Top Five Websites for Online Students

Top Five Websites for Online Students

If you study online or are seeking information about online study, these five websites are the best places to look. Each website has been selected for informative content, helpfulness and non-spam content as well as number of users and Google rating.  Websites have been listed best to worst; however, all websites are good sources of information.

1.    My Colleges & Careers

My Colleges & Careers is a great website for any student or aspiring student. MCC features assistance for locating an online learning program as well as information for students already studying. This includes information such as available grants, living in college, life while studying as well as other helpful, amusing or informative articles for students.

The website also features a complete list of available online courses, grants and online colleges along with reviews, information and requirements for each school.

2.    World Wide Learn

World Wide Learn describes itself as the world’s premier online directory of education.  Truthfully, the website has a lot of information about signing up for college, aid programs, studying abroad, studying online and available online degrees and programs. The website also provides a full list of available colleges by state/area so that students interested in attending an on-campus program may locate a suitable college. 

World Wide Learn offers information on different areas of study, generally short articles either about the study program or about the actual information as well as helpful articles for students in the form of blog posting and etc.

3.    Study Online

Study Online is about 90% a guide to any and all online programs at accredited colleges and about 10% information and help for students. The website offers a simple search with graduate levels (undergraduate, graduate, dual, etc.) separated into categories so that they are easier to search and browse. The page also allows browsing via degree level (Associates, Bachelors, Masters, and Doctoral) or via study program of interest. This website is most useful if you have decided which program you would like to study but do not yet have any idea where you would like to study. Other available information on the site includes information on online tests, available aid and a list of degrees that may be earned online.

4.    Merit Nation

Merit Nation is different from the other websites on this list because it does not offer student information about schools; instead it offers a way for students to learn to study more effectively and effortlessly. Other programs offered include tutoring, personality and aptitude tests, question & answer zone and more.

This website does cost money, however, many students testify that using the websites learning techniques and study programs helped to advance their learning capabilities so that they received better grades.  The pricing ranges from free for the most basic course and to about $70.50. All prices on the site are listed in Indian Rupees due to the site location.

5.    Study 2U

Study 2U is a website that offers information about online education programs worldwide. It should be noted that some of the colleges on the site will qualify as international education and may not be accredited in the USA. The website offers information on online study programs, schools and colleges as well as useful information for students or aspiring students.  Other information offered includes lists of available online study programs, available online degree levels and what courses are available within that level as well as information on requirements and more.

Study 2U also offers options for sorting schools and information by country so that you may select only those you are interested in. 

Best Colleges Online

Best Colleges Online

For anyone wishing to attend an online school, a list of the best schools online is an invaluable tool that can be used to quickly and easily sort through the majority of online colleges and simply choose one of the best.  This top-five list of the best colleges online is designed for students who wish to consider their options before signing up for a distance learning program.

Phoenix University

With more than 50,000 students enrolling in one of its programs each year, Phoenix University is one of the largest online education programs in the world. The school is accredited for all of its available programs and features courses at Associates, Bachelors and Masters’ Degree levels. Online study is conducted through the website and through email with courses and assignments being sent and turned in digitally. Lectures, speeches, class discussions and etc. are all conducted online and each class has access to an advisor who will reply to any email within 24 hours. 

Kaplan University

While Kaplan University isn’t quite as big as Phoenix, it receives some of the best ratings online for providing a quality education with attentive and helpful teachers as well as for being a good bargain for the money. Kaplan provides a full accredited education that can be completed 100% online, partially online or on a campus. The school offers Associates, Bachelors and Masters Degrees as well as certification programs and single course study in over 20 different academics programs.  Kaplan keeps classrooms small with 15 students or less so that each teacher may concentrate fully on their students. 

American Intercontinental University

The American Intercontinental University or AIC online is an American Institute offering international courses and is open to almost anyone with either a High school diploma, GED or equivalent. The school offers a full range of courses and diplomas considering that the student has the applicable requirements for the study. The institute offers 100% online courses as well as hybrid or physical sessions. Some courses require a brief physical study period for demonstration purposes but generally this is only required for doctorates.

Liberty University

Liberty University is a fully accredited and Christian university with a full range of accredited Christian and Christian based courses. The school has a full campus located in Virginia and enrolls around 70,000 students per year between its on campus and online courses. Liberty offers online admissions which require the student to register; upload applicable documents and conduct a short online chat with one of the universities admissions monitors.  LU online offers a good quality, affordable education to anyone who passes their evaluations tests. The school also accepts transfers from other colleges so long as the students pass evaluations and in some cases, credit transfer is also accepted. Liberty EDU consistently ranks high on charts for graduation rate, retention and student employment.

Post University

Post University is the smallest college on this list, but also one of the most respected. The school has been accredited since 1972 and offers a variety of programs at Associates, Bachelors and Masters' level. It should be understood that there are not as many study programs as would be found at a larger school, however, the quality of the education received is generally much better than a bigger school because the teachers have smaller classrooms, more time to spend per student and the school is required to offer a better education in order to compete with the options and pricings of a larger school. 

