- The type of college degree you pursue.
- How much work you want to do to “accelerate” your education.
- Which state you want to teach in.
- Whether you get your kindergarten teaching degree through a school in a same state you want to teach in.
- What kind of public, private or charter school you’d like to get a job at.
These are the steps you must take to become a kindergarten teacher and how long each one will take.
Are Online Degrees Worth It?
Why Online Degrees Keep Growing in Popularity
All online programs tend to offer key benefits:- Affordability: Studying online can save you a good deal of money because they eliminate the need for you to pay for a dormitory room on campus. That’s big, because room and board can account for as much as half the cost of attending a traditional university.
- Career-Focused: Online degree programs tend to be aimed very much at career development. If you look at the degree programs offered online by older ground-based schools like the University of Southern New Hampshire or by schools without campuses like Northcentral University, they all tend to focus on teaching you skills to get you hired. Although some people do get online degrees in English or Art History, the vast majority of online programs are in Business, Psychology, Nursing, Technology or other career-oriented specialties. That’s one of the big reasons that online degree programs have continued to get more and more popular over recent decades.
Online Credential Standard In Some Careers
It’s also true that in some specialties – nursing is probably the strongest example – online bachelor degrees are actually becoming more the norm than the exception. Another example of a field where an online degree can be the best for getting a job is technology. If you choose to study anything from coding to web development through an online-only school, there’s a good likelihood that tech companies will think it’s totally normal that you attended college online. As a June 2019 article in Investopedia states: “If you’re in an Internet/new media field, studies show that 70% of online degrees are seen as legitimate.” If you fear that your online degree has an automatic stigma attached to it, or that the people you encounter in the job market will doubt that it’s valid, make sure you choose a college with some key criteria in mind:Top Issue Determining if An Online Degree Is Credible
A key question any company will want to know about before hiring you is whether or not your degree came from an accredited college. You want to make sure your school is recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or the United States Department of Education. The accreditation that most companies will be aware of is that of CHEA, which gives regional accreditation. There are several national accreditation agencies with varying levels of respectability as well as professional groups like CCNE and ACEN, which give accreditation to nursing school programs. It’s worth taking the time to find out which accreditations other than the regional type may or may not be looked on favorably in your job category.School Reputation Versus Your Particular Degree
For most job interviewers, figuring out whether your online degree is credible starts with looking at the particular degree you have. According to a study by Silva, Lourtie and Aires, higher learning “should not be judged based on where it was received but the skills received.” That’s why it’s critical – before you start your studies – to identify a degree that will make it possible to get the kind of job that will pay a salary that justifies several years of college study. Many prospective students have trouble looking at this issue clearly when they’re shopping for colleges. And while there’s nothing wrong with getting an online degree in social studies or philosophy, you need to go in with your eyes wide open about the fact that those degrees probably won’t put you in the kind of earning position you’ll get from a business degree. Thinking very specifically can help you get that first job after college. If you’re looking at online business degrees, find out if your school offers a business degree with a sub specialty in supply chain logistics, technology leadership, data analytics or another valued competency. Try to learn about what companies exist in the area where you want to live and what kind of specific expertise they hire for. The more you look before leaping into a degree program, the more chance it’s going to produce real value for you over the long run.Is an Online Degree From a Local School a Good Idea?
Getting your online degree from a school with a campus in your region can be beneficial in some cases. The University of Massachusetts, for example, has a vast number of online students spread out over the world. But if you live in Massachusetts, you may get an added benefit from the fact that the hiring manager who interviews you will have a basic comfort level with the school simply because he or she has heard about it for years. It’s also true that local alumni networks can be very powerful. If you interview with a company near your college – even if you took an online degree there – there’s always a chance that other alumni of your school work at the company and like to help out new graduates. (Keep in mind, by the way, that many of the schools people normally associate with pure online education like University of Phoenix and Walden University do actually operate campuses in addition to their distance learning programs.) In fact, it doesn’t hurt to do a little research before your interview to find out if anyone in the company did attend your school. Name recognition for a school can also work at a national level, where older, traditional American colleges can sometimes have a leg up in terms of reputation over newer for-profit or 100% distance learning schools. Hiring managers across the country are likely to have some familiarity, for example, with an old name like Purdue, which now operates all of Kaplan’s former programs. They may be aware of a Catholic school like Benedictine, which has a big online offering and has been around since 1887, even if they’re not located anywhere near it.If Your Online School is 400 Miles Away
Some education websites say that an hiring interviewer will probably figure out that you got your degree online if your school is a long way from where you live. While that’s possible, it doesn’t really jibe with the reality of most higher education today. Students routinely travel to colleges and universities far from their homes, and it’s not at all a sure thing that having a distant school on your resume will tip anyone off that you were an online student.Handling Tough Questions About Your Online Degree
To begin with, you are generally under no obligation to reveal on a job application or a cover letter that you got your degree online. But if it comes up, it’s important to realize that you can make a big difference in an interviewer’s perception of your degree if you learn to talk about your school, your motivation and your career goals in a way that makes you look like a smart candidate.There are some typical objections you should be ready to “bat back” in order to get a job with your online degree. Studies have shown that some hiring managers think online degrees don’t give students the best problem-solving skills and don’t develop social skills because students never actually sit in a room with their teachers or with each other. Develop a “pitch” to tell them why you believed that an online degree was an excellent choice and the unique skills it’s given you. Some key points can help you make the case that your online degree was worth it:Are Online Degrees Too Easy?
