You’re not alone.

More people are learning online than ever before. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education (November 2010), online-only course enrollments in higher education will have climbed from 0.78 million in 2000 to a projected 3.97 million in 2014.

Even so, many myths still surround online education.

The 7 Deadly Myths

Here are seven of the most popular misconceptions about online college, as well as the facts:

Myth No. 1: Online college programs are easier than those at traditional schools. All college programs vary from school to school. A business program at Harvard is not the same as one at a small state college school. But if the online degree program you’re taking is from the online division of an established college or university, be it public or private, it will likely be no different than the program offered at the ground campus.

Myth No. 2: Degrees from an online college are not as valuable as those from a ground school. With more and more people getting their degrees online, employers are becoming more accepting of degrees from online schools. Also, in most cases, diplomas from online divisions of ground schools don’t distinguish online graduates from those from their ground campuses. So online-vs-ground may not even become an issue.

Myth No. 3: Credits from online colleges don’t transfer to other schools. The only factors that govern the transfer of credits are, (1) the accreditation of the issuing school, and (2) whether or not the school to which you’re transferring chooses to accept those credits. This is true for all colleges and universities, whether ground or online.

Myth No. 4: You don’t get any student-teacher interaction at an online college. Today, at most traditional colleges and universities it’s not uncommon for lecture halls to accommodate 200 to 400 students at a time. Individual teacher-student interaction is virtually nil. (When student-instructor interaction does occur, it’s usually with teaching assistants, not full professors.) Many online colleges and universities take special measures to allow students to speak directly with their instructors through e-mail, online chat or video chat.

Myth No. 5: You don’t get to meet or interact with fellow students at an online school. Again, most of today’s online colleges and universities make special efforts to help their students become part of a virtual community. This can involve providing school-based e-mail accounts, facilitating the formation of online study groups and providing dedicated online chat and/or instant messaging platforms.

Myth No. 6: You have to be a computer expert to succeed at an online school. It’s true you must have some familiarity with computers to take classes online. How much? About as much as it took to find and read this article. If you can handle web searches and e-mail, you can probably handle the technical requirements of earning an online degree.

Myth No. 7: Online schools are only for people who can’t make it into traditional colleges. If an online college is a division of an established brick-and-mortar institution, the entrance requirements will likely be identical. Beyond that, there are many types of people who choose to go to school online rather than attend ground campuses. These include people who already have jobs and want a degree to help further their careers; men and women who have families and/or household responsibilities that prevent them from going to college during normal weekday class times; servicemen and women who want to earn degrees while in the military (and who may be stationed overseas); and people who don’t live near campuses with the programs they want to take.

Everest University Is Available Online

Are you someone who could benefit from a degree but just don’t have the time or opportunity to go to a traditional school? Online degree programs are available now from Everest University Online, a division of Everest University. For more information on programs, schedules, accreditation and costs, contact Everest University Online today! Financial aid is available for those who qualify.

Every person has a unique style of taking notes, which include laptops, scribbling every word, and notebooks of a particular size or color. Whatever the method, the following ideas can help enhance your notes’ usability.

• Take a lot of notes

• Develop a method for archiving your notes

• Study and learn from your notes

• Don’t feel that jotting every word is necessary

• Review your notes immediately

If written clearly, your notes will allow you to capture and understand the information whether it’s the same day or years later when you decide to review them again. Taking clear and concise notes ensures that you have a good understanding of the subject matter under discussion, and that you’ll be able to review far into the future.

If you’re considering taking an online course, contact Everest University Online, a division of Everest University, contact us todayto learn more about the programs and courses offered that can give your career aspirations a new sense of direction.

For the most part, there are common roadblocks once overcome that can help improve personal productivity, work quality and reduce stress levels. Sooner or later, you’ll be assigned team members to work with. And how you pull together as a group and as individuals can determine success or failure of a joint project.

Further development in the following areas may produce some surprising results:

• Develop the ability to accomplish more in less time, with fewer resources
• Design tasks and projects so that outcomes are more likely to meet objectives and expectations
• Develop a system of collaboration where you can readily work with others on establishing reasonable deadlines for starting and completing projects
• Develop a detailed plan of action that brings it all together

Hopeful Outcomes

By brainstorming ways to manage and improve your online education priorities, you can hopefully develop a template for deciding what must be done, what should be done, and things that would simply be nice to do. Online instructors can be extremely helpful in working with any course challenges as well. He or she is the contact point for the student in general. And the ability of an instructor to answer questions in a timely manner helps students feel the instructor’s constant presence.

