NIU

Education

Posted by Stacy on Monday, February 16, 2009 8:18 AM

My roommate last year took a few classes online through our university over the summer. It was much better than doing summer school here because we are out of state students and like to be home for the summer and also at home because the credits and grades often don't transfer or get messed up. She told me about them and I ended up signing up for one during the fall semester.

I took art history online and it was the greatest class I have ever taken. I could read when I wanted and I could take the tests on my own time from my home usually. It was a great opportunity to have and since I felt like I had more control over it and actually feel like I learned more from the online class then from my regular college courses that I attend on campus. No wonder people get their online degree.

It was so convenient and there were so many classes offered and I was able to take it whenever I wanted. I could sign up whenever and then it would last for 9 weeks or whatever the allotted dates were. I didn't have to wait for that semester or the next semester to do it. I also liked that I got to have credit on my regular transcript and that it counted towards my GPA. A lot of summer classes you take at different schools (out of state students like me end up taking courses at home over the summer) transfer the credits but not the grade you got for the course. And typically when you are only taking one or two courses over the summer your grades are good and you want them to be able to go onto your GPA and count towards it to help you overall.

I think that the option of online courses has really helped me raise my GPA and get courses out of the way to help me focus more on my major. By taking electives over the summer online or over breaks I am able to spend more time in classes that I need to prepare me for my career in the future. I think that this is a great option to have and I am extremely thankful that I am in college at a time when this is popular.