This is a question someone may not ask directly, even though he or she may have it in the back of their mind. But you should be well qualified to deal with this issue. After all, you learned in classrooms during high school and may have taken some classroom-based college courses before starting your online program. You can compare your own experiences of online and traditional learning and let the company know that you feel your online degree program was rigorous and taught you what you need to succeed in the job world. Showing a positive attitude about your degree can have a real impact on the attitude of the person interviewing you.- Your Technology Advantage as an Online Degree Grad: Many companies struggle to find job candidates who are comfortable using a variety of computer and online applications. Emphasize that your online degree program has made you comfortable not only with the internet, but with using digital forums, online video and complex learning applications. That can help telegraph that you’ll be able to quickly pick up programs like Salesforce, Google Docs, Powerpoint or other applications that track everything from company website traffic to product delivery and customer satisfaction. Make the point that getting a college degree online has made you tech-savvy.
- Collaboration Platforms: Project management has become a big part of many jobs as companies in all businesses scramble to compete with each other to have the best websites, deal with customer complaints and deliver quality products online. Collaborative work platforms like Basecamp, WorkZone, Trello and others are used on a regular basis to help the various departments of a company stay organized in the development or improvement of company digital products. The familiarity you gain digital collaboration through an online degree program in working with other students and with professors should be portrayed as making you more comfortable than many other job candidates with participating in group projects online.
- Learning Discipline and Time Management in An Online Program: According to the National Center for Education Statistics, only about sixty percent of American college students who start a bachelor’s degree finish it – and that’s within six years, at residential or online schools. If you were able to complete a degree online, it shows you have a good deal of self-discipline and time management skill. After all, when you take a degree program online, there’s nobody standing over you to make sure you pay attention or get to your classes. And if you’re an adult with a job and children, as many online learners are, your degree can offer strong proof that you know how to manage your work and life commitments effectively. A potential boss may like to hear, for example, that you’re used to handling work issues that come up outside normal business hours when the need arises.
Picking the Online Degree a Hiring Company Will Respect
Hopefully you have obtained a degree that’s targeted at the career path you’re interviewing for. That will be an advantage whether you got a campus or online degree. Managers with jobs to offer frequently have to interview job candidates that didn’t think very clearly about what they wanted to do in life before they started school. As a result, they have a tough time connecting the dots between a candidate’s educational background and the job they’re hiring for. If you come in as a graduate who has carefully planned your career direction and obtained a degree that prepares you for it very specifically, you can come out looking smart with an online or a traditional degree in hand. Self-Motivation: In order to pass your school tests without face-to-face training by a professor, it’s necessary to be good at studying and preparing all on your own. Being self-motivated like that – rather than being someone who simply takes orders effectively, is something that many companies place a value on. With employees working virtually from home or traveling constantly, the company can have a real need to hire people who can motivate themselves to get the job done all on their own. You can help make the point about your personal drive with a quote by online degree graduate Maureen Johnson in U.S. News “I had to be self-sufficient…There was no hand-holding.” Career Re-Start: If you’re an adult learner, there’s a good chance that you went and got your online degree to make a career change or move your current career to a new level. Many managers will recognize that this is a far more valid reason to get a degree than many young students have. who simply go to college because their families can pay for it and it’s the typical thing to do at their age. Millennials who have come out of traditional colleges in recent years have a very mixed reputation among major corporations. Many companies consider them, frankly, a bit spoiled. You should feel confident the point that you went after your online degree with a very specific career goal in mind and now you’re ready to work towards that goal.Key Points on the Quality of Online Degrees
In 2010 The U.S. Department of Education released a study of online learning. Among it’s most interesting conclusions are that courses that are taught either partly or completely online result in better student learning that those delivered strictly through traditional in-classroom teaching with a live professor. Amazingly, this study also concluded that among face-to-face learning, blending online and classroom study and pure online learning, face to face learning appears to be the least effective. To make your case that your online degree was worth it, be aware of these key factors:Quality, Most Affordable Nursing Masters Programs Online
More Than A BSN
More and more hospitals across the U.S. have moved to a policy of hiring only nurses with BSN degrees (read here about the ANCC’s “Magnet Recognition Program”. While that’s expected to improve the quality of care, it’s also meant that the BSN degree on it’s own is less of a distinguishing factor for a nurse who wants to move beyond “floor” nursing in a hospital unit. Hence the growing popularity of nursing master’s degrees. Some of the least expensive online nursing master’s programs are offered by state universities. One caveat, however, is that many of them charge out-of-state students a far higher tuition rate than students who live within the state. Online degree programs from the better-known distance learning schools like Kaplan, Grand Canyon and others may be a bit more expensive than the state schools, but they generally don’t charge more for out-of-state learners, and are extremely focused on catering to working nurses who may need to take breaks from their degree programs to attend to family needs, and who may need significant help in the area of financial aid. Many of the larger schools also offer “accelerated” degree options that allow you to complete an MSN more quickly, while some offer RN to MSN “bridge” degrees that allow you to go directly from RN to master’s without taking several years to complete a nursing bachelor’s degree.Filling A Need For Affordable Care
