The rise of online education:
In the year 2007, the second highest enrollment in a degree granting college and university campus in the U.S stood at 54,094. The enrollment rate at the first highest stood at 4.1 times that of the former. One is left bewildered wondering the reason for such a vast difference between the two, the answer is simple the former used the traditional method of imparting education, while its closest competitor did not.

Today the online education industry is seeing a 17 percent growth rate for online enrollments which far exceeds the 1.2 percent growth of the overall higher education student population in the United States. Professional qualifications such as Degrees, Diplomas, and Certificate courses could only be completed through a physical presence in the past, while completion of university credits online may have seemed a farfetched idea. Evolution of technology has brought fantasies to reality; in the case of online education the numbers are doing the rest to keep suspicions about the efficacy of the new-born concept at bay.

The statistics are in the favor of online education, but one wonders whether the online classroom is the only faucet of online learning. Is formalized online learning environment the only avenue available to students studying online, for interacting with peers and enhancing their learning? Compared to traditional education where students often enjoy face to face interaction, online education may have faced an interactivity gap albeit only in the past.

The re-emergence of personal learning networks (PLN) on the internet in the form of online groups, wikis, etc. is far more beneficial to the online learner then a physical PLN could be. Why? PLNs provide individuals with learning and access to leaders and experts around the world bringing together communities, resources and information impossible to access solely from within university walls. Social media is the gateway being used to ride the new wave of interactivity and learning freedom that PLN’s have brought to students.

Social Media and how it affects you:
Today, we live in the time of the social web; a more interactive, engaging, and democratizing space. The social aspect of today’s Internet is expressed through the popularity of social media and content creation websites. As the Internet has developed and expanded to reach more segments of the population, it has brought people together. A common misconception though remains when speaking about social networking website’s use, “waste of time” is what many of us may categorize it as. It is nonetheless an important vehicle for self expression and freedom of thought.

We believe that social media and online education are here to stay and will co-exist to aid each other. Evidence discovered by Heiberger & Harper (2008) and the Higher Education Research Institute (2007) has found that time spent on social networking websites was correlated with indices of enhanced student engagement in the real world. Additionally, Ellison, Steinfield and Lampe (2007) discovered that students who used Facebook were known to have an increased engagement when it came to their supportive social ties. The take-home message is that the online social web mimics the real space social web, if you are more engaged online; you’ll be more engaged in the real world.

Using Social Media to your advantage:
We believe in interaction on the social media landscape and to show our commitment we are offering you a chance to qualify for a free online course at MUST University and to top it off you are free to choose your preferred course from a choice of 1,300 courses offered. How? Simply log onto facebook.com/mustuniversity and ‘Like’ us to get a certified course of your liking absolutely free of cost. Who said social networking was a waste of time?

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