A guide to going back to school as an adult

So, you have decided to go back to school. Firstly, let me applaud you for taking the first step to improving your earning potential and furthering your education. 

Not everyone is as gutsy as you. Not everyone is bold enough to set out a new career path for themselves. 

Because the reality is that going back to school as an adult is challenging. After all, you may need to find time to fit school into your already busy schedule. Like it or not, adult learners are often working full time and have families to support. 

This means that most are likely attending school part time and must find inventive ways to fit their studies into their schedules. You may consider night classes, but this option can still be limiting. 

Often, night classes are offered at set times that students must attend and represent an extra time commitment in the form of travel to and from campus. 

When something important at work comes up — like it always does — you will find yourself playing catch-up all the time. 

Now, if night classes are not an option, you may wonder what alternatives there are. Enter online learning at CCCK Online

With online learning, you can gain additional flexibility and autonomy without undermining your education. 

Unlike traditional education, online classes let you access course materials, communicate with instructors and peers, and complete examinations from any location with reliable internet. 

This means that students like you with other responsibilities can complete courses without having to take time off work. 

Other than that, here are some benefits that come with completing your degree online: 

  • It allows for self-paced learning

Traditional learning often works on a set schedule. An instructor discusses a topic to the class, gives an assignment, and quizzes them the next day. 

The next week a new topic is discussed, and the previous one can sometimes become an afterthought. 

Like it or not, students learn at different paces. Not everyone has the capacity to take everything at one sitting. 

Fortunately, this is not a problem with online learning. When learning online, you can revisit past course material or stop the online lecture to conduct additional research and organize your notes.

Doing this allows you to move through the coursework at your desired speed and get the most out of the degree program. 

It can also help you develop ownership of learning. When you know what, how, when, and how long to study or re-study, you can gain better insights into your education. 

Through this process, you can concentrate and throw in ideas and questions that can bolster your confidence to learn even more. 

  • It costs less than a traditional degree

Costs are often reason enough for most adults to forego their ambitions of furthering their education. 

But this is no longer such an issue with online degree programs at CCCK online. At several universities, the cost of tuition for an online degree is slightly less than the on-campus version of the same program. 

Even in the circumstances where this is not the case, getting your degree online can save you money in many other ways. 

You will not have to pay miscellaneous fees or housing if you live miles away from your chosen university. 

Regardless of how you look at it, taking college courses can deliver the best bang for your back. 

Now, you may wonder if online degrees are legitimate. Are they respected by employers? Will I get my dream job using it? The answer is yes to all three. 

In fact, recent data shows that 83% of employers feel that online degree programs provide an education that is identical in quality to a campus-based experience. 

This is because online learning prompts more frequent assessments and lets students know what areas they need to improve to understand specific topics. 

  • It increases your course options

Increased variety of education is another reason why choosing to study at CCCK Online is better than the traditional on-campus experience. 

Have you ever found yourself wanting to take up a degree in business administration only to find out that the closest university to home does not offer it? 

This can be incredibly frustrating, especially if you do not have the financial resources or the capacity to move to another state and pay for housing. 

This will not be the case with online learning. Since students are not required to travel, let alone move to be near campus, you can enroll in the course you are most interested in. 

  • It lets you build a customized learning environment

As mentioned above, learning is a fluid activity. No student learns at the same pace, or in the same way, for that matter. 

Some students need to learn in an environment that is comfortable for them to take in all the information and apply it to real-life situations. 

When you are getting your degree online, you can create a unique environment that is conducive to your studying needs. 

This can include getting rid of distractions and having a comfortable study space and the tools you need to facilitate learning. 

This is exactly the opposite of traditional learning. When you are learning on campus, you have no option but to ignore these distractions and find a way to learn. 

However, without those noises, you can absorb course material quickly and enhance the overall learning process. 

  • It creates a balanced life

Work-life balance is a phrase that gets thrown around a lot of times but only a few manage to achieve it. 

When you add school into the mix, balance can sometimes go out of the window. Whether you are part-time or full-time student, the online learning experience will give you that needed balance to set your priorities. 

While you may need to attend live discussions, demonstrations and lecture sessions in some cases, many elements of online education are asynchronous. This means that you can learn at the time of day and in the location that works best for you.  

When you are more in control of your schedule, time management goes seamlessly. It becomes easier to perform work duties and maintain an active social life while you earn your degree online. 

How to get started with online school as an adult

Now that we have established the challenges of going back to school as an adult and the benefits that come with it, the next stage is to get your learning hat back on. 

But before all that, here are some steps you can take to ensure a seamless transition and achieve success: 

  • Establish clear goals

If you want to go back to school for an online MBA, chances are you are seeking to have a career you love and a better life. But not to burst your bubble — those are not enough reasons to return to school. 

You need a particular goal in mind and a clear understanding of the best path to achieve it. This can guide the decisions you make each semester. 

So, you might be wondering how you do that. While there are no hard and fast rules, a rule of thumb is to answer the following questions: 

  • How quickly do I need to finish my online education to reach my goals and stay within budget?
  • Is returning to school to complete an unfinished degree a more sensible option than starting a new one?
  • How long will it take to get the training I need?

Getting answers to these questions will help you become more focused on goals, minimize stress, and pick the right degree program for your lifestyle. 

