School is...

Kicking my behind. I have been attending college online for a while now and these are my last two classes. It is not easy, but it can be done. I have learned how to schedule my time for studying and taking exams, thus leaving me with less time to blog. But I promise to be back and blogging daily.

In the meantime, if you are a single mom considering going back to school, I would recommend my school, Strayer University. They have excellent business and information technology programs and have recently started a criminal justice program. If you work for the federal government, like most Washingtonians do, you can upgrade your skills by taking contract specialist courses.

There are several other online programs that I am considering for my Master's degree. National University is my first choice. Their classes start monthly and you can obtain your degree strictly online with low residency since they are located in California. Another school I would consider attending is the University of Maryland University College. They have excellent programs and assist with scholarships and loans according to your financial need.

Tips for choosing an online school is to make sure they are accredited. Make sure the costs are economical versus your monthly budget. Ask yourself, is it worth going to a community college first and pay a babysitter at night versus the extra fees it costs to take convenient classes from your computer? Although, nowadays, even community colleges are offering courses online.

Be creative! If you want to become a nurse, take some science courses online and shoot for the clinicals in house. If you've worked ten years in security, you may be eligible for work-life experience and can knock out at least four courses in criminal justice. You can also take CLEP courses (College Level Examination Program), where basic courses such as English, Math, Sociology, Psychology, Humanities and a host of others can be taken via an exam for a fee. Are you in the military? Then DANTES is the choice for you. DANTES is the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support. For military personnel and their families, one can take correspondence courses and obtain college credit to count towards your degree.

As a single mom, there are more choices to go back to school and finish than there was maybe ten to fifteen years ago. Next I will post information about financing your education.