Why not contact Everest University Online, a division of Everest University, to find out more about the online programs and courses that can help get your career moving in the right direction on terms that you have control over.

Regardless of why you chose to earn your degree online, you are now faced with the challenge of getting the most from your investment.

Here are seven ways you can get the maximum return from your online education:

1. Make your education a priority. Just because online education allows you to set your own schedule and work from home doesn’t mean you can study “when you have nothing else to do.” Online college is a commitment, and you have to set aside certain hours — be it during the day, at night or on weekends — to attend online lectures, study, do homework and take exams. You have to make your education part of your weekly routine and then stick to that routine.

2. Participate. Like so many other things in life, online college delivers pretty much what you put into it. The more you participate in online discussions, question your instructors and interact with other students, the more you’ll take away from your experience.

3. Join Study Groups. Yes, even online universities have study groups. Your online school should be able to provide you with information on how to contact and interact with fellow students outside the formal lecture setting. Working with a study group is a great way to master new material and get fresh perspectives on the subjects at hand.

4. Establish Relationships. Some people are skittish about online colleges because they fear the online experience may be impersonal and isolating. In fact, Internet-based technologies offer opportunities to establish all manners of relationships with students and instructors, friendships that can endure well beyond graduation. Take advantage of them.

5. Take Your Lessons into the Real World. If you’re taking a career-focused education program, many of the lessons you learn will likely have real-world applications you can put immediately into practice. This is particularly true if you already have a job and are working to get a business, accounting, or computer science degree to improve your chances of career advancement.

6. Seek Help When You Need It. Many online colleges have support systems in place to help students succeed at their studies. This can include everything from help with online financing to psychological counseling and career services support for graduates. If you need help, never be afraid to ask for it. It’s part of what you’re paying for.

7. Don’t Lose Touch. Going to school is a great opportunity to network with instructors and fellow students. Keep these networks active even after graduation. You never know when someone will be in a position to help you get ahead — or you’ll be able to help someone else.

Everest University Is Available Online

Are you someone who could benefit from a degree but just don’t have the time or opportunity to go to a traditional school? Online degree programs are available now from Everest University Online, a division of Everest University. Degree programs include:

• Accounting
• Applied Management
• Business
• Computer Information Science
• Criminal Investigations
• Criminal Justice
• Homeland Security
• MBA
• Paralegal

For more information on programs, schedules, accreditation and costs, contact Everest University Online today!
Financial aid is available for those who qualify.

• Review the status of your admissions application
• Find out about financial aid awards
• See class schedules
• Check grades
• See your unofficial transcript
• View progress reports
• Check on any holds/to-dos
• Review registration appointments
• Enroll in classes
• Make payments

Here’s a brief description of the main parts of the portal . . .

Campus Info

This page provides you details about your class schedules and list of instructors at your campus.

Academics

You can view your attendance, check on your degree/diploma status, and check class grades.

My Profile

Check your school calendar, change your passwords, view messages from the campus president, and other personal information.

My Finances

View your account information, account activity, transactions, and payment schedules.

My Career

Graduates can find job listings, develop a resume, and contact your placement advisor for job recommendations and help.

My Documents

This is the spot to find documents that are due and forms for downloading.  You may also upload documents to the campus.

Here are some of the features in your new Everest student email account:

• Over 6 GB of storage.
• Built-in chat to talk with friends, classmates, or family all from within your inbox.
• Quick links allow you to get to your calendar or documents quickly without logging in a second time.

With your Everest account you get a number of other tools.

Google Calendar allows you to schedule your social and academic life, create personal calendars, invite friends to events, and set up meeting times with your classmates online.

Google Docs is great for working on group projects. You can create a document or spreadsheet, share it with your classmates, and collaborate in real-time, from the convenience of your house or dorm.

Here are answers to frequently asked questions:

What is my student email address?

• Your new student email address is username@everest.edu.
• Username is your Portal Username.

How do I get my email?

• Simply visit http://students.everest.edu
• Enter your Username and Password
• Click the LOGIN button

What are the features of the new Student Email?

Your new email account has a larger capacity (6.5 GB), it is accessible from any internet browser, and it is accessible through mobile device and email clients using POP3/IMAP. Additionally, you will retain this email account for life.

