Easy Online College Degree Programs to Complete From Home

If you're an independent and self-motivated learner, an online college degree program can offer you a simple educational option to be completed from home. Accredited colleges and universities across the country confer online degrees at the associate's, bachelor's and master's levels. Read on to learn more about this easy path to a college degree.

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How Can I Easily Earn a Degree From Home?

Whether your work or family life is too busy for a regular class schedule or you live too far away from the right college or university, there are many reasons to study from home. Most online programs offer the flexible scheduling, self-pacing and long distance communication that home learners need to easily earn a college degree.

However, online learning isn't for everyone. In order to succeed at an online degree program, you need to be self-motivated, organized and comfortable with basic computer technology. Furthermore, some degrees require hands-on work that must be completed in a campus lab setting, including scientific studies or practical programs such as nursing. In these cases, individuals may be interested in blended programs that allow students to complete some coursework at home and some on campus.

Undergraduate Online Degree Programs

Students who do not already have a college degree may be interested in online associate's and bachelor's degree programs.

Associate's Degrees

The simplest online courses of study are typically associate's degree programs, which include such 2-year degrees as the Associate of Arts (AA), Associate of Science (AS), Associate of Applied Science (AAS) and Associate of Occupational Science (AOS). These degrees are available on the Web in a wide variety of disciplines, including, but not limited to:

Computer science
Information technology
Business administration
Accounting
Criminal justice
Liberal arts and humanities
General studies
Writing
Literature
Mathematics
Psychology
Health and human services
Paralegal
Travel and tourism
Sports

Associate's degree programs typically take the least amount of time to complete and have the fewest prerequisites and general education requirements. Many are also specifically career-oriented and ideal for vocational learners.

Bachelor's Degrees

Students who are considering advanced study or a career that requires a 4-year degree may be interested in pursuing an online bachelor's program. Degree options typically include the Bachelor of Science (BS), Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS). Although it may be somewhat harder to find online bachelor's degree programs than online associate's degree programs, they are still available in many different areas. Sample online bachelor's programs include, but are not limited to:

Family and human development
Health science
Communication
Film and multimedia
Liberal studies
Criminology and criminal justice
History
Computer science
Web development
Entrepreneurship
Operations management
Political science
Sociology
Psychology

These programs may take more time to complete than an associate's degree and typically have more prerequisites and degree requirements.

Graduate Online Degree Programs

Students who already have a bachelor's degree may be interested in continuing their education online with a graduate certificate, master's degree or doctoral degree.

Graduate Certificate

A certificate is the easiest option for online graduate study. Although they don't result in additional degrees, certificate programs offer accredited professional education that is widely accepted by employers. A sample of online graduate certificates includes, but is not limited to:

Information technology
Information security
Database management
Project management
Organizational risk management
Entrepreneurship
Marketing
Financial markets
Physical education and coaching
Clinical investigation

These programs typically take only a few courses to complete and many credits may be applied to an online degree if students choose to continue their graduate education.

Master's Degrees

The easiest online option for degree-seeking graduate students are the Master of Science (MS) or Master of Arts (MA) degrees. These programs typically require applicants to already possess a bachelor's degree and may also have a list of subject-specific prerequisites. Online master's degree options include, but are not limited to:

Criminal justice
Education
Social work
Computer and information systems
Health communication
Engineering
Business administration

An online master's degree program typically takes about two years to complete and includes advanced coursework that may be challenging to students who do not already have a background in a related subject area.

Doctoral Degrees

A limited number of fields also offer doctoral degree programs online. These are the most challenging online college degree programs, but may still be easier than traditional Ph.D. programs for many students. Make sure that you check the accreditation of any online doctoral program to which you apply because they are not yet common at not for profit institutions.

Some accredited online doctoral degree programs include: