Over 45% of NIU students started their education at a community college!   That’s an impressive number.  We’re very proud of these students, because they come from some of the best community colleges in the U.S.  Even better, they do extremely well at NIU.  With 20 community college districts, our region provides tremendous opportunities for people who want to begin a college education or train for a new career close to home.

With your needs in mind, we are expanding access to NIU’s bachelor’s degree-completion programs.  Our goal is to increase the locations where you can begin and complete an undergraduate degree close to home.

Our partnerships with community colleges help develop local support for students and employees who want more education.  Historically, students lived and studied at college for four years.  Times have changed!  People now complete undergraduate education at times and places that complement their lives, their family, and their work schedules.  We’re doing our part to give you new options.

I invite you to check out our Community College Partnerships webpage or to give me a call for more information.  I can be reached at 815-753-9677 or at pcrawford@niu.edu.

Find out what we’re offering, and where it’s being offered!

Thanks,

Paul Crawford

Universities across Illinois formed an alliance offering homeland security courses for students enrolled in any participating university. If you’re enrolled at one of these Alliance universities, you now have the opportunity to gain homeland security skills and disaster preparedness training from expert faculty members across Illinois.

Here’s a list of participating universities:

• Chicago State University
• Eastern Illinois University
• Governors State University
• Illinois State University
• Northern Illinois University
• Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
• Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
• Western Illinois University

If you are admitted to any of these schools you can take approved IDEA courses from any of the other institutions. Check out the list of classes by visiting www.illinoisideahs.org.

Amanda

In our podcast about online learning (podcast 3), Christiane and Elena suggested that students who are new to online courses should definitely take the NIU Online Readiness Survey. This survey assesses your readiness (and your computers) for taking an online class.

If you score badly, you’ll know which ducks to get in a row before you begin your exciting online course. Or, maybe you’ll discover you’ve always been ready and able to tackle learning in a new way.

Take the quiz at http://www.niuonline.niu.edu/survey/detection.swf.

Happy online learning!

Amanda

I took an online computer science class last semester through NIU. It was a Blackboard based class that had three face-to-face meetings. The class was well organized and we covered material at a good pace throughout the semester. We didn’t have to worry about being online at any particular time, though our professor made herself readily available.

I felt very reassured by the pace of the class, availability of the professor, and information on our Blackboard site. However, I personally found time management a challenge, especially with the hours I was working during the semester.

In our third podcast we spoke to Christiane Ong about NIU online classes and I was very reassured when she said that time management can be a challenge for anyone in an online class.

Here are some time management tips for online courses:

• Make sure you have all the necessary texts and supplies before the semester begins in order to avoid falling behind in your assignments. Order them early, don’t panic late!
• Check the day and time of your deadlines for discussion responses, quizzes, projects and exams—mark them on your calendar and sign in to your online classroom a day or two ahead to make sure nothing’s changed.
• Set aside a specific time at least twice a week to log onto your class (one of these days should be early in the week). Online classes are easy to forget about because they’re remote; that’s what makes them challenging.
• Allow additional time to complete projects and quizzes. Plan to spend 3-5 hours per week reading the online material, participating in discussions, and taking quizzes for each class.
• Give yourself time during the day to work on your class when you are most alert.
• Avoid distractions such as surfing the net, shopping online, playing games, chatting, or emailing your friends during the time you’ve designated for your class.
• Take advantage of down time spent on the bus or waiting in lines to review online class material by printing modules and taking them with you to read.
• Be aware of time zone differences. Deadlines for online classes can be altered based upon your location.
• Get help early if you think you may need it. Make sure you know what your professor’s contact preferences are.
• Don’t get discouraged even if you’re worried you won’t complete all of your assignments on time. Just keep working through.
• Take online classes as seriously as you would regular classes because they can still lower your G.P.A.
• Frequently remind yourself why you’re taking the class especially when things get busy, as they tend to do.

And this is my final point. Don’t be hard on yourself. We’re brainwashed to think online classes are easy. They aren’t. A lot of people find them challenging. If you follow these guidelines, you’ll be fine.

Elena