Value of on-line engineering degree?

[squeeze87]

Hi Guys,
For a long time I have been wishing to complete a bachelors degree in engineering, but at this point in my life it has just not been practical, what with my full time job and owning a home and the fact that there is no 4 year college around here offering the courses i need at night or on weekends. I have however found an on-line university that offers a BSME program. My question is, Is an online degree worth anything in the eyes of a prospective employer? I dont want to invest my time and money in this only to find out nobody will recognize it. I'm not trying to find an easy way to a degree, I just can't quit my job and go to school full time at age 39. Any opinions or experience with matters such as this would be appreciated!

 

[BlownZ]

If it is an accredited school then it is fine. You need to make sure that it is accredited by one of the six (?) regional federally recognized associations rather than some off the wall association. The test is whether the school is approved for Federal Student Aid...if Yes then it is a Real school...If no then it is a sham and the degree isn't worth the paper it is printed on.

 

[squeeze87]

Well, the website says students may apply for financial aid through SLM financial corp., a division of Sallie Mae so I guess it must be legit.

 

[BlownZ]

Not necessarily. Click on the provided link...if the school you are interested in is accredited by one of these agencies then it is legitimate...if it isn't then it is a diploma mill and isn't worth a thing to an employer.

http://www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/accreditation/regionalagencies.html

 

[1badTTA]

Do you mean that employers even care about your degree? From everything I have seen, experience will get you hired long before a degree will. How many educated idiots do you know?

 

[BlownZ]

What I mean is that I was answering his question. I am quite confident that for an engineering position they might be interested in your degree. I agree with the point you are making but what he is asking about are several "online colleges" that offer a degree in most anything for a few hundred bucks. I have even seen some that offer medical degrees....scary.

 

[Chad Oliver]

I order a copy of a college transcript as part of the hiring process. I also tend to avoid over educated people as they tend to be too detail oriented and most seem to have bad work ethics so they keep going back to school instead of working. 4 year degree good phd or masters not so good IMHO.

 

[OKTurbo]

One thing to do is call up your state's Board of Registration for Land Surveyors and Professional Engineers. These are the people who conduct tests to qualify P.E.'s. Ask them if a degree from this college would be accepted.

If you have good experience and then get an Engineering Degree you will be VERY desireable in the job market. Engineering at a plant level requires practical experience. The MS and PHD's go for the cold dark laboratory design type jobs.

John (BSME, P.E.)

check out
http://www.nspe.org/
http://www.michiganspe.org/membership.htm

 

[bigz]

Originally posted by Chad Oliver
I order a copy of a college transcript as part of the hiring process. I also tend to avoid over educated people as they tend to be too detail oriented and most seem to have bad work ethics so they keep going back to school instead of working. 4 year degree good phd or masters not so good IMHO.

That's a nice generalization Alot of people including myself have worked full time while completing our educations. I will have my masters degree in two more semesters and show up to work everyday and do a good job like most people. As to the original question plenty of state universities offer online classes. Another decent school is the University of Pheonix which caters to working adults and is fully accredited although it's on the expensive side. I would see if a public university in your state offers the kind of degree program you want and online classes. Good luck

Mike