The Reality of Online Classes

As most of you know, I attend Liberty University. As some of you know, I stayed home this semester and took online classes. My parents were in the stressful process of opening a business and needed all the extra hands they could get. My older brother and I stayed back to help when needed. The great thing about Liberty is that they have a HUGE online program. This came as such a blessing for this semester. It made the transition from a residential student to an online student so smooth. I was able to knock out almost all of my electives which now makes my remaining semesters more major-focused.

I’ve been crazy busy this fall with working for my parents, babysitting frequently, and taking seventeen online credits in eight weeks. Yes, you read that right. Seventeen credits in eight weeks. Am I crazy? 100%. Did I overwhelm and overcommit myself? Absolutely. Do I regret it? Definitely not. I’m someone who loves to stay busy and I met a whole new level of busy this fall. I will admit that when my parents requested that I take online classes and help out at home, I did not take it well. I was very upset and was already concerned about losing touch with friends from school and missing out on all the athletic events, concerts, movie nights, and believe it or not, I even was sad to miss convo. *Side note: for those of you not familiar with Liberty, Convocation is held three times a week and is opened in worship and prayer followed by some sort of influential speaker. These “convos” are mandatory and they can be such a pain when you have so much to accomplish. Still, it’s so worth it in the long run. You hear from NFL players, authors, singers, politicians, and so much more.

Staying home didn’t affect my friendships at all. I still talk to all of them regularly and some even sent me a cute little care package with handwritten notes (my favorite!!!). I am so thankful to have the sweetest and most thoughtful friends. I received so many encouraging messages from different friends and it always seemed to come at the perfect time. Staying at home might have kept me from the fun things I did at school but being in Maryland opened up opportunities for other fun. For example, I’ve gotten to spend time with family and friends that otherwise I don’t get to see often when I’m away. I’ve gained more knowledge here than I possibly could have at school. That’s debatable, but still. I learned from six different classes and I learned how to run a business. I’d say that makes for a pretty successful semester at nineteen years old. I learned about the history of life on the same days I was practicing baking bagels. I learned philosophy on the same days I was learning about the cookline and how to make all of our menu items.

Needless to say, online classes lets you go anywhere and learn simultaneously. I do miss being on campus but I love the freedom of being online. I could do homework while the baby I babysat was napping. I could complete my assignments and study on my own personal schedule. This is where the tricky part comes in. I’ve always been super independent and I’ve never been much of a procrastinator. Online classes teach you a different kind of time management and self motivation. It is very difficult, I’m not going to lie. I had at least twenty assignments due every week, not counting the reading and presentations I had to watch. Staying on top of that work was a full-time job in itself. Not having a “real” professor to meet and see and write on the board is challenging. Having the freedom to do the work whenever was definitely a self discipline I learned in the first week. I couldn’t just put off my work to watch TV. In fact, I didn’t watch any TV for the eight weeks I was taking classes because I simply didn’t have the time. I often woke up early and worked and stayed up late doing homework.

So here comes the answer to the question I keep getting. Which is better, residential or online classes? While I don’t regret taking the online classes and being home for this time, I don’t think I could be completely online. I think most of my motivation stemmed from knowing that next semester I’ll be back at school and I just had to get through those eight weeks before I could relax and then soon return to school. I learned a lot from my online classes, aside from just the knowledge gained through the courses. I learned a lot about myself. My study habits, my motivation, my dedication and hard work, my work ethic and most of all, my time management. I like residential classes because it means I’m on campus doing things with friends and sitting in a classroom. I liked the flexibility of online classes and not having a set schedule, but part of me likes a strict routine and the residential classes suit me well.

To sum it up, I feel like I can personally be successful in either environment but you need to know yourself before you make the decision. I should mention that even when I was a residential student taking eighteen credits, I still had some classes online and I felt it was a healthy mix. Online classes aren’t for everyone, residential classes aren’t for everyone. You have to figure out what works best for you. I do feel that most people want to go to college because that’s what everyone else does, but with today’s technology you can work and take online credits and it might be a better fit. All in all, I’m thankful for this learning and growing season. I’ve been staying busy and I’m glad I’ve had the opportunity to work and complete my credits. While I am so excited to go back this spring, I am in no way rushing the next two months.

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12 NIV).