Distance Learning in Higher Education: My Gap Year, Minus the Gap
This post is part of the Modern College book project, in which we will be publicly documenting our experience writing a book on college with the help of the community.
“What’s so important on your laptop?”
My trademark was sitting crisscrossed at a hostel bar, laptop out, earbuds in. A particularly nosy backpacker would plant themselves across from me, hungry for conversation.
Our exchange would invariably seep into this: what on earth could take precedence over the beauty of [insert country] we were currently exploring?!
I’d shrug, smile bashfully and respond with one word:
“College.”
I was finishing the final year of my Bachelor’s through the Penn State World Campus. My asynchronous, online academic load meant location independence for the remainder of my undergrad degree.
Thus, a literal world of adventure landed itself in my lap.
Research led to messy calculations, which led to the epiphany that it was not only possible to travel while being a full-time student, but feasible too. If I could keep my daily spending under $40, I’d wind up saving money that would otherwise be spent on room and board.
I presented the case to my parents, scraped together my savings and purchased a one-way ticket.
From Europe, Southeast Asia, New Zealand to South America; what began as an inadvertent adventure ended with my diploma, fluency in a new language and a multitude of precious cross-continental friendships. (And, to note the garnering of some less glamorous experiences; stomach bugs, mosquito bites and a fractured ankle).
Backpacking while completing my degree was equal parts experience and experiment. The structure of five courses guided my weekdays, while my weekends were spent exploring more obscure places.
Quickly, I learned that time management was my best friend.
A (very) rough weekly schedule:
Monday through Thursday was typically course-heavy, with a few hours of lessons and readings. On Fridays, I’d circle back to complete my modules. Like the majority of traditional college students, Saturdays consisted of nothing even remotely school-related, while Sundays were for catch-up. In some ways, I was living a parallel to every conventional college student.
And in other ways, I was not.
As I accrued miles and began to share my story, a theme of confused intrigue emerged.
Every time I explained that I was only temporarily neglecting the adventure of my surroundings for my 16 credits accessible via Macbook Air – I found myself looking at a furrowed brow.
My explanation rarely transcended continents and language barriers, but even upon return stateside, confusion lingered.
Not only did people not understand what I was doing — they didn’t know it was even possible to obtain a Bachelor’s degree from a reputable 4-year university, entirely online.
This response spearheaded my travel blog, as well as a 3-part collaboration with Penn State (blogpost 1, blogpost 2, blogpost 3).
I’d nearly circumnavigated the globe — and yet I felt like I’d circumnavigated the system.
Of course, I hadn’t done either.
My “gap” year came to fruition as the result of advancements in technology that, in many ways, suggest distance learning in higher education is the way of the future.
First things first, I’d like to thank the Internet
Over the past five years, scholars have noted a massive influx in distance learning, justly reflecting the accessibility of the Internet. I can attest to this, having submitted quizzes and assignments in airports, bus stations, bathrooms… you name it.
According to a 2016 survey, more than 30% of college students now take at least one course online during their college career, with the expectation that this number will quadruple in the coming decade. Additionally, there’s been a 200% increase in the number of students selecting online courses as a part of their conventional college curriculum. And just think — these numbers were generated 3 years ago!
This was all made possible, intuitively, by the boom of the Internet and the advent of the world wide web in the early 1990s.
Although the genesis of online learning is traceable back to 1892, one more recent indications of this shift came about in 1994 with the opening of CALCampus. This was the first campus to provide online courses, with synchronous learning via Internet.
Into the early decade of the 21st century, online courses grew in popularity. In 2002, MIT began offering virtual lectures and course materials online, soundly bringing into question the notion of online courses being less rigorous (and therefore less valuable) than in-person classes.
Since then, options of distance learning in higher education have popped up left and right, with purely online institutions like the University of Phoenix, Devry, Southern New Hampshire and Capella to name a few. Tardy to the party were traditional 4-year universities, with some of the “best” online colleges including Northern Arizona University, the University of Alabama, Arizona State and Penn State (woo!).
Of course, there’s an enormous difference between taking an online course and studying online. But as far as advancements in technology and the rise in online enrollment, there’s an indisputable theme emerging of distance learning in higher education — and we can’t escape it. *Dun dun dun.*
As for me…
I soaked up every second of my college experience, but despite trends, I don’t believe pure distance learning will ever replace the pull toward traditional university. There’s a culture of pride deeply embedded into the American college experience, with much of it ceasing to exist in distance learning.
The rah-rah of sporting events, repping your school colors and involvement in university organizations — be it greek life, clubs, athletics etc. — these elements aren’t a part of the online schooling experience. And regardless of the affordability, accessibility and flexibility of online learning, these pieces comprise the essence of the entirety of college. These elements are irreplaceable.
Had I not had these experiences at my previous school(s), or transferred to begin with, I probably wouldn’t have felt compelled to do what I did.
But who’s to say any student can’t take a semester of online courses and do the same?
I look back on my quintessentially modern college experience with a smile. It was a cluster of wholesome moments, woven by a thread of adventure and some of the purest joy I’ve experienced in my 22 years.
And I’d do it again if I could.
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