Earning an online business management degree requires a large investment of money, energy and time. Of course, as with everything in life, most of us in this fast paced global world to get our degree as quickly as possible, with the hopes that we can begin earning money (or earning more money) as quickly as possible. The great news is that with the dawn of online learning you can get a business management degree fast.
How Long Does Earning a Traditional Degree Take?
Obviously, how fast you can earn a degree varies depending upon what level of degree you are seeking. Let's start by looking at how long it takes to earn a typical college degree, in a traditional brick and mortar school. For an online bachelor's level business management degree you usually need at least 120 credits to graduate. Most courses are four credits each, and most traditional schools run on a semester system, with students attending just two semesters a year. Students usually take 12 to 15 credits per semester; this means that they earn their bachelors in four to five years.
For a master's degree it typically takes an additional 30 to 40 credits beyond a bachelor's. Typically, master's learners take 6-10 credits per semester; that means an online master level business management degree can take two or three years beyond your bachelor's. Finally, we come to the PhD, which usually requires 30 credits beyond the master's, as well as a comprehensive examination and dissertation. This can take another two or three years in coursework, full time, then one to three years for the comprehensive and dissertation phases.
How Fast Can I Earn My Online Business Management Degree?
Earning your online business management degree requires the same number of credits, basically. But, you can get your degree online fast. You can often take these courses faster for a variety of reasons. First, many online programs run on a quarterly system, rather than semester. That means you have four full sessions a year to take courses. For the bachelor's level, if you stick to the usual 12 to 15 credits per session that gives you 48 to 60 credits in a single year, rather than the 24 to 30 common in traditional programs. Of course, this is if you forgo the summer off. But, even if you take a quarter (three months) off, you can still earn 36 to 45 credits in a year - still more than a traditional program. With motivation and dedication, you can earn a bachelor level online business management degree in 24 months!
The numbers are similar for a master's degree, which can easily be earned in 12-24 months; when I embarked on my online master's degree program nearly 15 years ago I was very new to computers, was working and had just bought my first house - I was busy! Yet, I earned my online business management degree in just 11 months! Similarly, for the PhD you can complete your coursework in half the time of a traditional program if you are motivated, however, you still need to conquer the comprehensive examination and dissertation.
If so, share with us how quickly you plan to graduate and why you chose this speed.