Smokey

Guys can you help with your experiences?....I've just read yet another post that would suggest that the academic standards are...um...not quite so high than in blighty. So as part of my long term plan I'm considering taking an online degree and the University of Phoenix has a good range). Trouble is, I'm not really an academic so I'd really like your thoughts on this (the standards that is, not my personal goal ). Questions that go through my mind are things like...does it really make a difference jobwise? Apart from jobs that need specific quals, does the subject of your degree make any real difference? Has anyone asked you about your Uni's accreditation? Oh yeah...and what's the easy,peasy,lemon squeezy-ist degree to take...you know the one that needs no brain so you don't have to remember dates!

You've probably noticed the odd sort of questions I've been asking lately and that's due to my life flushing down the loo so I'm trying to make some rather big decisions....can everyone/anyone help me out in trying to decide this one? Bear in mind I'm currently in Saskatchewan and looking to move to (probably) BC next year.

Glaswegian

The only experience I've got of Canadian degrees is from talking to unemployed Canadian IT graduates ... as far as I can tell an IT degree qualifies you for bar work ... just like a UK degree without relevant experience does.

The only new graduates I've come across that found employment easilly had landed an internship and were offered a job before they graduated.

Bob

Easiest courses would probably be liberal arts at a guess...

As for online, wouldn't have a clue....depends on how regarded the uni proper is regarded by people...like Kings College London offeres pretty good online courses, but then those ones tend towards political science and the like.

Glaswegian

The University of Athabasca does online courses too - equivalent to the Open Uni and worth a look.

I like the movies they sponsor on the Access channel

Bob

Goodthing about doing an online course, the uni could be anywhere, so don't have to limit yourself to one in your country...my missus wants to do the Kings College one because it's a great college and only place that does a politcal/terrorist analyst for a masters.

dingbat

The accreditation part is important if you need a license to practice or similar. Arts degrees are very easy as the standards are below the old A level GSCE level. I did a BSW in 16 months - start to finish with two three month breaks over the summer months. It is a four year degree; I got exceptions to policy and loaded the courses every semester. I am not the brightest button in the box either. I found the "university" level course work to be a joke in places. The only thing I struggled with was Math 104..lol...never my strong subject. University of Phoenix does not have a good reputation...it is like the old OU was before they tightened it up a few years ago.

Jonny

Perhaps it's important to remember that online courses will never get you as much accreditation as "real" universities. The system in Canada is definitely not easier than the UK. Speaking as someone who has done degrees in both countries, I've found the UK system much more relaxed and easier than Canadian equivalents. My Master of Science degree in the UK was easier than my Bachelor of Arts degree in Canada. BTW...I think that online degrees are seen almost like a joke, a degree that was bought online instead of earned. This is true of both the UK and Canada.

Gaz_F

I've spent 3 years working with the 'best' military recruits in the UK.

It leaves me cold.

My daughter's teacher admitted the A level English language papers could be written phonetically, or using 'text' language as long as the examiner understood the paper.

A phrase I have heard many times over the last few years regarding UK education:
'Standards haven't changed and it isn't a numbers game'.

Bo**ocks.

We hold up UK qualifications and accreditations as being a high standard.
I may be treading on toes, but if what we had to offer was so good, why are we leaving?
The UK has the worst education record in Europe. (As of September 2003) I don't know if Canadian education and training is better, but all I ask is to show them what I can do.
Anyway; Sorry, I feel like I'm ranting and I don't wish to go down that road.

Glaswegian

I can't believe A-level candidates are getting smarter every year either ...

Unless a degree is truly vocational, the only thing it proves is that you can stick at something for three years.

I've looked at doing a Masters in IT ... to be honest it would be a waste of time ... learning to play golf would be better for my career

Brodel

I dont believe that A-levels are getting as easy as everyone makes out. it annoys me when every year people do better, everyone comes out saying they must be easier.
I did mine two years ago and was the first to do the two tier system, and I worked hard on my A-levels and still didnt do so great, so I dont feel that they are easy.

Glaswegian

Either the quality of the teaching is improving, kids are getting smarter or the exams are getting easier ... something must explain why makrs are ever creeping upwards.

I didn't say they were easy ... if they were easy, everybody would be getting top marks ... but like most people, I don't understand how the number of students passing with high grades can increase every single year.

Jonny

When I was doing my Chemistry A-Level in the UK, we were using books that our teacher used when he did his O-Level Chemistry...

I disagree, doing a degree in any subject will teach you more than the subject itself, whether it be science, arts or IT. It teaches you to research and form an argument and back that argument up, it teaches you to be able to criticise someone else's argument, it teaches you to be able to interact with others and discuss and debate ideas, theories and science. This is where I think online degrees fail, while it may be okay to take one or two specific courses online, doing an entire degree online means you miss out on this physical contact and "live" interaction with both lecturers, professors and fellow students that is an important part of any degree course. Doing a degree can also teach you transferable skills, such as presentations skills etc, and can help a person to develop as an individual. Part of this learning is done through the course, but another large part is done through the experience of actually going to University. BUT I do agree that vocational experience is important and can help with these transferable skills, and simply having a degree doesn't put you in any better position for a specific job than someone who hasn't been to University but has the extra 3-4 years in practical experience. I did my degree, masters degree and now PhD for my own self satisfaction, not to be able to get a great job and earn tons of cash.

Gaz_F

Hi,

I wasn't attacking A levels enmasse. Just the exams my eldest took.
When I did my A levels I studied for two years and just passed them. This was 1982.
I looked at an English Literature paper from 2002 which a friend supplied, (I know this isn't a perfect example) but I could answer enough to get a C grade pass without even trying.
There is currently 3 white papers within the UK Government regarding education. ALL have been brushed under the carpet.

AHH!, enough biting.
This isn't an education debating forum.

Brodel, I wish you the best of luck with all your future endeavours. You'll never change my views, I'll never change yours.
Lets agree to disagree.

Glaswegian

It depends on the course you took ... I did science and by the time I gave up and walked away from my PhD project, I had very marketable skills that have served me very well in business.

However ... I seem to remember the skills learned by humanities students involved drinking heavilly and sleeping with the lecturers to get pass marks ... although of course those too are useful life skills

A lot depends on the personality ... I've met some major dorks who didn't appear to learn very much at university, but got a degree ... I've also met a whole bunch of very sharp people who never stepped foot into the academic world.

Nowadays I'm much more interested in the person and their skills than what bits of paper they have ... that also explains the "Canadian experience" requirement ... I want to be able to pick up a phone and call someone to confirm that the person I'm looking at can actually do what they say they can do ... I'm on the inside now and I know how the system works.

JAJ

- I think it's important to draw a distinction between an 'online' degree and a distance learning degree from a reputable provider, such as the Open University in the UK.

- That said, a distance learning degree will probably never be worth as much as a degree from Oxford or McGill, but for most people seeking to advance their career, does this matter as they're generally not competing for the same jobs as fresh graduates out of McGill?

- An important accreditation point to check is how the degree is accredited by the relevant professional or regulatory bodies. For example, if the (Canadian) degree is in accountancy, how is it viewed by CICA/CGA/CMA.

- The University of London is another reputable provider of distance learning courses in the UK, which is accessible worldwide:
http://www.londonexternal.ac.uk/

Jeremy