Should online degrees be considered to be equal to college or university campus degrees - Essay Example

Should online degrees be considered to be equal to college or campus degrees? The popularity of online s and degrees are increasing ever since the introduction and development of internet related technologies. The major advantage of online courses is the flexibility in timings. Some people argue that online degrees should be considered equivalent to college or university degrees whereas others are of the view that it is impossible to equate online degree with a university degree. Online courses cannot offer direct face to face interactions with the students as in the case of college or university courses.

In other words, online communication or teaching takes place only in the verbal form whereas in classroom teaching communication is taking place both in verbal and nonverbal form. It is often said that the amount of information communicated though nonverbal channels is more than that communicated through verbal channels. In short, online courses cannot offer effective communication between the teacher and the student. Online courses can offer only theoretical knowledge whereas college courses can offer both theoretical and practical knowledge.

In order to learn a topic properly, both theoretical and practical knowledge are essential. In other words, online degree holders may not have proper practical knowledge compared to the regular college degree holders. The credibility of online degree cannot be equated against that of a university degree. Online degrees are provided by legitimate and illegitimate institutions whereas university degree is provided only by the legitimate sources. Proponents of online degree are of the view that online degrees and university degrees have not many differences.

In the case of online degrees in art subjects, the above argument seems to be valid up to certain extent. However, it should be noted that science degrees earned through online courses may not have the backing of practical knowledge and therefore it cannot be equated against the science degrees from regular colleges or universities. To conclude, online degrees cannot be equated against regular college or university degrees under any circumstances.