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In the recent decade, online education has emerged as a worthy alternative to the ‘traditional’ – physical attendance-based, approach of education. A working individual or a remote student seldom prefers the traditional mode of education, instead opting for online courses due to their time constraints. Although ‘open universities’ have been present for a while, the content and the student support provided by them simply pales in comparison to that provided by an online institute. However, ultimately the goal of any education is to be able to provide employment and that raises an important question.
Do employers value online degrees?
The short answer to the first question is – Yes and to understand why it is so, consider the following qualities that an employer seeks in an employee and then relate it to the mode of online education.
Institute of Graduation
The first and foremost detail that an employer registers while screening a prospective employee, is from where he has graduated from. The higher the prestige and reputation of the institute of graduation, the higher the guarantee that the prospective employee would be able to effectively handle the given task.
Here the mode of education doesn’t matter much, as the employer perceives the ‘brand’ image of the graduate institute. An employee having an online degree from a higher-ranked prestigious institute would always be preferred over an employee having a traditional degree from an average institute.
Work Experience
The work experience of a candidate is another criterion for his/her employment. Work experience reduces the hassle and the time required for an employee to train and supervise an employee. It ensures that the employee can operate at the maximum efficiency from the get-go, another major reason why start-ups only hire experienced people.
Here again, the model of education doesn’t matter much, as the candidate having an online degree and a reasonable amount of experience would be able to handle a task with far better dexterity than a graduate with a traditional degree and zero experience.
Intrapersonal Skills
A student who can graduate from an online course while being employed demonstrates his high levels of commitment, motivation, and management skills. It is given that he has complete control over his emotions and is highly resilient for the sake of self-improvement. Such qualities are often sought after in a candidate by recruiting companies. So, a company which understands this, and most of them do, would find no qualms in employing such a person.
Academic Profile
Online curriculums are as rigorous as their traditional counterparts, the only difference being that a student relies more, almost completely, on self-study, discipline, and time management skills. Several colleges have begun to conduct online semester/annual examinations for many of the traditional ‘offline’ courses. So, now that it is established that the level of difficulty of both, offline and online degrees, are similar, a student archiving high scores in an online exam can be considered to be on par with one who does so in an offline exam.
In that respect, it makes sense to employ a candidate with a higher academic profile (based on the scores) irrespective of whether he has graduated from an online course or offline.
All being said, not every online course should be pursued by an aspirant, he should always check these two factors before enrolling into an online education institute-
- Accreditation
It is of utmost importance that the institute and its courses are properly accredited by the relevant authorities or the governing bodies of the state. A course that is not accredited by the relevant authorities holds ‘zero’ value for the employer and adds ‘zero’ value to the knowledge of a person. Checking for accreditation is a very simple process, all it takes is a simple search on the internet.
- Reviews from the Alumni
Alumni reviews are the best way to provide an insight into the ‘inside environment’ of an institute – The faculty, faculty, and the placement. There are several forums, social media groups, and websites where alumni of the said institute gather to share ideas and guide fresh entries into the institute.
The arguments above have established or at least justified that employers do value online degrees while recruiting. After all, as long as he has the appropriate experience and skills necessary for the job, his mode of graduation – online or offline, shouldn’t matter much. So, if one is seriously considering online education but fears for his employability after graduation, rest assured and go for it.
