A lot of people think that the path to higher education is through traditional educational pathways such as attending a university or college. I believe that there is a revolution underway that is going to completely alter that paradigm. That revolution revolves around distance learning.
When I say distance learning I really mean self study. Distance learning happens to be one component of a modified self study program. You see, universities just aren’t that efficient. The world is moving at far too quick of a pace for universities to maintain their current foothold on high level education. By the time a typical university develops a course outline for a new curriculum, the material that they begin teaching is already somewhat outdated. This may or may not be true depending on the topic.
The fact of the matter is that any person who has developed the ability to learn efficiently, can quickly learn most fields in a really short period of time. It is entirely possible for a person to soak up the knowledge equivalent of a Bachelor’s Degree from a traditional university in a much shorter time frame. I would argue that a person could learn that much topically specific knowledge in as little as one year on their own.
Much of a student’s time at a university is spent studying other elective areas that have no direct relevance on the student’s specific career choice. Yet, this student is expected to study and absorb this seemingly unimportant information. Don’t misunderstand me. I believe it is really beneficial to be well rounded in terms of education. Universities will continue to provide that level of education. However, if a student wants to learn absolute cutting edge material, he usually has to seek additional more recent knowledge from sources outside the university experience.
This learning never stops for someone who is to stay on top of their field. Their research and career improvements must come from outside that university they attended long ago.
The cost of attending a traditional university is also on an unsustainable parabolic slope. The cost of education is outpacing the return on investment that you get for that education. This must come back in line if the traditional college atmosphere is to survive as the primary source of higher education. Otherwise, you can bet that the free market forces of the American economy will offer solid alternatives. You are already seeing this with the online schools that are gaining traction.
As these online schools gain traction and credibility, it will become increasingly more difficult for the old paradigm of colleges and universities to survive. They will be forced to become more specialized as well as reduce costs so as not to drive away underfunded students.
The internet revolution in education is for real
If a person possesses the true determination to do so, there is nothing stopping him from learning practically any profession on his own time through his own self studies. There is so much information available for free. There is also a tremendous amount of cutting edge information available through sources such as Amazon.com and other major book retailers.
The only thing stopping a person is his own desire to truly learn the material at hand. The internet has also made it easier for just about anyone to share the information they have accumulated about a particular field of study. Granted, not everyone who wants to share that information has information worth sharing. Also, not everyone can communicate well enough to get their points across. Nonetheless, the trend is underway. There are people offering free coaching in all different curriculums if a person is just willing to look for them hard enough. Combine that with a strong desire to learn the material and sufficient access to written materials on the subject and you have a combination that is hard for any university to match.
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- Online Education Degree – 7 Things You Must Do Right To Succeed
- Distance Learning Degrees – What Do Employers Think Of Them?