Juggling work, family and college is a challenge for anyone, but an online degree in human resources can help you fit college credit hours into your schedule, no matter how hectic it is. Ten years ago, online degrees were viewed with skepticism by some employers because they had experience with the so-called diploma mills that churned out college graduates in previous decades. These unaccredited institutions mailed a piece of paper with a degree printed on it to anyone with a credit card, and they gave a bad name to distance education.
That stigma has almost completely faded away now, although a few employers still refuse to consider the legitimacy of an online degree. The truth is the majority of employers consider an online degree to be no different than one earned as a residential student. There are a few important exceptions, however. For example, online MBA degrees are still not universally considered equal to on-campus MBA degrees.
What Do Employers Say About Online Degrees?
Human resources is a special field to consider with respect to online degrees because people in this field have the closest view of new employees. It’s their business to know the value of a degree, and there is almost no longer any distinction between an online degree and an on-campus one. Employers are concerned with an applicant’s major and GPA, and they pay attention to the reputation of a school. However, actually having a degree is more important than whether it’s a degree from a tier-one or tier-two school. The bottom line is that an online degree in human resources is more than sufficient to find employment in almost all cases.
For the few employers who refuse to recognize the worth of an online degree, it may make a difference if that degree comes from a school that offers both online and on-campus classes. In recent years, employers have responded well simply to seeing the name of a brick-and-mortar school when reviewing the resume of an applicant with an online degree.
Online Degrees That Employers Still Haven’t Completely Accepted
Unfortunately, some online degrees still aren’t viewed as positively as their on-campus counterparts. Executive degrees and MBA degrees in human resources still have some distance to come before they’re universally accepted by employers. Perhaps this attitude will change as many well-known business graduate schools have started offering online MBA degrees.
Some employers and college professors say that an MBA can’t be properly delivered over the Internet, but others strongly disagree. According to a recent article in US News, recruiters see no difference between an MBA delivered online and one delivered in person. The priority for them is the student’s GPA and the reputation of the graduate school.
Many employers see online degrees more favorably than traditional degrees because students gain experience working together in virtual classrooms. These technology skills are increasingly important in human resources, and on-campus learning doesn’t provide as many opportunities to master these skills.
To the vast majority of people who believe that online degrees are equal to on-campus degrees, there is no disadvantage to hiring an employee with an online degree. The most important part of getting an online degree in human resources is to graduate with a good GPA.