Best Free Online Libraries

Top 5 Online Libraries

If you hear the word library, you probably think of a physical one, where you are required to walk inside and check out your physical books written on paper. Online libraries have often been considered a thing of the distant future, where almost any book is readily available online at only the push of a button. While they aren’t quite as advanced as we would all like to hope they will be, online libraries are a lot more advanced than many of us are aware of. 

As a student studying through an online distance learning program you might have often wished for a source to find study material for free online. Guess what, there are plenty of them. Not all of them will have exactly the books you are looking for but there will be plenty of relevant material.

FindArticles

FindArticles is a comprehensive resource source that is specifically aimed towards students who require sources for papers and essays. Many articles on the website are fully accurate and can be used as sources for your papers and for information, however, it should be noted that Find Articles is an open source website meaning that anyone can add articles whether they have experience or not.  A good rule of thumb is to check the credentials of the article author to ascertain they are qualified to be used as a source for your studies.

InfoMine

InfoMine is exactly what it sounds like, information available for anyone to well… mine. The website keeps up to date information on stock market, values, country happenings, politics, agriculture as well as a full library of economic and historical issues in most of the world. This website is great for anyone studying politics, majoring in history, agricultural sciences or etc. The website offers services and articles to both subscribers and non-subscribers as well as accepts user profiles with resume and information so that users may use the site to find work.  However, subscription rates can usually be quite costly unless your student tuition is willing to cover the cost of the information source.

Internet Public Library

The Internet Public Library is the online version of the public library that you would generally visit in a building. While it isn’t quite as big as the physical version the library does have a vast resource of books and information for both pleasure and study. Part of the website is comprised of eBooks that are available online; the other half is comprised of links to valid websites on the subject.  The IPL can be used as a reference for papers or simply as an approved information source.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is most famous for being one of the largest libraries in the world, but it also has a rather large online database of non-fiction material.  This information is available for anyone who needs it and is an excellent source of information. The library also holds public copyright information as well as a complete database of all of their books on record!

Project Gutenberg 

Project Gutenberg is named after the man who invented modern book printing and is quite aptly named. The project hosts around 38,000 free ebooks for anyone to download read and share. These books are free because their copyrights have expired in the USA (if you live elsewhere you might want to check). The website has a simple search engine that you can use to locate the material you are looking for and kindly asks for any donations or volunteering you might be willing to give. 

OpenStudy - The Online Study Group

OpenStudy – The Online Study Group 

Students who are taking distance learning courses or other online college will often find that they are confused, unsure of what to do or have questions that might take a teacher several hours to answer. Online study groups are a way around this predicament because they offer access to students around the world in all time zones and allow anyone to pitch in with an answer to a question or a nudge in the right direction.

What is OpenStudy?

OpenStudy is a comprehensive network of students who are attending either high school or a university or college. Most of these students are college students attending an online school.  OpenStudy was designed so that students could help each other study in a traditional ‘study group’ manner. 

The website is currently officially being used by MIT (Michigan Institute of Technology), NYU, Free Math Help, Math Open Reference and Smart History and is endorsed by FastCompany, Tech Crunch, Fox News, CNN, TNW, Read Write Web and more.

How It Works

OpenStudy uses a network system to help students find answers, learn to solve answers and to give study aid to others having difficulty. The website ranks users according to help given and etc. with medals and ‘level’ status being given for more answers. This helps students to enjoy helping others more as well as to receive their own answers. The site almost completely relies up students helping each other rather than looking for paid teacher instruction.

Features of the website include:

·         Study Groups – Study Groups are specific areas of study where students post questions about that area of study. This helps to narrow search range and helps your questions to be answered more quickly.

·         Blackboard – The blackboard is one of OpenStudys best features because it allows other students to walk you through the process of answering the question yourself. This is helpful for not only finding the answer but for answering similar questions without help and therefore learning.

·         Profile – Your OpenStudy profile is designed to help other students learn about you, to place you automatically into a study group as well as to list your likes/interests and school.  Profiles may be taken from Facebook as the website allows for signup via Facebook.

·         Owl Mail – Owl mail is a new feature at OpenStudy and allows a student to ask a question for a fast reply that is mailed to their inbox. This service uses actual teachers rather than student help.

·         Chat – The chat feature on OpenStudy allows students to talk to each other and answer questions in real time. Chat is limited to one group at a time and any messages will be broadcast to anyone who enters the study group. This is a good way to either converse with other students or to have a question answered more quickly.

Study Groups

OpenStudy is home to over 200 different Study Groups with each group focusing on a different specific area of study. Popular ones include Writing, Mathematics, Physics, Finance, Biology, Computer Science, History, Art History, Chemistry, Engineering, Education, Communication & Media, Health Sciences, Language & Culture and much more.

Each group is specifically tailored towards its own area of study and students should try to only answer questions within their area.

Students may also create a study group either for an education group that has not been listed or so that they may ask questions to a specific group of students such as classmates or students who attend the same school. This can help to set up a more personalized online study group including moving a physical study group from the library or cramped dorm room and onto the internet.

Should You Use OpenStudy

While OpenStudy is a widely approved online study group it should be noted that in some cases students will simply write the answer out which removes the purpose of the lesson for the student asking the question.  Because of this some teachers may frown upon its use. If you aren’t sure, always remember to have a discussion with your teacher/advisor and explain that you would only use the site for help with questions you cannot answer.