by Vicky Phillips, CEO
GetEducated.com, LLC

Online degrees offer quick and easy admission. It’s much easier to get into Virtual U. than it will be to run the admission hurdles at your local state university.

Right?

Nope. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Most online programs are every bit as competitive as residential universities. In fact, the majority of online degrees are actually offered by traditional residential universities. Public university systems, such as the University of Illinois, and California State University, are launching online versions of their residential degrees at an escalating pace.

The eye-opening truth – some online graduate degree programs are more competitive than your local university.

Most distance learning graduate schools hold applicants to the same standards as residential learners. They adopt the same textbooks, utilize the same course exams, and quite commonly emply the same faculty to teach online as you’d find if you returned to campus.

Graduate schools commonly require a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college with a 2.5-3.0 GPA. The most common admission exams are the GRE (Graduate Record Exam), The Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT), and the MAT (Miller Analogies Test).

It’s worth noting that these exams test very different abilities. Because of this it is completely possible to score high on the MAT while scoring low on the GRE or GMAT, and vice versa.

The GRE tests traditional verbal and quantitative skills: vocabulary, reading comprehension, and math, including statistics and algebra. The Miller Analogies Test, in comparison, is math free. It tests your ability to think comparatively in analogies, such as cat is to dog as kitten is to puppy.

The MAT is often required by graduate schools in education, human resources, library science and the social sciences.

The GMAT, Graduate Management Admission Test, is often required by graduate schools in business or management. Contrary to what the name implies, the GMAT does not test your knowledge of management or of business. Instead, the GMAT tests verbal skills, mathematical knowledge (to the level of Calculus), and writing aptitude.

Most graduate schools publish the average test score for each incoming class year. Compare your GMAT/GRE/MAT scores to the scores of successful applicants at any one graduate school to help guage your chance of admission.

If given a choice among the GRE, the GMAT or the MAT, consider giving yourself an edge by taking all three exams. When applying, submit only the the one that best showcases your abilities.

Rememeber, though, that graduate schools that use the GMAT, GRE or MAT rarely rely solely on these exams to determine admission. More commonly, admission is determined by an integrated analysis of your scores on standardized exams, your undergraduate grade point average (GPA), and your letters of references. Real-life career experience is also often taken into account for older learners.

Graduate School without the GRE or GMAT

Good news for those who get testy at test time. Since most distance learning programs target older learners – average age 36 – more than half waive traditional admission exams altogether. (These traditional exams have not been shown to have much validity in predicting academic success among older students.)

Some programs that publicly state that the GRE or MAT are required may be willing to waive these exams if the applicant already holds a graduate or professional degree.

If you bomb on the GRE or the GMAT don’t despair. Many older learners have a hard time with these exams because they focus on academic rules and formulas long forgotten.

If you test badly, focus on online graduate programs that weigh other admission criteria, such as previous GPA and career achievements, more heavily. Shop around for distance degree programs that do not require standardized exams as a mandatory part of the admissions process.

Don’t assume that a "distance degree" can be completed entirely in your PJs from the comfort of your keyboard. Of the over 300 accredited graduate programs profiled in GetEducated.com’s Best Distance Learning Graduate Schools guidebook series, only two thirds are completely campus-free.

Some programs offer their courses 100% online, yet require weekend orientations on campus at the beginning of each semester. You may also be required to come to campus to defend a thesis or final master project.

Make sure you understand residency requirements before beginning your degree. Airfare and lodging for a single weekend residency can tack as much as a thousand dollars onto your educational bill.

Check course delivery methods carefully before committing to a program. "Distance degree" is not synonymous with "online degree." A distance degree can be delivered via the Internet but it can also be delivered via stand-along CD-ROMs or postal mail (a lonely way to learn), videotape, satellite TV (restricted delivery areas), even by radio or audio cassette (very popular with European and Asian universities).

Many large public university systems deliver distance degrees through satellite teleconferencing. These systems require students to attend weekly lectures – lectures that are commonly delivered only to specially equipped reception sites located within state boundaries.

A few distance degree programs are available only to employees of selected corporations. Stop by your HR office to inquire about degree programs your company may sponsor via teleconferencing at selected corporate sites or learning labs.