Running Head: Online vs.

Physical College 1

Does your education vary going online or in person?

Shirley Higuera

ENG 201

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Running Head: Online vs. Physical College 2

Does your education vary going

online or in person?
Introduction
Having an education is something that is valuable to many people. Due to certain

circumstances many can not go and attend college. Thus people consider taking time off or gap

years but these arent the only option. A personal reason usually doesn't permit a student to

actually attend college. Especially if they have a job that they need in order to pay for their own

expenses and college. As a way of continuing their education they can consider going to school

online. Online school gives access to a student to have the ability to learn and work in any

environment. " Online education is becoming more than a cheaper or less time-consuming

alternative to traditional education." (Rauch,2015.) Now, does an online student receive the

same education as a student who attends a physical school?

Personally, I am intrigued to find out if there is a difference in how the learning for a

student is set up. Currently, I am studying for Computer Science at John Jay College of

Criminal Justice. Meanwhile, my sister is currently studying for Forensic Science at the

University of Maryland University College (UMUC) online. Although our majors differ, the

concept of our majors dont as much. Conducting this research I hope to find out whether a

student is receiving the same education as a student would in a traditional school.

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Assumptions/Early Hypothesis

As years keep passing the price to to go to college becomes more expensive.

Unfortunately, the idea of taking out loans and debt can actually scare students. In which lead to

many not to pursue a college degree. On average Americans owe over $1.3 trillion in student

loan debt, spread out among about 44 million borrowers. In fact, the average Class of 2016

graduate has $37,172 in student loan debt, up six percent from last year. (Student Loan Hero,

2017.) Based on my observation , the curriculum between my sister and mine revolve around the

same concept. Also, the set up of her syllabus and class are set-up very similar to many of my

classes in John Jay.

Throughout my research attending online instead of a traditional school actually has its

perks based on career. Not only is online college available for you wherever you are but it can

also be more affordable, depending on the University. With the changing economy, some

students find that it is necessary for them to hold down full-time jobs while attending college,

and online degree programs make a higher education more feasible. For other students, they may

already be working in the professional world and are ready to enhance their skills to gain a

promotion or find that they want to change the entire direction of their career with a new

degree. (My College Guide.)

Methodology

In order to find the answer I am looking for, I researched on some information and decide

that it would be appropriate to interview my sister since she is the one with online experience. At

first, I believed that interviewing her would not be a success because she is always busy at work,

with her kids or school work. Overall,she ended up doing an interview over the phone while she

was doing her homework. For our phone interview, it was very quick and simple, she hadnt
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given much thought to any of the questions I had asked her. When I went to see her in order to

take a few pictures, I took advantage of that moment to ask follow-up questions, in hopes to

better responses.

For the interview we were on the phone in our own houses, but we had a follow up so I

could take a couple photographs. During this I had noticed that not only did she have to always

be multitasking but once it was 8:30, shed put the kids to bed and thats when all her attention

would go to her school work. On occasions, I know it gets hard to handle labs, discussions,

research so I tend to help her out on remembering due dates and with her discussions.

While taking the pictures for this essay, I found her dedication to her work very

motivational and inspiring. As, I found in my research With a large section of a colleges

student body now juggling obligations from career and family along with earning a degree, many

schools are offering online degree programs that prepare students for a wide variety of

occupational fields. (My College Guide.) I believe the picture below shows a hardworking

mother who is dedicated to expanding her dedication and juggling both family and her military

job.

Data

Analysis
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During my observation, and exploring her online school account, the setup is very similar

to CUNYs Blackboard. Truthfully, the only difference would be that you dont go to class and

report yourself, everything here is based on this website. Here you will find your lectures,

homeworks, group chats for your classmates, easy communication with the professor, important

reminders and e.t.c. This research successfully gave me insight on how similar our educations

really are and how successful one can be attending online.

Although my sister did explained several cons about going online. For example, team

work can be really one-sided, not everyone replies to the group chats and when they do show up,

its all the way at the end when no help is needed anymore. Also, communication with the

professor is very easy but it can take professors a really long time to answer, in which she said

that it can be annoying sometimes. Overall, she enjoys online school because she doesnt have to

be on the military base at school away from her children at all times. If she needs to research

information, it is easy for her to just take her kids with her to the library as they read books and

she finishes up her work. In my research I found out that Most online bootcamps and degree
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programs require somewhere between 10-20 hours a week depending on the intensity. (Rauch,

2015.) In which my sister had agreed on, she said School is dedication whether you do it online

or in person, it all depends on the student and the knowledge they are retaining in the end.

Conclusion

Overall, I gained an insight on online school and I believe my hypothesis was right. Like

any other school, every school has its disadvantages but it's what you make the most of your

education that really counts. Whether you attend a traditional college or go online, they both

offer flexibility, interaction with others and require dedication. In fact, within the United States,

6.7 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2011an increase of more than

500,000 students compared to 2010.(Bird, 2014.)

In regards to my interviewee, it was great hearing her point of view and thoughts on

college. Even though I work help her out with school, whenever really spoke about her

experience. I am beyond proud of her for choosing to continue her education and for that reason

one of my last picture is her undergraduate diploma.

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Works Cited
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Bird, K. (2014, March 19). Online vs. Traditional Education: The Answer You Never Expected.
Retrieved from http://www.rasmussen.edu/student-life/blogs/college-life/online-vs-traditional-
education-answer-never-expected/

My College Guide. (n.d.). Online College vs. Traditional College. Retrieved from
http://mycollegeguide.org/blog/2016/07/online-college-vs-traditional-college/

Rauch, J. (2015, January 15). Online Education vs.Traditional Education: The Pros and Cons.
Retrieved from http://www.skilledup.com/articles/online-education-vs-traditional-education-the-
pros-and-cons

Student Loan Hero. (2017, March 17). U.S. Student Loan Debt Statistics for 2017. Retrieved
from https://studentloanhero.com/student-loan-debt-statistics/