Lamar University is one of reputable universities in the United States that offer online degree courses for students who cannot attend regular schooling. At Lamar, students have option to study a variety of courses offered through the university’s online education programs.

Lamar has offers complete core curriculum and upper-level classes from almost all its department. They have five undergraduate programs such as Bachelor of Applied Arts & Sciences, Bachelor of General Studies, RN-BSN Articulation Track, Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology, and Bachelor of Science in Computer Science.

Lamar Univeristy also offers two graduate degrees health-related field namely MS in Nursing and Master of Science in Health Promotion (MSHP). All these undergraduate and master programs can be completed by the students in entirely online approach.

Plus, Lamar University is offering College Access Programs which allows early entry students the ability to earn high school and college credit simultaneously. These programs are designed for accelerated juniors and/or seniors who meet established university entrance requirements.

Lamar has the so-called LUOnline portal that connects their online students to their professors and provides access to their curriculum. The admission for online students at Lamar is similar to the process of the admission of on-campus students wherein prospective students must first apply for admission through the Texas statewide application system.

The cost of online courses in Lamar regardless if it is a full online program, a telecourse or interactive course involve a non-refundable $25 per credit hour Distance Learning Fee but there is no Health Center Fee, Property Deposit Fee,  and the Setzer Center Fee.

For more Information about studying in Lamar University, you may call (409)880-8888 or visit the university website.

But fret no more because just like free online courses in computing technology, there are also some resources where nurses can avail of free online continuing education. One online portal that I know is the Medi-Smart, a website about nursing education resources.

Medi-Smart compiled a directory of Free Nursing Continuing Education Resources that can be accessed online.  Some of the free online courses were:

Culture Advantage-  This offers 3 free online CE courses which are accredited for contact hours in Kansas and 15 other states. This site requires registration prior to taking courses

Nellcor Puritan Bennett – This offers a good selection of free, accredited online educational courses for registered nurses and respiratory therapists

Journal of Nursing Risk Management – This is composed of free 14.5 Contact Hours nursing continuing education for full-time military and federal health care providers

Female Urinary Incontinence – Offers free 2 Hour course that is accredited by the California Board of Registered Nursing

With these free courses, even those budget-constrained nurses can now equip themselves with continuing education that may help them to advance in their profession or at least empower their knowledge in providing better health care services.

Some of the reasons why we should choose online nursing degree are because online BSN programs are as flexible as the lifestyles of its students.  One can continue to work full-time and still attend online classes afterwards.

Unlike the campus-based nursing courses, a typical online BSN program features six 8-week sessions in one academic year. This allows students to tailor the online nursing program with their own schedules and they can also opt to attend part-time and take off a session or two when necessary.

With online nursing programs, nursing students can do their practice or clinical projects wherever there is a BSN-trained nurse. In short, only online nursing degree programs offer this flexibility wherein students can complete their BSN at their own pace. And when the student is right on track, she or he can complete the online BSN course in more or less two years.

Since 1984, UC had been offering distance learning programs with their new technological methods of learning. They use the World Wide Web to transmit a new concept of learning at the master’s and bachelor’s level. UC offers an independent and convenient way of getting academic advancement. The teaching method will be solely through internet. UC also offered short courses through video broadcasts and video tape combined with periodic face to face meetings.

The University of Cincinnati provides utmost educational excellence. It provides a virtual place where freedom for intellectual interaction flourishes. More than that, it also provides a scholarship program to further assist its student in their quest for academic and career advancement.

When it comes in accreditation, the University of Cincinnati is regionally accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools  located at 30 North LaSalle, Suite 2400, Chicago, IL 60602-2504; 800-621-7440.

Aside from their regional accreditation, the UC College of Nursing is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) while their Nurse Midwifery program is accredited by the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM), Division of Accreditation.

Likewise, UC Bachelor of Science in Clinical Laboratory Science is duly accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS and the UC Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM).

Rasmussen has college campuses in different states such as Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Florida, North Dakota.  Rasmussen College Online features  Personalized Admissions Assistance; Stress-Free Financial Aid Process; Effortless Application Procedure; Free Virtual Tutoring; In-demand Programs; 24/7 Student Support; and  Lifetime Career Placement.

