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More adults than ever are pursuing online degrees while keeping thier day jobs. The savings in time and commuting expense has made a degree more affordable, and allows students to pursue an education while still tending to home and family responsibilities.

AfterI became an RN, I decided to take my BSN online. Nursing has traditionally been a field where workers tend to obtain advanced degrees over a period of many years. The typical RN-to-BSN program takes one year, and many universities have dropped the onsite clinical requirements.

Programs tend to be heavy in reading and writing papers. Key to success is organizing yourself at the very beginning, especially if you work full-time and have small children. Print out all course materials and place in a 3-ring binder. I spent an entire day printing, hole punching, and organizing my notebooks. The assignments due for the entire semester was given, and I planned my work.

NEVER wait until the last minute to do classwork. Most people don't like writing papers, especially detailed research papers rife with references and formatting requirements. I worked hard the first few weeks on my papers, and they were finished, proof-read, saved, and printed months before they were due. I could then put them aside for a month or so, and come back with a fresh eye for one final re-read before submitting.

Our program required regular, weekly online posts and chats with other students, and counted in a participation grade. Expect to show that you've read the assignment, and have a valid point to make. Simply posting "I agree" is not enough. By getting written assignments out of the way, I was able to contribute to the weekly postings in an intelligent manner.

Don't forget to allow for power outages, computer crashses, and other quirks of technology. One night when we were supposed to have a live chat, a huge thunderstorm left most of the students in the central part of the state without power. Our instructors were aware of the weather issues, and we simply caught up in the next chat. It is critical to insure that you have a reliable internet connection before taking an online exam. Once the exam was opened, you could not save it and return later-it was a one-time shot. If your power went out or your computer locked up while you were taking it, you were out of luck.

Just as those who work from home have to overcome the notion that since they are at home, they arent' "really working," the online student must reinforce to family and friends that they have to study. If you work a regular day job five days a week, you can set your study hours for after dinner each night. If you do 12-hour shifts as most nurses do, you can study on your off days when the rest of the household is at work or school. Whichever method you choose, stick to it firmly.

Our instructors were very accessible via email and chat, and I found no problems in getting an answer quickly when I had questions. Three of my co-workers were in the same program, so we often talked about school while at work. It was great to have that support group to ask questions of and just commiserate with.

One tip to save money-I got the book list for the course early enough to allow me to buy each semester's books at Amazon. I never paid full retail for any of my books, and saved about $200 over the entire program.

Planning ahead, getting organized, and completing all work as early as possible will help make the online experience an informative and pain-free way of getting your degree.

Learn more about this author, Roma Lightsey.
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