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Just as it has with many other aspects of modern life, the internet has changed the face of how we are studying and learning. First of all, you have access to an almost unlimited stream of information at your fingertips. Secondly, you can communicate with tutors, teachers and professors at the touch of a few buttons. On top of this, you can complete assessment activities digitally. Many learning institutions have gotten involved in these trends by offering courses of their own online. Here are just a few of the other main reasons why more and more people are choosing to study online.
Variety of Programs and Courses
Rather than being restricted by the number of courses that are available at institutions local to you, distance is no longer an issue. This means that you have access to a wide variety of courses from the more traditional like a language course to ones that are more specialist like an online safety degree. You also have a wide variety of options from the basic accreditations to doctorates.
Lower Costs
Since online courses don’t require the traditional learning apparatus like classrooms, materials etc, these savings can be passed onto students. You also don’t have to worry about commuting costs, buying textbooks and other similar expenditures. Free online courses are also available for people who want to learn but they don’t have the money to spare, making education a lot more accessible.
Convenience and Flexibility
One of the biggest points in favour of online courses is the convenience and flexibility that they provide. People are able to plan their study time around what they are doing during the rest of the day. Rather than being dictated to the times they should be learning, they can decide those times for themselves. This is especially useful for students who need to balance their learning around their family commitments or other important aspects of their lives.
Continuity in Profession
One of the main things that worry people about studying is the need to take time off from their job and the loss of income this entails. Studying online allows people to continue in their current position, while also taking steps towards job advancement or possibly even a change of career entirely.
Development of Technical Skills
A benefit of studying online that isn’t quite as obvious is the development of new computer and other technical skills if people don’t have them already. The skills developed in these kind of courses can be transferred onto a variety of different job roles. This may be especially useful for older students who have never had the opportunity to develop these skills in other arenas.
Of course, there is still a lot to be said for traditional courses and classes as well, but these are just some of the advantages that learning online provides which explain why more and more people are making the choice to learn in this way.
The internet is the true land opportunity. Almost anything is possible on the internet thanks to a mix of anonymity and constant technological advances. If you want to study online and obtain a degree in something you love, you can. If you want to become a celebrity known for gaming, then you can do that too. If you want to roleplay as someone of the opposite sex, then there are places to do that as well.
For all the shady things that the internet offers, you can’t deny that there are countless opportunities waiting for you somewhere in the digital realm we refer to as the internet. However, there are of course some limitations to this, but when it comes to legitimate beliefs and dreams you have, there’s almost nothing stopping you from doing something wild or productive.
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Studying online is easy
If you want to stay on the academic path but can’t due to expensive tuition fees or your current location blocks you from doing so, then there are plenty of online resources that can teach you anything from driving a car to designing a website. For instance, you could attend an OLOL college online to learn how to become a nurse. This is great if you want to get a headstart for medical school, if you want to test what it’s like to care for others, or if you’re looking for a career change to something more compassionate. There are countless things to learn online and you can do it for the sake of fun, to start a job, or even to learn new skills for your current choice of career.
Become known for something strange
If there are people on YouTube with hundreds of thousands of subscribers for diving into bathtubs full of slime and hot sauce, then you can carve your own niche and become known for something ridiculous as well. For instance, the infamous HowToBasic channel involves a man behind a camera that throws eggs, makes a mess, and puts his thumb up to indicate his satisfaction with what he’s just done. And the best thing about it? These aren’t just hobbies or silly side activities they do, but they’re actually jobs because of the amount of YouTube views they get. So if you want to do something ridiculous and get paid for it, try starting a YouTubing career.
Live a second life (literally)
There are people who love to play video games not just for fun, but for the sake of escaping reality and sometimes even living a second life. For instance, there is a well-known multiplayer online video game called Second Life which came out in 2003 and has yet to be dethroned despite its somewhat dated appearance. Second Life allows players to not only play as a character but also create their own worlds. It enables players to buy and sell virtual fashion items, become a monster, a fantasy creature, or even a person of the opposite sex. They can dress up, play games, meet people, and quite literally live a Second Life. In the past, there were even talks of Second Life becoming a new frontier for educational uses, such as showing exhibitions inside the game or even starting lectures.
