Kaplan University - top tier education online

One of the best online universities is Kaplan University. Similar to other online universities, Kaplan University was established to accommodate working students. Kaplan University is based in Davenport, Iowa and has 8 campuses in Iowa and Nebraska. Do to the popularity of the online school; Kaplan has created support centers in Chicago, Phoenix, and South Florida.

About Kaplan University
Kaplan University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Currently there are over 41,000 students enrolled at Kaplan University online and on-campus. Kaplan University is not as large at the University of Phoenix, but it is growing. Kaplan University now employs over 1,400 people in South Florida, 600 in Chicago, and 100 in Phoenix.

Kaplan University offers associate's degrees, bachelor's degree's, master's degree's, and doctorate degree's. There are 10 schools that make up Kaplan University: Business, Nursing, Arts and Sciences, Criminal Justice, Education, Legal studies, Information Systems and Technology, Health Sciences, Kaplan Continuing Education, and the Concord Law School of Kaplan University.

Two of the largest programs at Kaplan University are the Nursing School and Concord Law School. Kaplan University's School of Nursing received national professional accreditation for its Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Registered Nurses that enroll in the course will learn how to interact with doctors, patients, and fellow nurses. The students will enhance their current skills to include additional training in applied sciences. The Concord Law School gave Kaplan University a boost in October 2007 when they decided to merge with Kaplan University. The Concord Law School of Kaplan University is one of the largest programs offered by the school. Since the State Bar of California and the American Bar Association does not accredit online schools, they do allow graduating students to take California's bar examination and the students will be able to practice law once they are admitted to the bar.

How Kaplan University Works
Kaplan University works similar to other online schools, students can access the web site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Students have the ability to control their school schedule to make it work around their needs. When you enroll at Kaplan University, a guidance counselor will contact you about your schedule and degree. They will create a guideline for each student as to how long it will take them to complete their educational goals. The cost of online learning is not cheap, at Kaplan University it costs $395 per credit hour, and most courses are between 2-4 credit hours. Since the average cost of tuition is about $12,000 - $14,000 each year for full-time students, Kaplan University does offer scholarships, loans, and Federal Pell Grants. One of the largest differences about Kaplan University is their free text books. The text books are included in the fees, so students will not need to worry about purchasing them outside of tuition fees.

Some former students of Kaplan University have stated that the students don't actually need textbooks because the classes use an E-course format. The E-course format allows teachers to create their own textbooks for the course using relevant information that pertains to the class. Students can access the E-course books online, and they can print them out. Depending upon the instructor and the class, the E-course books can be a few pages to hundreds of pages long. Not having physical textbooks is a common complaint from past students because some students like to have textbooks for future reference.

Kaplan recommends that students take on 2 to 3 classes per term. If you have no prior college credits, it will take about 3 years to obtain your degree. Some class changes may happen, so be sure to update your schedule with a guidance counselor. Students enrolled at the University will participate in discussion boards, chat sessions, and team projects. Some classes do require students to log-in at a designated time to watch a seminar. In order to obtain full credit for the course, you must actively participate in the seminar for a complete hour, and the seminars may be once a week, sometimes twice a week. The teachers do try to schedule seminars around a convenient schedule since most students obtaining the degree are working adults.

Online learning is only successful if the student participates. One mistake students make with online learning is thinking the coursework will be easier from traditional schooling. Online learning requires the same dedication as traditional learning and most students actually spend more time studying and working with their online classes. Students enrolled at Kaplan University will read the E-course books, complete assignments, work on team projects, participate in seminars and discussion boards, write research papers, and take quizzes and tests. Each class will work a little differently and the assignments and quizzes will vary with each instructor. The quizzes and tests are generally timed to limit the student from using E-books and other material when they take the quiz or test.

All students of Kaplan University are given access to the online library. The online library provides excellent information for research papers and team projects. The instructor will provide students with a study calendar, course schedule, and access to email if the student has any questions. In order to succeed at Kaplan University, the school recommends that students log-in daily and actively participate in their online class.

The instructor of the online class will submit questions to the discussion board. Each student must answer the question and they must comment on other student's answers. The more you participate in the discussion board, the higher your grade. Instructors will place weekly deadlines on assignments and discussion questions. Some instructors only give students 24 hours to respond to the discussion question, so it is important to log-in each day and check the discussion board. The instructor will post a video lecture or discussion lecture about the weekly material and will inform students which E-course information they need to read and study. Students can use the chat system to speak with fellow students about the material and the course instructor will provide feedback on assignments. The assignment will be graded and each assignment includes a section for instructor comments. If you need clarity on an assignment, instructors can be reached via email, chat rooms, and the discussion board.

Students will have the ability to speak with one another through email, chat rooms, and the discussion board. Each student is given a student ID to secure their privacy from others. Personal information will not be transmitted to fellow students unless it is done by the individual students. At the end of the online class, students will be asked to submit performance evaluations of the course. Students have the ability to inform Kaplan University of problems they noticed and things they liked about the online class. The more feedback Kaplan receives, the easier it is for them to make changes that benefit everyone.

Succeeding at Kaplan University
When students enroll in online courses, they need to have self-discipline and self-motivation if they expect to succeed. Every online school is different, but they function relatively the same. Students need to understand that the instructor is there to advise them, but it is up to each individual student to learn the material on their own. According to Kaplan University, the successful students are those that spent time in the discussion rooms and used critical thinking skills when they were working on their assignments. The team projects students need to complete will test not only their writing and creative skills, but their communication skills as well. Students need to work with one another in order to complete the assignments, without becoming frustrated by the lack of face-to-face contact.

Kaplan University was designed to help working students find success in their current career, prepare for a new one, or gain satisfaction from earning a degree. The best way to earn a degree online is to go at your own pace. Kaplan University does offer accelerated learning courses for students that want to complete their schooling faster. The recommended amount of coursework students should take on is 2 courses, or 6 credit hours. For each credit hour, Kaplan recommends that students spend 2-5 hours studying. It is important to spend time studying the material before you submit assignments. Instructors rarely give students a second chance to submit their assignments, so if you fail to meet the requirements, you are usually out of luck and it will impact your grade tremendously.

Online learning is not a cheaper or easier way to earn a degree. Students need to understand that they will be expected to pay a great deal for their degree and the convenience of attending online school. Guidance counselors are available to help students complete their degree and to help them create a course schedule that fits their lifestyle. As with any investment, make sure you understand everything about the school before invest your hard-earned money. Kaplan University is a reputable online school and was voted the best online university of 2008.