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Girlwithaspergers
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21 Aug 2014, 12:24 pm

As many of you know, I had a very difficult time in private school (forget public lol) and my family decided against a 4 year university for me. They offered to put me through community college for now, but I recently dropped out by not paying my bill. I never even started. My family says that I need to get some type of a life outside of lounging. I still do have interests in acting and screenwriting/film which many people on here don't support. My only other interest is criminal justice stuff, but everyone says police work is also impossible because I have a psych record and have made threats and I don't drive, etc. Plus, I have a hunch that my interests both in film/acting and in criminal justice are due to me watching crime dramas and other cop shows all day which causes me to fantasize about actually living it out or of inventing and acting in my own crime show. Anyway, I mean I do have other interests and I'm a little curious or whatever, but the bottom line is I'm thinking of signing up for online college. Right now, Southern New Hampshire University looks the most legit and like it has the most to offer for a good price too, but it still looks a little cheesy to me. A lot of people do Phoenix or Kaplan or those but they have fewer majors than SNHU and seem to have a worse reputation for being only online. I came across a thread on another Aspie site where lots of Aspies said online degree programs were good for people like us, but not a lot of detail and I personally don't go on that site as much so I'm asking here if anyone has done college online and 1) which schools are worth it? 2) which majors are better and/or more employable 3) other stuff like that. I really need some advice because I'm running out of options as I haven't been able to find a new job and the only one I ever had is not worth going back to. I live in an area of the US where the job market is very small right now and most positions require training that I would need from a college or trade school. :?


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Diagnosed with Aspergers, ADHD, Bipolar Type II, OCD, and generalized anxiety.


kraftiekortie
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21 Aug 2014, 2:42 pm

The first thing you should find out about an online university: is it ACCREDITED?

Usually, in the US, colleges are accredited by state agencies. For example, in New York State, colleges are accredited by the Board of Regents. If a college is not accredited by the Board of Regents, it's not accredited.

Other states have similar types of organizations. You'll have to do research to find out which agency accredits colleges in your state.

If a college is accredited, any degree you earn is fully recognized throughout the US, and in many foreign countries as well.



MissDorkness
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22 Aug 2014, 10:26 am

KraftieKortie hit the main point.

When I was in uni (2008-2012), my school was just ramping up with online classes. So, I took my first few in person, then took a lot of the later ones online. There were some blended classes, too, but, I didn't take those. They had primarily online components, but, had a classroom set aside one night a week, if people wanted to come in to ask the teacher questions, or work together on a project.

The teacher has to be well organized to run an online class, most of mine were great, only had a couple that were meh. Lectures, presentations, readings, discussion group postings, quizzes, tests, etc... I really liked having everything laid out so clearly.

So, my point is, check regular brick and mortar schools and see which of their degree programs might be available online, too.



GoonSquad
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25 Aug 2014, 7:25 pm

DO NOT sign up with an online college!

These days any legitimate state run university or community college will offer extensive online classes.

If you want to do this as cheaply as possible, take your first 60 hours at an instate community college and then transfer to an instate university to finish your BA/BS.


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No man is free who is not master of himself.~Epictetus