What will happen to my student email account when I graduate?
You may access the student portal to access your student email account up to 9 month after graduation. After graduation, a new login method will be available to Alumni to access their student email.

The ability to study during your free time . . .

Our friendly and supportive learning environment . . .

Live student support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week . . .

And the opportunity to receive practical, career-focused education from experienced faculty who have been there, done that.

So that’s why you should refer your friends Everest Online – by simply having them complete this easy online form.

It just takes a minute . . .

And they’ll receive some information from us about our various online degree programs.

We set this up so that you would have your own personalized page that’s connected directly with Everest Online.

Here’s a peek at what you’ll find:

You’ll notice that we loaded it up with a bunch of nifty Google Gadgets to get you started – useful stuff like:

> Calculator
> Dictionary
> Everest Online Student News
> Entertainment News
> ESPN News
> Google Calendar
> Google Documents & Spreadsheets
> Gmail Log-In
> MySpace Log-In area
> YouTube Video Area

There’s even a cool Sticky Note gadget that let’s you write quick notes to yourself (right inside your personalized page).

And there’s no need to save the text you write in this box. It will stay there until you change it. Isn’t that cool?

The best part about this iGoogle personalized page is that you can customize it however you want.

You can delete any gadget that isn’t useful to you (by simply clicking the X on the top right of any gadget) – or add more gadgets by clicking the ADD STUFF button at the top right of your new home page.

It looks like this:

You can add loads more fun gadgets like horoscopes, weather information, jokes of the day, virtual pets, clocks, and so much more.

Go ahead and start playing around with your new personalized iGoogle page. Make it your own.

Here are 7 keys to help you improve your study time and avoid distractions:

1. Choose Your Best Study Time
Most people study when they can find time, but it might not be the best study time. Do you study better in the morning, afternoon, or evening? Whenever possible, study when you feel you’re at your best. Time studying during those periods will maximize your study time. And it’s a lot better than studying when you’re overly tired.

2. Choose the Best Location
Most people study at home because it’s the most convenient, but it’s also the place with the most distractions. If possible, find a location you think you can study best in. If you study better with background noise, consider studying in a local coffee shop or bookstore. And if you need total silence, consider a city library or college library.

3. Use Note Cards
Note cards allow you to study whenever you have a free moment. Leave the note cards in your pocket or purse and pull them out whenever you have a free moment. You’ll be amazed how much studying you can get done just by referring to note cards throughout the day.

4. Don’t Procrastinate
Most students procrastinate on huge projects or tests because it seems like it will take a long time to finish.

To avoid procrastination, don’t think of your assignment as something monstrous; instead break the project up into small, manageable projects. For example, if you have to write a 10 page paper; spend one day doing research; spend another day writing an outline for the paper; spend two days writing the paper; spend another day editing and revising; etc. If you break up the project into manageable tasks, you should hopefully put an end to procrastination.

5. Reward Yourself
Another key to studying well is to think positively about your study time. Plan on rewarding yourself after spending time studying.

6. Study Groups
Time spent in a study group can really help make studying more enjoyable and more effective. It might not always be practical to meet with a study group, but even a brief meeting with other students can help you focus on key areas to study. They can also clue you in on something you might have missed in class.

7. Take Breaks
Take breaks regularly to relax your mind. It’s refreshing to take a break, and it gives your whole body time to rejuvenate. It’s recommended that you spend your break walking around and stretching a little bit. You’ll feel better, and it will probably make your mind more focused when you return.

Click to learn about Everest College

Here are some hacks that I’ve used to speed up my reading of web text:

Squeeze your browser’s window
Some websites will spread out or shorten the sentence length of the text based on the width of your browser’s window.

If you have your browser opened all the way, the sentence length can be 20 to 25 words across (not helpful for reading). So shorten the width of your browser so that you only see 5 to 10 words across. It’s much easier to read and skim text if the line length is shorter. It also helps to increase the font size.

Copy and Paste text into a Word Document
Another quick way to improve your web reading is to copy and paste the text into a Word document.

Format your word document so that your left and right margins equal 2.5.
This will give cut down your words per line. I then recommend changing the font to Verdana and increasing the font size so that it’s comfortable for your eyes.

Speed Reading Hack
Another quick way to read web text is to use Spreeder.com. This website allows you to copy and past web text into their application. It will then flash each word very quickly so that you’re reading at 300 words per minute. It’s a very quick way to help you remember the important details quickly.