MANY LOCAL and regional professionals are turning to online and distance learning in an effort to further their education while meeting other commitments.And few employers challenge the credibility of degrees or diplomas acquired this way.This was revealed when BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY conducted separate interviews with four institutions that offer Internet-based programmes.Education For Advancement, which is based at the Small Business Centre in Fontabelle, St Michael, offers degrees and professional certification at various levels in partnership with the University of Leceister and Ashworth College. Local director Sandra Charles told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY that applicants are usually working professionals who want an easily accessible and flexible educational option.“It takes a certain amount of discipline to complete such programmes and the time needs to be set aside,” she said, but added that both payment and study time are flexible.She said the office receives more enquiries for master’s degrees than bachelor’s or associate degrees, with management being a popular choice.However, she said media and communications is catching on as a subject area.Charles recalled that at first, people viewed online learning with suspicion – not only in Barbados, but across the world. “Now that has changed. Many of the brick-and-mortar universities are looking at capitalising on distance education. It is a very viable means of earning a degree,” she said.Noting that prospective students often ask if their qualifications will be accepted by employers, Charles said while that is up to the employer, they should have no reservations if they research the programmes. She acknowledged that both the University of Leceister and Ashworth College are accepted by the Barbados Accreditation Council.The University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus also offers several degree options online, including the Bachelor of Arts in education with several majors, management studies with majors in economics and accounting, three master’s degrees and several certificate courses. These are available to qualified applicants throughout the region.Deputy principal Professor Vivienne Roberts said she had noticed increasing enrolment in online programmes, which indicates that people are getting more accustomed to it.She said not only are students provided with an online orientation to make them more comfortable, but there is also training for tutors.However, she said it helps when there is some face-to-face contact and 42 sites have therefore been set up in 15 countries for students to meet with staff. Face-to-face orientations are also conducted. Comfortable
Professor Roberts said students are usually older people or those who are busy taking care of their children or parents. “They may have obligations to meet and don’t have the time or money for full-time study,” she said.Roberts said not all employers are comfortable with degrees done completely online because “they think they are very different”. However, she said research will show that these degrees are subject to the same quality-control measures. Furthermore, she noted that course coordinators are often UWI faculty members and the content, objectives and coursework are often the same. The deputy principal added that there are ways to verify that the student is submitting his or her own work.Georgia Inniss, senior administrator for programmes with the Cave Hill School of Business, said the response to online programmes is “quite good, as it has been in the past for face-to-face programmes”.She said in an Internet-based class of about 50 participants, roughly 60 per cent are Barbadian. Inniss said the executive master’s in business administration with emphasis on general management is in high demand, while the human resource management stream is growing.She noted that many employers were not only receptive to online degrees, they sponsored their employees.Inniss explained: “They’re not losing the human resources from their company, so they are happy about that.“Also, most courses have group work or projects which students complete based on their jobs, so the company gets [feedback] and that’s an encouraging factor.”In addition, the Career Development Institute offers over 400 personal development courses online as well as professional development and diploma and certificate courses via institutions in the United States and Britain.Representative Natasha Wickham said many working professionals express interest in their offerings and there is a mix of older and younger people.She said Quickbooks, medical assistant, accounts and business writing courses are in high demand. (NB)
