In the business world, remind you that I haven’t finished completely; I am an independent consultant with contracts with four different businesses in public relations, course development, and editing. I was not this prior to starting my program.

In academia, well I teach courses online and have a couple of places to continue teaching once I have completed the program. I tried applying for these jobs with just an MBA and was not accepted. I did polish my work a little: got some publications out, join and participate in professional organizations, etc. However, once I got to about half way through the PhD, I started getting the offers that I wanted.

My top three choices for doctoral level schools were Walden, Phoenix, and Capella. I ruled Walden out simply because their program did not match my study goals and their modules are a little strange. Phoenix was fairly close, but their residencies are only in AZ, and at the time of the decision I needed more flexibility. Since I live in the Southeast, the fact that Capella has several residencies in this area, Capella won over that issue.

I chose Capella for three reasons. (1) The program courses and timeline fit my career goals and interests the best, (2) It is a PhD, I am more interested in the research nature of the degree, and (3) I did searches of faculty at various colleges and universities and many members earned their degrees with Capella.

I hope this helps in your decision making process. Greatest Luck!

Go through the reviews and then decide where you wish to study. I myself have studied online and found the learning experience pretty good i.e educational and interactive at the same time. Note that online degrees are now being widely accepted by employer's across the nation. I work too

Hope it helps!

http://www.navta.net/education/index.php
http://www.avma.org/education/cvea/vettech.asp

The college has full accreditation from the AVMA, so that would be one of the main thing to look for when choosing a program.

Sorry I have no personal expereice with programs in Florida, but good luck with whichever course you choose.

http://www.allartschools.com/featured/photography/?src=trl_aas

When you look around you and see these neighborhoods full of houses in this price range and the people who own them,,,,just know that they qualified under different conditions than you will have to qualify for now. Lenders look for a debt to income ratio. Higher debt to income ratios were allowed before the sub-prime mortgage meltdown.

When you use the online calculators be sure that they factor in home owners insurance and property taxes too. Email me if you want more clarification.

Instead of getting a generic MBA, look for (legit) schools that offer MS degrees in insurance or risk management. By now, I am sure that there are some real schools that offer the degree in part or fully online.

look at this web site http://www.aiutruth.com

& read this post. It is the most eloqent tirade that I have seen on the subject of pretend online schools
[you can find the original post here: [http://answers.yahoo.com/quest………….

The following was written by "PhD Seeking" (not me)

As someone who's responsible for hiring people at my fortune 100 company, I can honestly say that any resume sporting an on-line degree goes into the "circular file", regardless of their other qualifications.

I have my MBA from a traditional school, and shortly after I graduated and continually until this day, I have been solicited by the UoP to teach on-line business courses for them. While I have several years of work experience (which they didn't know), I was apparently qualified simply because they purchased a mailing list of graduates from my school and saw I had a degree. Not that PhD professors are better teachers, because some of mine really sucked as communicators, but asking people with limited work and educational experience to teach students shows a lack of concern about educational quality, and more about getting an instructor at a cheap price. If you don't believe me, check out the career section on the UoP site or other job boards and you'll see the low standards they set for educators. (see the ad below)

Getting a real degree tells me the applicant can make a long term commitment that requires sacrifice. On-line classes are the ultimate sign of laziness. With all real colleges offering part-time or evening classes, going the on-line route suggests you're looking for the easy way out. Most employers within reputable companies, including myself, won't take a chance.

Lastly, be prepared for the teasing, either publically, or more probably, behind your back, by your co-workers with real degrees

Occasionally, I have seen job position requirements where they ask for particular degrees but it more common as you advance to see positions where they ask for a general degree and certain number of hours in particular areas, such as math or business,.

As your career advances, communication skills and people (management) skills will become much more important than your technical skills. I know a number of people who current work has very little to do with what they majored in college.