It is possible, but my experience hasn't been deep enough to produce meaningful results. However I am leaning toward the belief that successful online students may be more motivated, thus producing a higher quality and superiorly motivated individual.
Howard
Personally, I'd hire the person who didn't study online in this case. I feel a bookkeeper should know how to interact with people. Someone who studied in a classroom full of people will be more sociable then someone who did all studying from in front of a computer.
You bring up a good point about the sociability of the traditional classroom. The sociability factor is one of the main problems I have with home schooling and online education for young children.
There are many reasons why students choose to take online classes. Perhaps they live far from a college; or maybe they work full time and can't attend traditional classes; etc.
Can you think of any qualities that the online student might possess that would make them desirable job candidates?
I am interested in your thoughts :)
Jane
Yes I would hire the canidate who took the internet based course. I would look into the course and made sure of its validity. And my decision would be based soley on experience and knowledge
Lillian,
Your response shows that online education has made significant headway in education as well as business. Well, almost. I noticed that you would still want to check out the course that was taken. Would you also do that for the applicant who attended a "traditional" college?
Just curious :)
Jane
I would hire the candidate who was trained online if she/he was the best candidate for the job. Education is something that a person has to put effort into. Just because one sits in a class doesn't make them "smarter" or more qualified. Online courses take a great amount of learner initiative and it says something about a person.
However, regardless of the way a person was trained, I would administer knowledge tests and personality tests to all candidated to ensure a good match for the current team.
I, personally, like online training and degrees, but as a hiring manager I am still skeptical if people who choose online programs work well in teams. I think personality tests help to ensure the candidate has suitable social skills to compliment there degree. I also think online courses are a lot more work, so it does tell me the candidate isn't scared of hard work.
Suzanne,
You bring up an excellent point that education requires effort; especially online education. Self-motivated people are definately more successful as online students.
Do you think that online education is more acceptible among employers than it was 5 years ago? I am interested in your thoughts.
Thanks,
Jane
Do you think that it is possible for online programs to foster teamwork?
If so, what methods could be used?
:)
Jane
Yes, you have to utilize technology. Chats, email, discussion, and postings. Also with the ability to use net meetings and remote desktop connections it can be very successful.
Having people take classes with such rich technology will help businesses tremendously. This is very important for career schools.
Education is the key to successful!
I don't think the majority of employers look at where a degree is from...unless you have a specific career like medical, law, etc.
I think it (the degree) is a mere formality that they look for to qualify someone for a job.
However, I do think online degrees have raised the bar, if you will. Employers now expect (and they should) more people to have them so they require them for positions they didn't use to or positions that don't require them.
I do a lot of career counseling and speaking to hr managers and they all look for personality. The degree seems to be a check box they have to check.
Generally, yes I would hire soneone that attended or completed their degree through a distance learning program. I would ensure that they in fact completed their degree from an institution that held its accreditation from one of the DOE approved bodies, actually completed course work versus ctredit for life experience, etc.
Recently, an article that was in the Chronicle of Higher Education revealed that many more people today were taking advantage of online and distance learning opportunities but employers preferred those who earned their degree from a more traditional program.
I would not use the online vs. in-class accomplishment of a degree as a selection criteria. Assuming that the learning outcomes were assessed equally in each program, the method of delivery is not relevant. I would gladly hire a candidate that accomplished their credential using online learning. In many cases it demonstrates a higher level of discipline and self-motivation than what is required of an in-class student.
Paul,
Did the article say shy employers preferred traditional learning over distance learning? What characteristics do online learners have that would make them good employees?
:)
Jane
Paul,
This answers my question in your other post...
Thanks,
Jane
Hi, could it be that you have me confused with 'Paul'? (just above)
Before hiring anyone I would need to make sure that the school they attended was accredited and I would want to see an unofficial copy of their transcript to ensure that they have the appropriate courses. I would also give a test to any prospective employees. As long as they pass my bookkeeping test and took the classes I require from an accredited school it would make no difference to me where they got their degree. I would still ask for an official transcipt once I hire them.
Hi Anne-Patricia,
It seems that your requirements are a good education, at an accredited institution, and good grades (transcript required)regardless of whether the classes were online or held in a traditional classroom setting. Am I right?
Do you think that there are some qualities that online learners possess that would make them good employees?
I am interested in your thoughts :)
Jane
Thank you for the learning. I think the opportunities with technology are endless, and the brick and morter institutions of taday will cease to exist in the future. Would you agree that the need to physical structures will be negated with techgnology?
