Now, acceptance of the degree isn’t about online or traditional. Almost every college in the US teaches online now. Acceptance of the degree is a function of who you get it from. Some schools have a good reputation, some don’t.

Some examples of online degrees with a good reputation include UMass, U Florida, Florida State, Duke University, Stanford University, UC – several campuses, UCLA, Harvard, and probably the state U in your state.

I won’t publicly name those I think have a bad reputation but you’ve probably seen a few in TV commercials.

Be prepared for a very hard curriculum if you go with online instruction. It’s well worth the time and effort if you pick a good school. It’s a waste of time and money if you pick a bad school.

Toward some comments you may hear on this board: Harvard University offers courses online. That makes them an “online college” and there isn’t a college in the world that will refuse their credits. Some people are just stuck in 1962 when the only way to earn a degree was to sit in a lecture hall with Joe the graduate assistant. I’d take an online with a Harvard professor any day over the lecture with grad assistant Joe.

The quality of education these programs offer is minimal – there is simply no substitute for the kind of dynamic interactions and discussions that commonly occur in face-to-face college courses. Also, the quality of educator is significantly less at online universities – the best faculty choose to teach at real colleges and universities. Both the pay and work environments are far superior to online universities. So, for great classes from great instructors, go to a real college or university.

Also, because of the minimal training they offer, employers and graduate institutions place little value in degrees earned from online programs. Many of these programs lack even basic accreditation for the degree programs they offer.

Bottom line – you will receive little if any personal or professional benefit from online universities relative to what you could have received from a real college or university.

If your going to do that you mine as well go to community college and get a lower degree that has a little value.