| Books are an integral component of any academic | | | | electronic course materials. First, I strongly suggest |
| program. Lectures and interaction with fellow | | | | creating separate directories for all downloaded |
| students add to the learning experience, books are | | | | course material; I went so far as to further |
| required (and expected) as a part of the curriculum. | | | | segregate materials by individual course, to include |
| Unlike brick-and-mortar counterparts, online degree | | | | articles and publications that I downloaded for |
| programs have greater flexibility in the delivery of | | | | research purposes. Secondly, make a backup of any |
| course materials. Some programs allow students to | | | | course materials purchased or obtained electronically. |
| order books through an online store and have the | | | | Some materials can be downloaded again in the |
| books shipped to them, though this does require | | | | event of a computer failure or file corruption, but |
| planning on the student’s part to ensure that the | | | | some of the purchased materials only contain license |
| required materials arrive in time to meet class | | | | for use on a single computer. I know that some |
| deadlines. A student who waits until the last minute | | | | companies allow for an additional download if the |
| could find himself or herself at a severe | | | | student contacts the customer service department, |
| disadvantage, and given the rapid pace of online | | | | but this will typically result in a 24-hour delay (at a |
| coursework, a student could quickly fall behind. | | | | minimum), and may still lead to problems later on in |
| Other schools offer online delivery of books, either | | | | obtaining the materials. Even backup copies may not |
| through custom course delivery websites or | | | | necessarily transfer to another system, depending on |
| third-party vendors. In fact, many companies have | | | | the copyright protection included within the material. |
| taken advantage of portable document formats to | | | | While electronic materials are typically less expensive, |
| create entire business divisions that deliver electronic | | | | the student owns that copy, and cannot resell or |
| versions of academic texts (often referred to as | | | | transfer the rights once the class ends. There are |
| “E-books”). These allow for immediate | | | | not any stores that specialize in the purchase and |
| fulfillment of orders, so procrastinating students can | | | | resale of used “E-books,” at least not any of |
| wait until the last minute to order and download the | | | | which I am aware. |
| required texts. Electronic reading materials also allow a | | | | With any degree program, the student will be |
| student (with the appropriate software and | | | | expected to achieve some research objectives. Many |
| knowledge) to mark-up text to meet specific needs, | | | | schools offering online degrees also provide rather |
| bookmark critical pages, and even add lengthy notes | | | | extensive electronic libraries to aid in research. |
| to expand on text material without damaging the | | | | Personally, I would suggest using a combination of |
| text. Such materials also allow for rapid searching of | | | | online resources and physical publications (either |
| key concepts or phrases. If necessary, a hard-copy | | | | obtained through periodical subscriptions, newspapers, |
| of the text (or a portion thereof) is only as far away | | | | or local libraries). This helps to expand the available |
| as the student’s printer. Better still, some | | | | resources, but, more importantly, it brings the |
| companies offer free electronic versions with the | | | | student closer to experiencing traditional research |
| purchase of the hard-copy of material, providing the | | | | techniques and academic experiences. Regardless of |
| student with the benefits of both deliveries. | | | | the school or program, expect course materials to be |
| There are some things to consider when dealing with | | | | an important part of your learning experience. |