7 Most Cost Effective Programs to Get Your PHD Online

The Internet has become ubiquitous across the world. More people, in more places, from big cities to small towns and remote locations everywhere on earth now have internet access. And that gives them access to university programs as well. And not just any old bachelors degree, but the cream of the crop: post-graduate education and PhDs.

There are a number of online universities which offer PhDs, such as University of Phoenix, DeVry University, and Full Sail University as well as traditional universities with specific online programs. While the predominantly online universities have a wide range of PhD offerings in their curriculums, traditional universities have been more reluctant to offer their most prestigious degrees online. But with improvements to internet communications made possible by broadband access, web conferencing, web video, and the vast amount of library resources, even the most stalwart of the traditional schools are beginning to grasp that it isn’t where you’re sitting, but what you’re learning that is most important.

Of all the online universities that offer doctorate degrees, Cal University is one of the most affordable. Being a university dedicated primarily to the study of management and business administration, Cal University offers several DBA specializations. These courses of study are offered at a cost of $300 per credit.

Like Cal University, Baker College is another online institution of education that offers doctorate-level courses of study. While the college does not focus primarily on business administration on the bachelor’s and master’s levels, business administration is the only course of study offered at the doctorate level. Tuition for most graduate programs at Baker College is $375 per credit.

Northcentral University is another primarily online university that offers doctorate courses of study. Northcentral University’s course offerings for PhD programs include business administration, education, psychology, and other fields. Tuition for doctorate programs is $793 per credit.

The University of Phoenix - the largest and most well-known of the primarily online universities - offers a wide range of online PhD programs. These include business administration, education, nursing,environmental science, English, communication, health administration, industrial/organizational psychology, and organizational leadership/information systems and technology. Tuition varies from course to course, but it hovers around $800 per credit.

One well-respected traditional university that offers online courses of study for PhDs is Colorado Technical University. This university offers multiple business management and computer science PhD programs. The tuition for Colorado Technical University graduate programs is $585 per credit.

Another traditional university with significant online PhD offerings is the University of Florida. The University of Florida’s online PhD programs include fields in education, audiology, philosophy, nursing, and pharmacy. Tuition is about $500 per credit, depending on the course of study.

The University of Maryland University College offers a full array of online programs. Among these, it offers two doctorate-level programs: management and management in community college policy and administration. Tuition for its doctorate-level programs is $1,087 per credit, which is a hefty price tag but some of their programs are amongst the most respected in the country..

The legitimate universities and colleges that offer online PhD programs tend to only offer them in specific areas. This is because the nature of a PhD is such that much of the program usually consists of aiding professors in their advanced research. In an online learning environment, it is extremely difficult to carry out such research. The specific programs that are commonly offered on the graduate level through online platforms - such as management and administration programs - are programs that can conceivably be offered in such a way. Students should be skeptical about online universities that claim to be able to offer an overly broad range of PhD programs through a structure of instruction that is entirely online. Also, be sure that the specific program PhD you are pursuing carries the appropriate accreditation for your field of study.

A doctorate completed with distance learning used to be regarded as well, something of a joke. But with the leaps that have been made in internet communications, it has now become possible to do the hard work of a PhD for many programs, completely online. As is obvious from the above listing of tuition costs, the price varies a great deal. But, don’t think that is an indication of quality, some of the most expensive options are actually the least respected degrees. With due diligence, it is now possible to get a solid respected PhD online, at a reasonable cost.