Online degrees offer a fantastic opportunity for seniors to expand their knowledge and to make themselves significantly more employable all from the comfort of their home. Traditional colleges are expensive, get students into debt and take many years to graduate. Thankfully these 2021 online degrees available from prestigious universities won’t break your bank. Don’t wait – get a pen and paper and begin researching all your online degree options now!
Getting a graduate or postgraduate degree is one of the very best ways to improve your employability, to increase your salary, and potentially to enhance your career and lifestyle. Degrees represent a level of excellence and mastery in a subject that other qualifications can’t match.
The problem is that degrees are extremely expensive and typically take multiple years to complete. This is why they are typically the remit of young kids in their late teens and early twenties. This type of student has the free time and low-responsibility to be able to dedicate that kind of time, and take on large amounts of debt. Those of us with families, children, and mortgages just don’t fall into the same camp.
Except that isn’t necessarily true anymore. Today, anyone can take a degree and they can do it from anywhere in the world. It’s possible now to take an MBA from the comfort of your home1! For those not familiar with the term, an MBA is one of the very most sought after business qualifications in the world – and can help you to walk into a high-paying managerial role at many organizations.
This is a strategy that is now appealing to more and more people, and it is completely transforming the jobs market. In this post, we’ll explore the trend in a little more detail.
Why Get An Online Degree?
Online degrees typically provide a number of impressive advantages over their in-person counterparts.
With an online degree, you’ll be able to:
- Study during times that suite you – fitting around other responsibilities and commitments
- Study from home, from the comfort of your bed even!
- Choose from a near-limitless range of subjects – not limited by geographic constraints.
- Save money on student accommodation or commuting.
- Save money due to the lower cost incurred by the organization.
- Still enjoy the ongoing support provided by a recognized learning institute.
- Enhance your CV, increase your salary, switch careers!
This suddenly means that it’s feasible to become a student at any age. Many more senior citizens even are pursuing degrees and qualifications – either because they want to start a new career or business, or simply for the love of learning!
Moreover, this provides the opportunity for young professionals who are already employed.
The days when a person would commit themselves to a single employer for their entire lives are over. These days, we change our jobs on average every 4.3 years2. Sometimes this means changing to a different employer while remaining in the same industry. On other occasions, it can mean a complete career change!
Why Now Is The Time To Do It
What forces are forcing these trends? Why is now the time to invest in yourself and pursue further education?
One simple factor is that raises currently hover at around 3%. This provides ample incentive for employees to jump ship.
Another is the change in culture. Whereas it was once seen as noble to work the same job for 40 years, it is now considered a more fulfilling strategy to pursue your dream and perhaps see the world at the same time. The Instagram generation is less concerned with wages and more concerned with changing the world, helping people, or doing something creatively rewarding. Millennials therefore have a reputation for being “flaky” and struggling to hold down work.
The other thing to recognize, is that it’s now easier than ever before to find alternative jobs. The web makes it possible to work for a business on the other side of the world, or even to contract for businesses for weeks at a time. This is the “gig economy,” and it’s going to slowly erode the very notion of being “employed.”
For employers, it makes a lot of sense to hire a contractor from India to build a website in a week, rather than training a member of their own staff – especially when those members of staff might leave before the project is complete anyway.
This in turn means that employees are no longer progressing as quickly or developing themselves as much by remaining in the same job. Thus, if you want to start demanding big money, if you want to become a superstar in your industry… you need to take it upon yourself to develop your CV and your skill set. That’s how you set yourself apart, and that’s how you prepare yourself for the huge changes that are coming our way.
Types Of Online Degrees
There are a number of different types of online degree you can take. These vary in price, in duration, and in the range of different subjects you can pursue3. For example:
Associate’s Degree: This is a two-year degree that consists of roughly 60 credit hours. It’s a great starting point for beginning a new career, and is also half-way toward a bachelor’s degree.
Bachelor’s Degree: A four year degree (or two if you have an Associate’s Degree already) that predictably requires 120 credit hours. This provides a flexible form of learning that allows students to continue working full time, while still getting a complete undergraduate degree upon completion.
Master’s Degree: A master’s degree is a postgraduate degree that you can only complete following a bachelor’s. This is designed to improve your opportunities for advancement in a field of your choice. The programs are particularly appealing to those already working in a given field.
Doctorate: Believe it or not, it is possible to get an online doctorate in 2020! This is the highest degree available in most fields, and thus will open up a huge amount of opportunities. You will also gain an unparalleled level of authority regarding your chosen subject matter, which can be a huge benefit in nearly any line of work, even if you are self-employed.
Usually, you will pursue an online doctorate degree while continuing to work in the chosen field.
Take Your Next Steps Today
Of course, there are many other types of qualification and certification that the conscientious student can pursue, and even a diploma or certification can make a big difference when rounding out a CV. Look at your current experience and the opportunities that have come up in the past, and ask what would help make you even more appealing for employers. Finally, think about how a qualification can improve your reputation and your status – even if you are self-employed, this can be a huge asset trying to find clients!
Ready to start building your CV and furthering your education? Begin your search to find a huge range of amazing deals on qualifications!