Are online degrees just as accepted at graduate schools as are regular undergrad degrees?

Monday, February 2nd, 2009

Are online degrees just as accepted at graduate schools as are regular undergrad degrees?

I am curious as it pertains to graduate schools as well as employers. Do they view online degrees the same as a regular four year degree?

It depends on the school you attended. If it was not a reputable school then many grad schools - and most of the strong ones - will not accept that degree. Some (usually lower tier) will. Most won't. But if you did an Online Degree with a school that is highly reputable - which has a great rep for its brick and mortar campus - then yes, many grad schools will be okay with that. Some won't, but many will.

In addition, be aware of any accreditation requirements that schools in your field must have. Your undergrad school, at a minimum, should have been regionally accredited in order for it to be acceptable, but some fields also require that undergrad programs have had certain types of professional accreditation. For example, if you studied engineering with a school that was regionally accredited but did not have ABET accreditation for its engineering programs, you are sunk.

So, online degree from Carnegie Mellon? You're probably good. online degree from U of Phoenix? Not so good.

do colleges like UCLA or something equivalent offer graduate degrees online?

This entry was posted on Monday, February 2nd, 2009 at 6:33 am and is filed under Online Graduate Degree. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

4 Responses to “Are online degrees just as accepted at graduate schools as are regular undergrad degrees?”

Molly M Says:
February 2nd, 2009 at 12:20 pm

I would like to know the same thing. I am starting my MBA next week, and some of the courses are offered online. I was wondering if this would make any difference to a potential employer. I think as long as the school you go to is accredited and is a reputable institution, you should be okay.
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Alissa Says:
February 2nd, 2009 at 12:38 pm

It depends on the school
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Doug G Says:
February 2nd, 2009 at 12:50 pm

I believe that most schools will accept an on-line degree the same way they would a traditional degree, provided it is an accredited program recognized in the country or accrediting body for the school you are interested in.

I base that on my research into the validity of on-line graduate school recognition and acceptance by major universities for employment purposes. Many of the major universities I looked at showed that a number of their professors obtained their graduate degrees at non-traditional universities, but that all of those non-traditional universities were accredited in the http://www.ope.ed.gov website.

With that said, the best way to be sure is to contact the admissions office at the graduate school(s) you are interested in and ask specifically how they would view your undergraduate background.

When you get that answer, make sure you get the name of the person answering the question, ask if that information can be found online at the school website, and document the information you receive. Very few things are as frustrating as wasting time and money as a result of bum information that we can not even document where we got it from when faced with a contrary situation!
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RoaringMice Says:
February 2nd, 2009 at 1:04 pm

It depends on the school you attended. If it was not a reputable school then many grad schools - and most of the strong ones - will not accept that degree. Some (usually lower tier) will. Most won't. But if you did an online degree with a school that is highly reputable - which has a great rep for its brick and mortar campus - then yes, many grad schools will be okay with that. Some won't, but many will.

So, online degree from Carnegie Mellon? You're probably good. Online degree from U of Phoenix? Not so good.
References :