For many of us, high tuition fees and expensive literature are the main factors preventing getting additional education. It is natural for people to seek new knowledge because this means progress and advancement.
Moreover, the modern workplace requires employees to update their knowledge constantly. This is needed to make sure that they keep abreast of recent trends and developments.
For these very reasons, students often take online courses to prepare themselves for the future. Some of them lack time to study throughout the year, so they purchase intensive online courses just as many college and university attendees buy essay writing online services to get rid of any academic load.
In the field of online courses, prices vary since online education has become a real, profitable business nowadays. Lessons prepared by reputable universities cost a lot while others are comparatively affordable, and, thus, more attractive.
However, one should be careful in this regard because sometimes what’s cheaper means really bad quality. You get what you pay for.
Here are several pitfalls to be aware of in relation to budget-friendly online courses.
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Lack of Accreditation
Cheap online courses do not usually have any credible certificates. In other words, even if you get the information you find interesting and sufficient, you will get no proof of your skills.
Certifications that are not traceable online are also useless for your employer. Thus, when you pay money to a reputable institution that provides online courses, you are sure to get proof of your new knowledge and skills.
In part, the name and its reputation are the main elements of pricing in the online education market.
Poor Quality
It is not necessary that a budget-friendly online course will be of a low quality. However, this happens. You should understand that no one works for free, and no one wants to share their skills for no money.
Thus, even if the course is prepared by a self-starter, it still should cost decent money because of the time and effort invested.
If you see an online course that is unbelievably low priced, consider all pitfalls before falling for it. There are reasons why it costs that low, and the first issue that comes to mind is its quality.
More Self-Study and Discipline
Cheaper online courses can also require more time and effort from your side for self-education. For example, if a university authors and sells its online course, it usually includes all materials that you may need throughout the learning process.
If those are not provided, it opens an online library to all temporary students. If the course you choose is cheaper, it usually means that you will have to spend hours looking for books or even paying for them to get the necessary information. Statistically, people who are left to seek sources by themselves are more likely to drop out.
No Face-to-Face Interaction
High-quality online courses often have a human mentor who can explain things that are unclear. Moreover, they offer invitations for online seminars where a real discussion can take place.
Low quality and cheap online courses can include a presentation of the material with voice coverage, lacking consistency, individual approach, and the necessary explanation.
Courses, where the real dialogue is absent, are hard to digest. You need to see answers by yourself or complete the assignments with no feedback. Overall, many students who paid less end up starting more expensive courses to have the results they expect.
Unrealistic Time-frames
You must have heard about a super cheap offer for a course where a person starts speaking French in three weeks or learns Python programming in a month. Universities also ‘cheat’ their remote students claiming to provide them with knowledge and skills within unrealistic time frames.
However, when it comes to budget-friendly courses, it happens more often. Thus, if you stick to such options, critically evaluate their offers. In making your choice, honesty should be a top criterion.
Dependence on Technology
If we are talking about some advanced subjects like Programming, your personal computer and its software may not be enough for an online course.
High-quality, expensive course providers offer programs and materials that you may use to stay up to date with the course and assignments.
Budget-friendly courses can imply some hidden costs. For example, it may refer to the software that you do not have or even require you to spend extra to install some programs on your computer.
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Final Words
Online courses have enabled distance learning and made education more accessible.
At the same time, in choosing the perfect course, a person should be aware of the cornerstones of online education. One of them is the abundance of low-quality courses that can do more damage than good.
Thus, before actually paying for the course, make sure you've analyzed all the information available online. Your conclusions should be based on reviews and feedback rather than marketing tricks. In the end, you always get what you pay for.