At he University of North Carolina at Chapel Hills Kenan-Flagler Business School, No. 11 on Forbes’ most recent list of the nation’s top business schools, a two-year MBA costs $111,000 in tuition and fees. But the school now offers the same degree online, at a 13% discount ($97,000). According to a new list of the 25 top online MBA programs from test prep company Princeton Review, Kenan-Flagler is No. 1, with an average quantitative GRE score of 156 and a mean base salary for graduates of $112,000. This is the first year Princeton Review has ranked online MBA programs. The motivation, says the company’s director of content development David Soto, is that the number of schools offering online MBAs is growing rapidly, from 68 schools in 2008 to 90 in 2012. As the online option becomes more accepted, greater numbers of students are taking advantage of the ability to keep working and earning while they study, and to avoid uprooting themselves to go to school far from home. “Students are reluctant to give up two years of salary to go to school,” says Soto, “and you can go to a great school, even a school across the world in Madrid. The online option is leveling the playing field for students who want flexibility.” The No. 3 school on Princeton Review’s list is IE University in Spain, which charges $58,320 for an online degree. The mean base salary for IE graduates is $113,800. When Princeton Review asked students how they chose an online school, reputation was the top criterion. Then came convenience and in third place, field of study. I would have thought that cost would matter more, but it was the last item on students’ lists. Still, the cost savings at some schools is substantial. At Auburn University in Auburn, AL, an online MBA costs just $27,900, compared to an on-campus degree, which is $65,500. Some other interesting statistics: 47% of the 2,000 online MBA students surveyed by Princeton Review were “career changers.” Some 42% of students surveyed at the top 25 schools said their employers were helping pay for their degree at an average of 61% of the degree cost. Also 44% of students said they got a promotion while earning their online MBA and their average base salary increase on completing the degree was 25%.

Although almost all nursing programs today blend online with practical experience, the AACN is quick to acknowledge the growing importance of going digital. In some colleges and universities that offer nursing courses online, lectures have been eliminated or replaced with interactive seminars. Some online nursing programs, for example, provide interactive seminars to students in all nursing courses. Seminars have multiple uses, including providing a platform for faculty to present information not yet available in a textbook, addressing topics that students have expressed an interest in, or answering questions on course content. Use of online seminars helps learners make connections among readings, online discussion, and written assignments.The instructor promotes these connections by clarifying concepts or helping learners think more deeply about a particular issue. Through this process, learners don’t simply memorize material for the sake of later “regurgitating” it on an exam. Instead, they must demonstrate mastery of the material, which faculty evaluates based on student posts on interactive discussion boards and written papers. In short, distance education provides a deeper cognitive exercise. Online courses from an accredited online nursing program are just as rigorous as you would expect traditional courses to be. Do not expect earning your nursing degree online to be any easier than in a brick-and-mortar institution. Online colleges and traditional colleges are accredited in the same way — they both must meet the criteria set by independent accrediting bodies to receive recognition by that body. One last word of caution: Make absolutely sure the online nursing program you’re considering is accredited by one of the two Department of Education-recognized nursing accreditors: The National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Accreditation by any other agency does not count. Accreditation by the Department of Education- recognized nursing program accreditors may not only ensure your freedom from online scams, but it may also make you eligible for student loans, tuition reimbursement programs, and many types of scholarships and grants. Online nursing degrees are legitimate so long as they are earned through an online learning institution that is accredited. Conduct plenty of research before you enroll in a school or program. This way you are reassuring your future employer that you received both a quality education and the training, knowledge and skills needed to excel in the nursing field. And, by the way, this also will mean you didn’t waste several years of time and money to receive a fake degree that most employers will likely not accept.

Ada Alers spent eight years working in the insurance agency industry when she realized it wasn’t really her calling. "Sometimes you fall into a career not by choice but by circumstances," says Alers, a single parent of two teenagers who lives in Manchester, Connecticut. "I needed a job." After thinking about what would make her feel fulfilled as a person, Alers began testing a career change by taking a couple of community college classes, ultimately deciding to pursue an online criminal justice degree at Bay Path University. "I find it really fulfilling to counsel people who have had rough times in their life," says Alers, who expects to graduate in May 2015 and work as a drug and alcohol counselor. For students like Alers, getting into an online criminal justice program is only half the battle. Once accepted, online students need to realize that it takes more than a degree to enter the field. For many students, experts say, obtaining additional training and professional development is key to maintaining a competitive advantage in the job field. "You routinely get hundreds of resumes from candidates who have criminal justice degrees with not much to differentiate them," says Philip Becnel, the managing partner of Dinolt Becnel & Wells Investigative Group, a private investigations firm based in Washington, D.C. "There still may be jobs for those students, but if you want to investigate at a higher level, you should consider something that sets you apart and that the agency really needs." Specializing within your criminal justice degree is one way to stand out among potential employers, says Scott Joubert, director of the criminal justice program at Bay Path University, which offers four criminal justice specialties: terrorism and homeland security, rehabilitation and victim advocacy, emergency management and criminal investigations. Students should start by looking at emerging trends and specialize in growing fields, such as those that focus on homeland security and emergency management, which provide business skills that can transfer to the private and public sector, says Joubert. Criminal justice students can also differentiate themselves from other job candidates by obtaining a minor, secondary degree or certificate, experts say. This can mean learning a second language such as Pashto, which is widely spoken in Afghanistan, or earning a certificate in criminalistics, which trains people in everything from ballistic testing to explosives.For example, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Independent Study Program offers free interactive, Web-based continuing education courses on a variety of topics from emergency management to hazardous materials.

Online accounting courses at the undergraduate level cover topics like budgeting, bookkeeping, financial statement preparation, federal taxation and auditing, This article looks at what is required in an associate's and a bachelor's degree program in accounting. Accounting degree programs at the associate's and bachelor's level are commonly found online. Many programs are in a hybrid format, with some courses online and others on campus. Other programs may be totally online, allowing students to access lessons as their schedules permit. In both the associate's and bachelor's degree programs, general education courses in subjects including social studies, English and math are required. At the associate's level, accounting courses may cover topics such as financial and managerial accounting. Bachelor's degree programs cover more advanced areas of accounting Students learn about tax requirements and how to conduct a professional audit of an organization's finances. An associate's degree program requires two years of full-time study, while a bachelor's degree takes about four years. Most states require that individuals taking the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam have at least 150 credit college credit hours, which is 30 more hours than most bachelor's degree programs provide. Anyone who wants to become a CPA will need to complete additional college coursework in order to take the CPA exam. Sometimes these courses are offered as a post-baccalaureate certificate program in accounting and are often offered online. Through an online associate's degree program in accounting, students learn the basics of proper business record keeping, financial reporting requirements and federal tax requirements. Elective coursework provides the opportunity for specialization in areas like fraud examination, taxation and non-profit accounting. Accounting program candidates sharpen their math skills and graduate with the ability to avoid and detect common calculation errors. Prior experience with computers, especially spreadsheet and database applications, may be beneficial to students because this knowledge is useful for completing class assignments. A full-time student can complete the associate's degree program in accounting in two years. Some schools offer such programs entirely online while others may use hybrid courses where students are expected to fulfill a small portion of on-campus, face-to-face time with their instructors. Students receive lectures and complete class assignments through the school's Web-based system.