Summer 2006 UW Colleges Online Graduates

Hometown:: Tomahawk, WI
Continued Education Plans:: Attend American Public University System Online to major in International Relations, with a possible History minor.
Future Career Plans:: No change intended in my career; by taking this degree, I am following a lifelong interest.
UW Colleges Online Education Experience:: I took online courses because as a factory worker on rotating shifts, I was unable to take traditional classes or even evening/ weekend classes. Until online classes became widely available, I was unable to complete my degree. This has always been a dream for me; now I am able to follow it.

Hometown:: Boscobel, WI
Continued Education Plans:: Attend the University of Wisconsin - Platteville to major in Civil Engineering.
Future Career Plans:: I can get by with the current job I have now. Out of curiosity, I would like to explore engineering while continuing to learn.
UW Colleges Online Education Experience:: When I first arrived in Wisconsin I was a non-resident for tuition purposes (non-residents pay more) and it would be about a year until I would be considered a resident of Wisconsin. I found out that UW-Colleges Online has the same tuition for resident or non-resident students. When a year passed, I could have went back to traditional learning but I only needed a few more courses to get my liberal arts degree so I stayed with online courses.
I had many resources for me to succeed in completing my online degree including the local library, a UW college near by, help from advisors, and plenty of information in D2L and other information off the internet. I would not say I had a smooth transition from tradition to online learning; but once I got use to it, I preferred doing online rather than traditional classes to attain my liberal arts degree. With online learning, a person can find information in seconds but it can also be overwhelming. I found out that organization and focusing on one assignment at a time really helps with the stress level.