Top Online Colleges

University of Phoenix – The University of Phoenix was founded in 1976, in Phoenix Arizona, by Dr. John Sperling. He saw the need for adults to be able to continue their education in a way that was convenient for them. He offered them flexible schedules and evening classes, which was unheard of at other colleges. From the start, people responded positively to this new idea, and within three years University of Phoenix campuses began opening in other states.

It wasn’t until 1989 that the first online campus was established. It gave many people, who were unable to travel to one of their campuses, a convenient way to further their education, and train for a new career. In 1997, enrollment for The University of Phoenix surpassed all other private universities in the USA. By 2003, the amount of students enrolled reached an outstanding 200,000! In 2009, they were rated number 2 of more than 140 online universities, by the best/worst in online education. And it’s easy to see why.

They have nineteen Associates programs, 36 Bachelor’s programs, 33 Master’s programs, 9 Doctorate’s programs, and 14 Continuing Education Certificates. All of their trained instructors have been certified in the field they are teaching, and many have extensive work experience as well.

If you’re interested in taking one of their courses, but are worried about the cost, they offer many options from pre-paying for your course, which insures that you’re rate will not increase if you are making monthly payments, to 20 different scholarships that you can apply for. A representative will walk you through the application process if you choose, (there is no charge for their help), or you may apply online. There are also low interest financial aid programs available through the Stafford Student Loan program or the PLUS Loan program.

Kaplan University – Kaplan Online College has been around before the days of the internet. First founded in 1937, the college has evolved since this time. Kaplan is now most popular for the wide array of distance learning opportunities available to students and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. As with similar learning institutions, Kaplan offers numerous degrees within the many different arenas of study.

Students can earn an associates, bachelors, or their masters degree in a variety of subjects. Healthcare, information technology, and business/finance majors are among some of the most popular majors with the university. However, Kaplan also offers majors in the area of education, sciences, arts, and criminal justice. In addition to the degrees that may be earned, the school also offers many professional certificate programs and allow for the opportunity to earn a high school diploma.

Although Kaplan may be best known for their distance learning programs, students may choose from a variety of options. While many classes and degrees can fully be completed online, there are also traditional campuses in a variety of locations. As with a traditional college, financial aid is available to students that may qualify..

Liberty University -
A good education is something that everyone should strive to achieve and there are many good facilities that provide the opportunity for this. For those of the Christian faith one of the best schools available is the Liberty University which is located in Lynchburg, Virginia. The university was originally founded in 1971 by Dr Jerry Falwell who had an idea regarding training young champions for Christ and set up the university for this purpose. Since these early days the university has grown year by year to the present day where it is now one of the largest religiously-orientated private universities in the State of Virginia.

The university has a large academic program which encompasses 115 undergraduate residential programs, 24 graduate areas of study and 3 Doctoral programs. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award degrees which include Associate, Bachelor, Master and Doctoral qualifications. The university has a student to teacher ratio of around 23:1 and both residential and online courses or a combination of both are offered.

There are a number of undergraduate majors on offer at the university and these can be carried out at the various facilities such as the School of Aeronautics, School of Business and School of Religion. In all 9 schools are available for undergraduates and these offer majors in 39 areas of study which range from accounting, biology and computer science to psychology, Social Sciences and Worship. This provides students with an enormous variety of choice and those who wish to attend the university should be able to find the subject they require. The Master of Arts courses the university offers covers a number of programs and these include Arts and Sciences, Communication and Theology. The 3 Doctoral programs cover counseling, education and divinity.

An extensive list of scholarships are available for prospective students who want to attend the university. Generally the level of scholarship funds provided by the university when added to any other grant must not exceed the cost of tuition plus the cost of boarding. Students are also encouraged to apply for outside scholarships.

Grand Canyon University – Grand Canyon University was established as a nonprofit educational intuition in the year 1949. Classrooms were made available for students and ninety three students took the lead. It was begun by the Arizona Southern Baptists as they perceived the need to establish a faith-based institution that would permit local Baptist the chance to complete study in the requirements to obtain a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree without having to travel or relocate the great distance. As the nearest institutions were located in Texas, Oklahoma or Missouri. The land for the University was graciously donated by the First Southern Baptist Church of Phoenix. The finances to begin and establish the university were donated by the pastor and deacon of the the First Southern Baptist Church of Phoenix.
In 1954 Grand Canyon College was relocated to the present campus location in Phoenix, Arizona. Most recently, Grand Canyon University has been agonizing with financial difficulties and hardships that almost resulted in its closure in 2003. It was recently purchased in 2004 to a California based Significant Education. LLC. It is now the first for-profit Christian college in the United States, and is Undenominational.

Completing study at the Grand Canyon University Online offer a person the following business degrees; the one year Ken Blanchard Executive MBA, the Bachelor of Science (BS) with majors in Accounting, Business Administration, and Marketing, the Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. It is also possible to study music, mathematics, and history. Athletics are also popular at the on campus locations of Grand Canyon University. The University became regionally accredited by the North Central Association in 1968, and Grand Canyon University seeks national championships in basketball, baseball, and women’s tennis.

Online learning has transformed from the universities emphasis at the school of online learning’s importance. This can clearly be seen with the enrollment of 10,000 students currently enrolled in various distance education programs. All of the online degree programs are accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The online semesters are sixteen weeks and are also divided into eight week semesters. Each online class has the requirement of writing papers, group projects, text reading and online group postings and discussions. An online degree can take either eighteen or twenty four months to complete.