Online Education Requirements

Is a California Education Online Right for You?

Online education represents an incredible opportunity for millions of students every year. The chance to work toward their degree or diploma while working from home and not needing to attend regular classes is a boon to many, but it is not for everyone. Some people find that an online education is not right for their learning style, their organizational style or for other reasons. There are technical as well as personal requirements to any online education that must be satisfied in order to succeed in an online educational environment.

Technical Requirements

• Computer or Access to One
  It goes without saying that in order to be educated online; you will need access to a computer - preferably one of your own - that meets some minimal technical standards. Rather than going into specifics about how much RAM, memory or what processing power your computer should have, typically any computer purchased from a retailer within the last 5 years will have the technical requirements to keep up with an online education.

• High-Speed Internet Connection
  In addition to a decent computer, you will want to have a high-speed Internet connection capable of handling streaming video or the other high-end technologies that may be required for your online classes. High speed Internet connections are available through most cable and telecommunications provider through such technologies as DSL, cable or satellite connections.

• Basic Computer Software and Know-how
  Under most circumstances, any advanced software required to complete your course (such as web-design software for a web programming class), will be offered through your school for download, but your computer will still need to have some basic software applications and you will need to know how to access them. If your computer does not come with the Microsoft Office Suite, or something comparable, you can usually find it installed on the computers at your local library. You can substitute word processing software for Notepad or any other text-editing program on your system, but may be required to use Excel or another spreadsheet program. You may also be required to create a presentation using PowerPoint or its equivalent.

Personal Requirements

• Be a Self-Starter
  You should be the type of person who can set a schedule for yourself and get things done without procrastinating too long. You will receive only minimal direction from your course instructor(s), and if you can't motivate yourself to do the work from there, you may find yourself in academic trouble.

• Ability to Learn by Reading
  Not everyone is 'wired' to learn well through the things they read, some people find that they do best in a classroom/lecture environment where they pick up everything they need to know just by listening to the instructor. If you are not the type who enjoys reading nonfiction and learning from it, you might find an online education somewhat difficult to manage.

• Time Management Skills
  The ability to organize the time between your classes for online meetings, study time and time to actually complete the work assigned to you on time is critical. Often instructors will set a schedule at the beginning of the semester for when certain assignments must be due and you should be able to take this schedule and memorize it or refer to it frequently to know when to have your assignments completed and turned in on time.

• Strong Written Communication Skills
  95% of your performance in an online class will be gauged in the written form, either through papers turned in, discussions on bulletin boards or via e-mails. If you are uncomfortable typing or writing to express yourself, you may find an online education difficult to manage.

If you have more questions that have not been answered yet, see if they have been asked before as one of our frequently asked questions and the answers to them.