Online Classes at Universities

Source: Online Course Concerns

I have now been a student at NDSU for roughly eighteen months (3 semesters) and taken a wide variety of classes, twenty-three different classes to be exact. Of those twenty-three I have taken, ten of them have been online courses, so I would also say I have a decent amount of experience with Online courses. Today I am going to break down the varieties of online classes I have taken, briefly go over what subjects I found easier, which classes gave out heavier work loads, and weather or not I would recommend taking certain classes online or, in an uncomfortable chair with a professors guidance. Maybe in some ways this will provide insight to someone just starting their college education who hasn't experienced what an online class at a University is like. Before I dig in I would like to mention that online classes are not ideal for everyone, and some people my hate my opinion, and that's okay. Sometimes you just need the in person class to tie you down, some people need to be entirely in person, some people need to be entirely online, I personally am somewhere in the middle.

My academic experience with online courses started small, which is something I would always recommend, my first semester at NDSU started with just a singular online course, which was Health and Nutrition. For me this course was pretty much as easy as it gets, and is the one and only course that I would recommend every person to take online. This course only took roughly twenty to thirty minutes a week to complete, had no tests, and only one assignment a week. My professor was extremely flexible, and always work with the students if they were struggling to get their work done (even though there was no excuse, the class was so easy). The reason I would recommend this class online rather then in person is because although the lecture is interesting, the information provided in the lecture isn't necessary to complete the homework, there again is no tests, so the lecture all together is unnecessary. 

After having tested the waters of online courses I decided to up my load in my second semester. I took an introductory business applications class, as well as a world film class. Both of these classes were only offered as online courses, which again were not overly difficult. If you are ever looking for a random class to fill an elective with I would definitely recommend THEA 105, this course was interesting to see movie culture around the world, while also not giving you an overwhelming work load. The online format of the class was easily accessible and an overall pleasant experience. The business applications class I took would have been weird to take in anything other then an online setting, as it was entirely working with excel, and excel equations, a very valuable skill set to have which I would recommend to anyone, not just those required to take it. My freshmen year was wrapped up by an online psychology course in the summer, which was an excellent experience. I personally love taking psychology courses online, I find psychology to be an interesting topic, and when I take it in an online setting it can be a nice break from other stressful classes. 

After several pleasant experiences with online classes I went into my sophomore year with nine credits worth of in person classes, and nine credits of online classes. I found this to be an excellent balance for myself with the classes I was enrolled in and my job. I took Accounting 200, Macroeconomics, and another psychology course. Accounting is one of those classes that I would say not everyone should take online. Accounting itself is very time consuming, so trying to learn accounting while also putting hours into the assignments every week can get to be overwhelming. I had taken multiple accounting courses previously so online was the perfect option for myself, but if you have never taken accounting before, I would recommend taking accounting 200 in person as assignments alone can add up to north of five hours a week. I took microeconomics in person the semester before I took macroeconomics online and for me the online option was much easier. In my in person economics, had things played out slightly differently, I could have ended the class with a D, some of this is a result of the professor, but not all. When I took online economics I easily secured an A in the class and found the material used in the online course much easier to understand and more interactive. 

All of this leads up to where I am now. The balance I had last semester of three classes in person and three online is what I opted to go with again, but it is not all sunshine and rainbows. The work load I have this semester is already significantly higher then it previously was, which I am managing, but has taught me a little bit about the difference between a 200 level class and a 300 level class. When making the transition from one to the other you need to be cautious with the load you choose to give yourself, and take it easy like you would your freshman year.

Online classes are an amazing way to improve your time management skills and make more time available for other activities due to their flexibility. I personally love online classes and think they are an amazing way to take some of the unchanging schedule of lectures off your back. You still need to know your limit on how much is too much so be cautious when testing your ability. It took my multiple semesters to find that ideal balance between online class and in person class. I do love online classes, but I could never go entirely online as it is important for me to at least have a couple in person lectures to have some base structure to my busy schedule. When you do find a well working balance it can ultimately free up a lot of the day for other opportunities. Thank you all for taking the time to listen to my advice and I hope something in this blog is useful to you. I hope you all have an amazing week until the next time I post!