Top 5 Subjects for Distance Learning

Some subjects are better suited to distance learning than others. The best topics for online study are where technology enhances the learning experience beyond what you can achieve in a classroom. Here's a list of the top 5 subjects where distance learning really makes sense.

1. Marketing and Public Relations

Digital marketing, public relations and social media marketing are all areas where you need to connect to people online. If you work in these fields, you need to understand the habits of internet users and know how to reach online groups effectively.

You're more likely to have a successful career in these areas if you are happy to work online. That also means you should be happy to study online. So it's a good test of students to run public relations and related courses by distance education. Hopefully, students use the communication skills they are learning to connect to each other via social media.

These fields also suit distance learning for other reasons. Project and assignment work is often about digital communication. So it helps to be on a computer when receiving course material. You can easily switch from reading course material to working on related assignments.

2. Information Technology

Information technology is an obvious choice for an online study subject. Everyone involved with an IT course should be technology-literate, including students, lecturers, tutors and support staff. Running a course that uses cutting-edge technology shouldn't be a problem.

Because everyone enrolled in an online IT program is hooked up when working through course material, it's easy to switch to practical work. You can also quickly check out IT forums for detailed subject information. IT professionals are among the strongest contributors to internet forums.

A possible worry with studying IT online is the social life of students and, in particular, the temptation to spend too much time on digital pursuits. It can be easy to jump on a computer to study or do something else useful and end up starting a computer game that goes for hours. Discipline and time management skills are definitely required.

3. Journalism and Communications

Journalism and communications are further examples of fields where the internet has taken over. Text-based journalism is fast paced and delivered largely through digital media. Communications is an increasingly complex area (though university courses usually focus on core skills). Like public relations and social media, you should be comfortable studying online if you hope to pursue a career in the field.

4. Law

Law is a highly literary kind of subject, making it a natural fit with online study. Law students do large amounts of reading and writing. Getting to and from classes is time that could be better spent on reading course material and doing assignments.

The law courses best suited to distance learning are shorter courses. A five-year combined law degree would be a long haul in the distance education mode. It might be more realistic to do a postgraduate law course online or a shorter bachelor program, such as a 3-year law degree.

5. Business and Management

Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs are often run online because of the convenience to students. As well as MBAs, postgraduate management courses such as health administration and project management are intended for people with established careers. It makes sense to offer them online so students can balance study with work. Busy professionals often just don't have the time to study on campus. Logistically, they really couldn't study without the convenience of distance learning.