A Seattle-based sales representative worked at his job for fifteen years, selling medical devices to doctors and medical labs. He found the work rewarding and the pay good, but lately the increasing stream of paperwork and electronic data was beginning to overwhelm him.

The rep had started his college career as a premed major, with dreams of becoming a physician. And because he’d been involved in team sports all the way through high school, his goal was to become an orthopedic surgeon. But a series of devastating family setbacks made it impossible for him to graduate, and he dropped out of college to support them. Fortunately, his premed background allowed him to land a job in the technical area of medical sales, which helped ease the pain of setting aside his dream. With his background, he was proficient in his knowledge of human physiology and the scientific lingo required for him to be successful in his field. He enjoyed calling on members of the medical profession, and possessed good “people” skills that are so important in the sales profession.

What he found lacking in his background was training in the computer skills applicable to his job. As a student, he’d typed many research papers, but rarely used his computer much beyond that. Once out in the professional world, he learned the requisite skills necessary to do his job. But he now found himself scrambling to keep up with the ever mounting paperwork and electronic correspondence required for his job. As the demands increased, his efficiency suffered. The rep found the situation getting out of control.

 Knowing he didn’t have time to take a business skills computer class, he decided to sign up for an online course. After surfing the Internet and examining the various companies offering such instruction, he sattled on Video Professor .Not only was he impressed by the fact that Video Professor offered fifty online classes, he saw that the selections were targeted to people working in the business world in need of specific information on using their computer as a value-added tool.

Scanning the list of Video Professor’s courses , along with a description of the course objectives, the rep found several that could benefit him in his job. Learning Access could help him organize data tables, so he could evaluate his piles of sales information more effectively. It would also help him to cut down on the hours he spent writing sales reports. Video Professor’s Access could also help him keep better track of his client base, so he could set up his sales calls in a more efficient order. Another organizational problem that was devouring his valuable time was the inundation of incoming E-mails. Some days he received close to 100. Reading the Video Professor’s description of the Outlook lesson showed him that his E-mail problem could be alleviated by a more effective use of the system, such as learning to organize E-mails and archiving them. After completing his first Video Professor course, the sales rep found his paper load better organized, and was spending more time in front of his clients. Consequently, his sales volume increased–another added plus.

Online education is the latest trend in alternative education choices. Also known as distance learning, options in online education are being pursued by people from all over the world who are looking to further their education. And it’s never been easier to join the growing class of Internet U.

Whether you’re interested in simply getting your GED or receiving your MBA from an accredited university, your options in adult education have doubled in the past five years with the advent of online education and will likely continue to grow as more colleges, universities, graduate schools, and trade schools begin offering distance learning classes online.

How Does Online Education Work?

In most cases, it is not the specific college or university that runs the online education portion of their program. Most schools outsource their internet education duties to companies that specialize in hosting distance learning classes. These companies (who have names like eCollege, SkillSoft and such) perform the actual tasks of running the online classes, assigning work, and conducting exams, all according to the curriculum provided by the specific school. Students that enroll in online education courses are typically required to provide their own computer and any necessary software needed to participate in the online classes and take the exams. In the world of online education your books, binders, and number two pencils are replaced by a PC (or MAC – but compatibility may vary), a word processor, and some form of multimedia player. Broadband internet access is advisable as well. It may be hard to get your masters with low baud.

Things to Look Out For

Online education is a very worthwhile trend in the evolution of education in our world and it is conceivable that sometime in the future nearly all official education will take place online. The internet, however, is the real-world equivalent of George Lucas’ Mos Eisley Spaceport; a wretched hive of scum and villainy. As online education becomes more prominent, there will be more companies looking to take advantage of the trend by offering sub par classes and fly-by-night degrees from non-accredited schools. Before you commit to any online education program, do your homework and make sure that the school is accredited. The last thing you want to do is spend your time and money earning a degree online that isn’t worth a byte in the job market or to other educational institutions.