  • Build your support network

Now that you have a clear goal of why you are returning to school, the next step is to get your family on board. 

Make sure that they understand your goals and why you want to do this. Like any goal, you need other people to lean on to overcome challenges. 

Since going back to school as an adult is ripe with challenges, you need to have other people to support and encourage you to increase your overall success rate. 

Talk with your family about the time commitment it will take on your part and discuss ways each person can help support your goal. 

When you consider other people’s input, it may alert you to ideas that you might not have considered before, especially when choosing a degree program. 

  • Choose your degree program

If you are returning to school to complete an unfinished degree, then you can simply skip this step. 

But for someone who is looking to study an entirely new degree, this step can be critical in the online learning experience. 

Depending on your goals, you may want to align your chosen degree program with the most lucrative career in your area. 

Conduct research to determine what kind of training they require to be qualified for your desired position. 

For instance, you may want to try your luck in an executive management position. Your best bet is to take a degree program in organizational leadership at CCCK Online. 

Through this you will learn courses related to organizational behavior, principles of management, leadership management, and stress management. 

You may also consider how long it will take to complete the degree. Depending on your chosen university, a bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership online can take up to six weeks. 

  • Identify financial aid options

If you are an adult looking to go back to school, there is a good chance that you also have other bills to pay. 

To reduce the financial strain, you can explore financial aid options for your chosen degree program. 

Now, you might think I am not a high school student with excellent academic records or an athlete. How am I supposed to do it?

Depending on your chosen university, adults can be eligible for financial aid too. As a matter of fact, you may be eligible for more aid than you could get when you were younger. This is because your financial aid options will be based on your income and not your parents’ earnings. 

Universities like the Central Christian College of Kansas can help explore financial aid options for returning learners. On top of that, you may receive financial aid to cover the non-academic expenses. 

For instance, if you need to pay for extra childcare or transition to part-time work, you may have an option to use student loan funds to do so. 

  • Pick the right educational institution

As mentioned above, online degrees are respected by employers, but often top organizations will also find out where you got the degree. The reality is, choosing the right academic institution is as important as picking the right degree. 

It is not uncommon for most employers to conduct thorough research of whether the degree you have earned is accredited by specific regulatory boards. 

This ensures that you have the right training and skills necessary to perform your duties and deliver performance that positively impacts the organization. 

So, how would you know if your chosen academic institution is the right one — or how do you define the right university in the first place?

Ask other online students and each one will recommend you with their favorite academic institutions. 

Selecting the right university is very personal. What may work for your friends and colleagues may not deliver the same results for you. 

An excellent start is to check university rankings online. Some stick exclusively with providing you with general rankings while others may have separate tables for each degree program. 

Either way, you must examine the student–staff ratio of your chosen academic institution. The lower the ratio the better. In smaller online classes, you can ask questions and understand the topics more quickly. 

You may also want to consider checking reviews of your desired online university. The reality is, most online universities will hide the drawbacks that come with studying for them — you will be hard-pressed to find an academic institution that will admit that their degree programs are lacking in some areas. 

In fact, they do the opposite. They tell you how their degree programs will catapult you to the top and achieve your professional dreams. 

You cannot blame them though. They are doing what they are supposed to do. If you own a business, you are probably doing the same thing and highlighting the positives of your operations. 

But right now, this does not help you one bit. Luckily, there are reviews you can read online that will provide you with an idea on what you can expect from the institution.

By gaining these insights, you can clearly identify if your desired university can effectively contribute to your personal and professional goals.

As a word of caution when reading reviews, you must go with independent review sites as opposed to those presented in the university landing pages for complete objectivity. 

Furthermore, take the time to explore all the resources available at your university. Even if you are taking classes online, your university has lots of learning and study resources to ensure your success. 

From electronic books and online guidance counselors to other virtual learning resources, you should take all the help you can get to improve the entire learning experience. 

You may also have to examine the instructional models of your chosen institution. Consider how the university accommodates students who are returning to school as adults. 

At an instructional stage, this means finding out if your university has a robust foundation in andragogy, which suggests that adults learn best when the subject is relevant to them. 

In doing so, they can achieve transformational learning since they are able to evaluate and reflect deeply on their perspectives and incorporate practical applications. 

  • Check admission requirements

By now, you probably have either narrowed down your search or chosen an online university that will help you achieve your educational goals. 

The next step is to identify the admission requirements for the academic institutions that made your cut. 

Online applications differ in requirements but usually you will be asked to provide a copy of all your prior transcripts. 

This includes high school, undergraduate or any previous college courses completed. You may also add a Joint Services Transcript if you were in the military and vocational transcripts as they could count for college credit. 

Most university applications online can be completed in minutes and require a processing fee, depending on your chosen university. 

However, if you served in the military or fall within specific parameters, you may be eligible for a fee waiver. 

Get your online degree today at Central Christian College of Kansas

Going back to school as an adult can sometimes be overwhelming. Make the process seamless by enrolling today at Central Christian College of Kansas Online. 

Central Christian College of Kansas Online offers multiple associate and bachelor’s degree programs and certificates in high-demand areas such as criminal justice, business administration, psychology, organizational leadership and healthcare administration.


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