Demand for advanced practice nurses with master’s degrees is likely to grow over the long run as our society ages, more complex treatment regimens are developed, and hospitals and clinics look for practitioners who can deliver high quality care at a lower cost than what physicians can do (BLS). Salaries vary widely from nurse educators to nurse practitioners, but virtually all jobs that require a nursing masters pay more than those that require only a BSN. The listing below of affordable online nursing master’s degree programs is based primarily on our research of cost per credit. Your net cost at any nursing graduate school will vary greatly depending on offers of financial aid, any credit transfer you may be able to do for previous schoolwork, and length of program. It pays to shop around and ask lots of questions before committing to a degree program.Good, Reasonably Priced Online RN to BSN Programs
Sponsored SchoolsLiberty University
Founded in 1971 by Reverend Jerry Falwell, Liberty is a private Christian school that has grown into the largest Evangelical university in the world, with 13,000 undergraduate students and 5,800 post grads on it’s campus in Lynchburg, Virginia. But it’s the online learning program at Liberty that’s truly massive. The school currently educates over 50,000 students every year through distance learning, with over 70 different academic specialties and degrees at the associates, bachelor and masters levels. It’s master’s programs in nursing are not at the bottom of the spectrum, but are in a moderate range.
Master of Science, Nursing Administration
Master of Science, Nursing Educator
University of Texas at Arlington
UT Arlington is a very large school with over 41,000 students. It’s nursing school says that “With low tuition rates and financial aid, our goal is to keep your costs low and your debt manageable.” The school offers an option to pay by the course as you go. Online degrees offered include:
– MSN Nurse Educator
– MSN Family Practitioner
– MSN Nursing Administration
Get free info on UT Artlington’s RN to BSN program
Would You Be Happier as A Doctor or A Nurse Practitioner? Surprising Trends
Doctors Under Stress
Doctors still earn handsome salaries – if they’re in the right specialty. According to a 2017 Medscape survey, MD salaries run in a wide range from about $158,000 per year for pediatricians to almost $500,000 for plastic surgeons. Nurse practitioners, by comparison, generally earn $73,951 to $122,007 according to payscale.com, though some top nurse anesthetists earning over $240,000 in certain states according to Beckers Hospital Review. But while doctors may earn more over their lifetimes, they’re now feeling a ton of stress from America’s relentless drive to contain health costs and make care more efficient. A 2018 survey by Medscape showed that 42% of physicians interviewed felt burned out and 15% were downright depressed. Women doctors, who have grown in numbers over the past 20 years, are even more burned out than their male counterparts. Forty-eight per cent of female doctors told Medscape they were burned out, compared with 38% of male MDs. Why isn’t being a doctor the kind of “golden parachute” it once was? MDs in the Medscape survey said they were sick and tired of spending too little time with patients and too much time on paperwork. Four out of ten said they were working too many hours and 26% said they did not feel respected by employers or coworkers.The New Nurse Practitioners
Some see the nurse practitioner career path as more attractive because it involves a far lower cost of training and more appealing work conditions than what doctors deal with. “You can become a nurse practitioner for…typically around $50,000 to $60,000,” says Ora Strickland, Dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Florida International University in an interview with U.S. News & World Report. Newly minted doctors, on the other hand, often emerge from medical school with over $160,000 in student debt. Tough Early Years for MDs Physicians must also do residencies after they finish medical school, which pay an average of about $55,000 per year (source: Medscape). The long hours and stress of medical residency are legendary. And when physicians emerge from residency and start out in hospital or private practice, they may be 30 years old and just beginning to earn the kind of money that can help them pay down their medical school debts. They may ultimately reach a high salary level, but getting there is a long, tough road. NPs May Do Better As a result, some nurse practitioners actually earn a higher salary early in their careers than the typical physician. They can also get out into full clinical practice at an early age and avoid the stress of residency. NPs have gradually gained more power and autonomy. Although they are unlikely to ever handle the kind of top level decisions doctors make on treatment of complex cases, most NPs are now authorized to diagnose a wide range of conditions and prescribe treatments for them. If you wish to become a nurse practitioner, it pays to research what the practice parameters for NPs are in your state.Nurse Patient Advocacy Can Improve Your Nursing Career
A Job Only a Nurse Can Do
Nurses spend more time in direct care of the patient than anyone else on the clinical team. In that capacity, the American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics specifies that you re expected to make sure that:- The privacy rights of the patient are observed.
- Regardless of social or economic position, every patient is treated with the same level of dignity.
- Your patient is educated to make informed choices on possible tests and procedures, and that he or she receives strong emotional support while they are being cared for.