academic and professional contexts.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant inquires about software for a fully online general biology course.
  • Another participant mentions that Canadian open universities offer online degrees that may be as challenging as traditional classroom courses, emphasizing the lack of strict admission requirements.
  • A different participant expresses surprise at the availability of such programs in Canada.
  • One participant suggests exploring MIT's OpenCourseWare (OCW) but notes that it does not provide recognized degrees or transcripts, raising concerns about proving knowledge without formal credentials.
  • A later reply reiterates the lack of formal recognition for knowledge gained through MIT:OCW, emphasizing the importance of having a degree for validation of coursework understanding.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the value and recognition of online biology courses, with some advocating for the rigor of online degrees while others question the lack of formal accreditation and its implications for proving knowledge.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the potential variability in the recognition of online degrees across different institutions and the absence of formal assessments in some online courses, which may affect their perceived value.

Rade
Is anyone aware of software that can be purchased for a college level course in general biology taught completely via the internet ?
 
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Actually. If you're in Canada. We have open universities via the internet.

http://www.athabascau.ca/"

You pay your tuition and you get the materials and everything for the degree. Which is just as difficult or more so compared to the classroom university. Even more important is that you don't have to have some stupid minimum marks or have certain classes to be accepted into the group you wish to be in.

So instead of college diploma via the internet, you could work 10x harder and go for a university degree. Which will allow you to go much further.
 
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cool.never knew we had that stuff in Canada.

Have you tried MIT:OCW open courseware stuff.
 
Have you tried MIT:OCW open courseware stuff.
As far as I know. The MIT:OCW stuff doesn't actually test you and at the end give you a degree which is recognized. So without a degree there is nothing at all proving you know the coursework. Personally I could go through first and second year of physics @ undergraduate level and basically know 80% of it; with a guaranteed 100% for year one. Without any transcripts or degree/diploma I can't show I know the stuff.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

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