Emily Ruscoe was diligently moving through general degree requirements and electives at Inver Hills, racking up credits that would enable her to transfer to Century College and enter the Dental Hygiene specialty there. Inver Hills provided a comfortable atmosphere, great instructors, flexibility in scheduling, and a supportive environment, especially for career-changers and students who had been away from school for a while, she says.
Moving to Great Britain to accommodate her husband's assignment as a mechanic working on jets for the Royal Air Force would be a real set-back, she feared. "I didn't think I would be able to finish the classes I needed for transfer. I still had requirements in art, chemistry, and sociology."
Even worse, educational options in the U.K. came with significant obstacles, including a foreign student fee of almost $30,000 US. She came back to Inver Hills for a condensed summer session to finish chemistry and then discovered online options. "It was great. Just because I wasn't taking classes on campus didn't mean that I had to lose that connection I felt at Inver Hills."
Returning to England in the fall, she took Inver Hills with her, completing a sociology course in the fall and art history in the spring, both online.
How was the experience of online learning? "The online discussion really works in building rapport with the instructor and the other students." Discussion groups are required as part of the course and students go online, contribute their thoughts and observations, which are submitted to the instructor. "We would all give our opinions, and the interaction was really strong. You really could build on concepts. I noticed that I didn't feel as restricted or intimidated when it came to sharing my thoughts. And you really do learn a lot by getting other people's perspectives."
For more information, go to Online Inver Hills.