Back to the Grindstone

The problem with travel is that after it’s over, you have to return to the humdrum daily routine. In some ways this is a comfort; living an exciting life is quite unsettling. However, it can take quite an effort to settle back into the pattern of everyday work.

So I’m back working on my online program. I’ve lost quite a lot of time and I need to catch up. I tried to work while I was away, but there were other things on my mind and I really didn’t make much progress.

The break has however given me some processing time, and I find that I’ve taken a fresh look at some topics that now appear quite different to me than they did before. So maybe taking a break from online study was worthwhile.

China

I’ve just come back from a trip to China. I went to talk to three institutions in mid-China who are very keen to work with my institution so that they can dovetail their diplomas into our degrees, giving their students the chance to study a western degree without having to live outside China for the whole four years.

One of the strategies that we have been working on is the use of online learning and online program packages to allow Chinese students to study some of the papers at home. We have decided that for some of the earlier papers we can do this, giving us the chance to assess students before they have committed to the enormous expence of studying abroad. They also have the chance to familiarise themselves with wesdtern study techniques, which are very different from the study patterns that they learn in China.

Online learning just opens up so many options that students cannot hope to have using just traditional methods of study. We are witnessing a real revolution in education; who knows where this pathway will lead us?

New Year Plans

Happy New Year!

It’s fun to have a whole new year in front of you. Although it’s an artificial delineation of time, nevertheless psychologically it can be really stimulating to have this kind of clean sheet of paper in front of you.

I’m planning to speed up my online degree this year – normally it can take up to 6 years to get your PhD part time, but I’ve decided that I can’t afford to take this kind of time over it. So I’m planning chunks of time that I cna devote to the online program, either as study leave or as vacation. I know it’s going to make my life a little crowded in the short term, but in the long term I’m sure I’ll benefit.

Rural Online

I’m working on an online degree for nursing – the first one that will be accredited by the nursing council in New Zealand. This degree is going to open up new opportunities for people who live in remote rural areas and have no chance of attending an institution to study.

The majority of people who are applying for the degree are younger women with families who ae married to farmers or fishermen, living miles away from major centers of population. They are likely to be able to get jobs as practice nurses associated with rural health centers – always in need of well qualified employees.

Just another example of how online programs can revolutionize not only individual careers, but also help to supply the right people for jobs that would otherwise be very difficult to recruit to.

Papers

I’m feeling really holidayed out. I have had a great time over the holiday seeing friends and family, talking, eating and drinking, but I woke up this morning with a feeling of needing to do some real work. Of course, I instantly took the option to study – it’s not often I can just start without having to psych myself up.

So down to some real reading, and the planning of a paper I want to write. I’m finding that this online degree gives me plenty of opportunity to do research around my topic, and start to publish papers. This academic track record is good for my career in general, as I’m studying in an area where there is little new work, so I’m getting a name for myself.

So can’t stop, I have to work while the going is good.

Education

Education and success in your career are linked. The higher the level of qualification that you gain, the higher the average salary you can expect, according to the Bureau of Labor. Qualifications are vital to gaining jobs – they may not take the place of an interview, but they will gain you the interview in the first place.

Online degrees and other online qualifications are becoming increasingly popular, with many people studying while they work. You can choose from an increasing array of subjects, and you will find that many universities and educational establishments offer many of their programs both in traditional and online mode.

Online Opportunities

Studying online makes sense for many people who are working but need to update their qualifications. You can work and study at the same time, without having to take time out. For most people the monthly pay cheque is absolutely essential, so this is the only way that they can progress in their career.

Online study also has other advantages. You can choose where and how you study, and work at almost any time of the day or night – great if you’re a night owl, or work best at 6 in the morning. You can usually move your workload so that it doesn’t clash with other things in your life. And the variety of online programs that you can study is enormous, something for almost every kind of interest or career.

You will save time and money travelling to campus for classes, and usually fees for online programs are similar to those for traditional programs. Online study opens up education to everyone regardless of their age and commitments, and many people are taking advantage of the opportunities.

A Productive Holiday

I’m putting together a whole study plan for the Christmas holidays. I live in New Zealand, so it’s summer here, and most people take much of their holiday entitlement at this time of the year. The beach calls, so if I don’t plan what I’m going to do, it won’t get done.

My online program mostly consists of directed research, and I need to be able to define the aims that I want to achieve. I’m working on that this week, because the planning time will pay dividends when I don’t really want to start something but I don’t have to spend time working out what it is I’ve got to start.

Actually I love studying, but that bit when you really have to make yourself start is so difficult. So I’m looking forward to a productive holiday!!

Decorative Study

“Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Tralalala, lalalala…”
Well. I’ve got a small but perfectly formed tree on the top of my monitor, and the cats have bought me some tinsel from the tree in the lounge so that I can keep them well entertained as I’m working on my research for my online PhD. It’s their idea of helping me to study – making sure that I don’t get so absorbed that I fail to remember their meal times and the mandatory play hour.

I’m having a relatively quiet holiday this year, just me and the cats. As I’m in the antipodes, I’m hoping to have a beach day on Christmas day, so the cats miss out on that. But as the rest of the holidya week is going to be devoted to online study, and the cats are so very helpful in my study activities, I have a feeling that tinsel will gradually take over my study – and probably lots of other artifacts as well.

A Good Idea

I’m setting out my work program for the Christmas holidays. I am taking nearly two weeks in holiday leave, to get together my in-depth proposal for my thesis. This is a major task, and I want a good and long run at it so that I can concentrate on the topic and get the documentation finished by the time I return to work.

I have been working on my online PhD for just a year now – it seems incredible that this time has elapsed, I feel that I am really just beginning. But in fact, when I look at what I have achieved in this time, I am amazed at the results.

Most of all I am amazed at how much I enjoy studying. There are plenty of times that I loose enthusiasm – many of them documented in this blog – but I haven’t lost my desire to do this work, in fact it has increased over the year.

Studying online is one of the best parts of this process. It allows me to work in the way I work best, and it also gives me access to people and resources that I would find very difficult to have contact with in any other way. So all in all, this has been a very good idea.