Modern students are changing the face of education. Busy professionals, members of overseas military families, and residents of rural areas are eager to further their educations – and they demand the flexibility that only online learning can offer. Traditional universities and several reputable online-only schools now offer competitive Ph.D. programs online. Here are descriptions of some hybrid and online Ph.D. programs offered by top universities.
- Boston University offers online doctoral programs in music education, occupational therapy, and physical therapy. The occupational therapy program has been ranked #1 by U.S. News & World Report, and the physical therapy program can be completed in just 16 months. The music program includes a brief on-campus component.
- Columbia University offers fully-online doctoral programs in computer science, electrical engineering, industrial engineering /operations research, and mechanical engineering. Distance learners download the lectures that professors deliver to other members of the class on campus, and they earn the same degrees as residential students. Columbia University’s distance learners and their professors interact primarily by e-mail.
- Pepperdine University in Los Angeles offers a hybrid program in K-12 Administration that prepares students to work as principals, district administrators, policy or curriculum directors, and superintendents of schools. The program is 40% online. Face-to-face sessions are held at Pepperdine’s West Los Angeles Graduate Campus.
- The University of Maryland – University College developed an extensive distance education program in the late 1990s when the university encountered space constraints. Dozens of the University of Maryland’s graduate programs are now offered online.
