College Tuition is Skyrocketing

Check out this CNN's article,"Why Does College Cost So Much?" Independent Study is a great way to knock some the costs off of getting that degree.  Supplementing with online independent study classes can also knock time off of the education, putting you in the workforce and earning more money faster.

Make Your Money Go Further with Independent Study

Independent Study (IS) course tuition is often just a fraction of what an on-campus or online class would cost. For example, Spring 2012 tuition and fees for a three-hour course at Louisiana State University is $1328 for non-Louisiana residents.  A student needing an introductory accounting class can elect to take Introductory Managerial Accounting, for example, through independent study and pay only $403 including fees.  The student earns the exact same credit as she would on campus and saves a whopping 70% (or 41% if she is a Louisiana resident)!    While some schools charge the same rate for independent study courses and on-campus courses, many IS classes are available with MUCH lower tuition . . . It's worth investigating!

Can Independent Study Really Save You Time?

You bet! Let's look at this scenario: Nikki has been accepted into an MBA program at Great University. Since her undergraduate degree is in engineering, she has a long list of business prerequisites that she must complete in order to begin taking graduate level business courses. Great University has these classes available online, but they won't start for another four months. So Nikki investigates Independent Study courses at a university in another state.

Nikki finds a class that will satisfy her marketing prerequisite. She checks with Great University to make sure they will accept the credit. Since the school is regionally accredited, Great University has no problem accepting the credit. The bonus is the course costs about half of what it would cost to take a similar course at Great U. Nikki enrolls immediately. The course has 12 lessons and 2 exams. She makes a schedule, sticks to her plan, and completes the course in 12 weeks. . .in time for her transcript to arrive at Great U. before the registration deadline.

Nikki is able to register for her graduate level economics class!

What would the scenario be like if Nikki did not choose Independent Study?

 * She could have found a class at the local community college. It's semester based, so she would have to wait until the graduate economics class was offered again at Great U. She would have not saved any time.
* She could have taken the class at Great U. . .still not saving any time.
* She could have felt hopeless about the extraordinary time it would take to get her degree, and just given up!

If you find yourself in a similar situation, investigate Independent Study. Keep checking back her for information on an upcoming guide to Independent Study featuring dozens of regionally accredited institutions and thousands of courses that you can complete on your schedule!