Take 4 Steps to Find the Right Online Degree Program

In the world of brick-and-mortar schools, there is a fairly established path for finding and choosing a school. There are campus visits to consider, guidebooks to flip through and alumni to consult.

For prospective online students, however, finding the right program can feel like a journey into newly discovered territory. Schools announce new programs seemingly every week. And there's no shortage of websites claiming to feature the best online programs and courses.

"There is so much static out there," says Cheryl Oliver, assistant dean for graduate and online programs at the Washington State University College of Business. "It's really hard for people to know what is a legitimate degree and what programs are just going to take their money and put them through the motions."

Below, experts share steps students can take to sift through information and find the right program.

[Learn whether online learning is right for you.]

1. Visit school websites and other verifiable information sources: Institutions are better equipped to tell their story than websites that aggregate or rank online programs, Oliver says. Many of the new sites that claim to rank or showcase a variety of schools and courses are subjective, she says. Some may even ask students to pay for information about a school -- a red flag.

In many cases, she says, schools have to pay to be featured on portals. While there is nothing wrong with that, she says that means some schools get more exposure than others.

"Some schools are paying to be on every one of those sites and now they are prolific," she says. "So students are going to continue to see that school when maybe the best bet for them is in their own backyard."

If students are eager for unbiased statistics, they can visit the U.S. Department of Education's College Navigator tool, which collects tuition, graduation rates and other data, says Todd Marshall, executive director of online learning at Regent University.

2. Investigate the school's accreditation status: "Accreditation is absolutely critical," says Todd Hitchcock, senior vice president of online solutions at Pearson, an education services provider. Students should first make sure their school is regionally accredited, he says. Next, they should determine whether their specific degree has programmatic accreditation, if eligible.

A student in engineering, for example, should look to see whether their program is accredited by ABET, an accrediting agency for academic programs in the disciplines of applied science, computing, engineering and engineering technology.

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation keeps a list of approved accrediting organizations.

"Accredited schools tend to mention their accreditation in a prominent place," says Marshall, with Regent University. "If you really have to dig to find it, or worse yet, can't find it at all, that is not a good sign."

[Discover how to tell if your online program is accredited.]

3. Talk to professionals in your desired field: Before Bonnie Harris decided where she wanted to earn an online master's in integrated marketing and communication, she called human resources professionals in the field and asked what they thought of the schools she was considering.

"It was easy to find a school with accreditation but I also wanted a really good name," says Harris, who said her research helped her gain confidence that the degree she went on to earn from West Virginia University in 2007 would be respected.

Rick Martin, who earned his online master's degree in industrial and organizational psychology from Capella University in 2014, has similar advice for students.

"Talk to professionals with the degrees you would like to pursue and get their input," he says. "See what advice they have."

4. Contact people at the school, including students: Once students have narrowed their search to a few programs, they should reach out to student services and others at the school, experts say.

School officials should be happy to answer questions about the school, and should be frank about whether the program will be a good fit, says Oliver, with Washington State University.

Prospective students should also ask student service officials about tutoring and remediation services, Hitchcock says.

Harris, who is now an online instructor at West Virginia University, says she tells prospective students to contact faculty members to get a sense of how involved their instructors will be in class.

[Explore U.S. News data showing online education isn't always cheap.]

"You really want to vet the type of professor they are using because a lot of them are adjunct and the quality of those professors can range," she says.

Finally, but perhaps most importantly, experts suggest contacting current or recent students.

"I don't think all programs are going to be 100 percent honest," says Corrine Gordon, an assistant clinical professor with a focus on online, competency-based instruction at Northern Arizona University. "Have that peer-to-peer conversation. That's something we think is very important."

Trying to fund your online education? Get tips and more in the U.S. News Paying for Online Education center.