Aside from these, Rasmussen College Online met the entire requirements needed to be accredited by Higher Learning Commission (HLC) to offer degrees in Accounting, Business, Nursing, IT, Allied Health and more.  Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is a Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA).

Such accreditation measures the quality of education that Rasmussen College gives to its students. Therefore, accreditation plays a vital role for the students’ chances for future employment.

It is also known that accreditation will be needed by the student to take the state licensing examination. This is the reason why Rasmussen is proud to be regionally accredited. They believed that such accreditation is the ladder for its student toward a better future. At Rasmussen College Online, the students’ welfare and success is the number one priority.

Graceland prides itself as one of the few schools with most affordable accredited programs. This online university offer financial aid counseling to assist their students in securing grants and loans.

Likewise, students are guaranteed that all online programs in Graceland are nationally accredited by North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA) and by the Higher Learning Commission of Illinois.  The Education and Nursing Programs of  Graceland have accreditations in most stringent organizations in these field.

In Graceland, students are taught under eCollege online platform which serves as the virtual classroom for online degree programs. It is simple to use and provides round the clock technical assistance. Some of the online degree offerings of Graceland University include:

Master of Education
Master of Science in Nursing
Bachelor of Science in Nursing
RN to MSN
Bachelor of Arts in Health Care Management

These advanced programs are taught by qualified professors to assure the tradition of educational excellence. To request more information about the online programs of Graceland University, please click here.

Two Bachelor-level degree completion programs in Respiratory Care and Nursing ;

Three graduate degree programs namely Master of Science in Educational Technology, graduate degree in Nursing and graduate degree in Instructional and Performance Technology;

And three graduate certificates in Educational Technology, Human Performance Technology and e-Learning and Performance Support.

The distance learning approach of these courses is through web-based course management system called Blackboard. This system allows students and faculty to participate in classes via the Internet. The university also makes use of teleweb, telecourses,  computer-based multimedia, videoconferencing and video streaming as online studying tools.

Although majority of these online classes do not require the student to attend class meetings in person on any campus, there are few instances where some of online courses have limited number of required meetings.   These special requirements for online courses are listed in the notes and in-person requirements columns. For those who are interested in the online degree offering of Boise State, the university provides an online orientation to familiarize students in using Blackboard.

And because the UIC is known for its top-notch nursing curriculum, research and practice skills; students who will enroll in the online Doctorate of Nursing Practice program is assured of the same quality education. Online students will also have opportunities to collaboratively work with students from both the College of Medicine and School of Public Health.

The Doctorate of Nursing Practice program is set to begin this coming August 2008. For those who are interested to know more about this new offering by the UIC College of Nursing, you can go to this page for more information.

The online nursing program features no on-campus visits to attend because the program is 100% online. Hence, even if you are busy on your full-time work, you can complete your nursing degree as fast as 18 months. The degree is especially designed for licensed registered nurses who want to complete a degree and attain career growth. The University of Saint Mary will start offering the said online program this coming January 2008 and plans to have five enrollment periods per year.

Through the years, Drexel has already established a stable partnership with various corporations around the world; hence, the degree that employees earned from Drexel University Online is guaranteed to be recognized.  Drexel University Online takes pride to the quality of their in innovative, Internet-based distance education programs for working professionals.

This institution is considered as one of the pioneers in online degrees and because of this, they already perfected every aspect of their online education system. In fact, Drexel’s online programs are ranked by U.S. News & World Report among the best in the fields of business, education, engineering, and library science in 2007.

The online programs in Drexel University have the same policies and rigorous academic standards as those taught on Drexel University campus.  And when students completed their programs, their diploma and transcript are all the same as those who earn their degrees on campus.

Drexel University Online offers a wide range of bachelor, master and certificate programs from fields such as Business and Management, Clinical Research, Communications, Engineering and Computer Science, Education, General Studies, Health, Information Systems, Library Science, Nursing, Psychology, Public Health, Technology, Toxicology and Industrial Hygiene. For the complete listing of their online programs, please click here.