Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE-Tony Singer was attending a training program at Boeing in Seattle, Wash., when he noticed a brochure in the lobby about a graduate engineering degree offered at a distance by the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. He thought online education might fit in well with his lifestyle, so he decided to give it a try. He was especially impressed with the new opportunities that alternative degree programs present. "Distance learning allows you to pick the school that offers the curriculum that best fits your needs," Singer remarks. "We are no longer bound by the curriculum offered only at your neighborhood or state school. Someone in Seattle, Wash. (like myself) can participate in a degree program offered in Wisconsin, Illinois etc. The concept is excellent."

A flexible schedule was as important to Singer as the lack of geographic barriers. "You can do the required work when your time is available," he recalls. "That might be at two in the morning or late on a Saturday evening. This way you can balance your family, home and school time to meet your schedule. The only obstacles are those created by your own over-scheduling."

Singer encourages those enrolling in an online program to "pay attention to the Boy Scout motto and be prepared." He notes the importance of planning ahead when scheduling courses that are offered on a rotating basis so students won't lose time waiting for a required class to be offered again. He also suggests prioritizing study time versus family time.

As he concentrates on finishing his last course before earning his degree, Singer is already planning on catching up with some personal projects that he's been putting off because they had a lower priority than school requirements. He is currently a facilities equipment engineer at Boeing Commercial Aircraft, where he says he has already been able to apply his schoolwork to his daily job. He recommends the graduate program to his colleagues, explaining: "There are other engineering fields here at Boeing that could make even better use of some of the course work I encountered."

UWP offers four degrees at a distance: a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, a Master of Science in Criminal Justice, a Master of Engineering, and a Master of Science in Project Management. For more information, visit online at http://www.uwplatt.edu/disted, call 800-362-5460 or e-mail disted@uwplatt.edu