Does anyone have opinions or experience with online programs through University of Illinois-Springfield? The program I'm wondering about is: http://www.online.uillinois.edu/catalog/ProgramDetail.asp?ProgramID=437 I'm helping my husband look for a good online history program but we hadn't seen this one until recently. It would be nice to hear from someone who has more knowledge on them, their online classes, etc. than we do.
Looks pretty good. The two things I would note are that: (a) they apparently have no coursework in Ancient History and Mediaeval History and (b) somehow the new-fangled "American History, 1840-1890" has a different feel to it than the more traditional "Civil War and Reconstruction." But, in general, UIS is a good school, and they (including their online programs) are accredited by NCA.
I have compiled a list, with weblinks, of distance learning bachelor's programs in history listed in Bears' Guide, which list is living here: http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=20245
I graduated from the MTL program and did not find it terribly difficult. Although the unit price is about $129/unit, the other fees make it much higher. A 4-unit course runs about $800. If you have a BA in history and are a fairly good writer, it will be pretty easy, but others enrolled in the program who did not have the writing skills of a historian found it challenging. Keep track of all of your records because although they are very nice, they are not very efficient.
Mea culpa. The program you are looking at is a BA program, not a MA. The standard documentation format in history is Chicago style, which is different from MLA or APA. I cannot comment on the BA program.
Thanks for the suggestions and links. The price of this program makes it extremely attractive, but he will definitely have to check into the extra fees and see how that affects the overall price. One of the things I noticed is that they only admit 20 students into their online history program every year, and that getting your paperwork in before Feb. 15th is key to getting in for the fall semester. So it looks like there is work to be done there!
He has decided to go with American Public University for his BA. http://www.apus.edu/ Their program is a little more expensive than what we wanted, but since books are included, it works out. Plus they'll likely be getting regional accreditation this spring (from everything I've heard, at least) which makes it even better. I'll start my MA there if that happens! Thanks for all the suggestions!
