About Us

Welcome to OnlineCollege.org!

If you want to change your career or advance your current one, online college may be the best, most convenient option for you. Read through our site to learn all you need to know about online college admissions, accreditation, student loans and aid, and more. We've selected the top online colleges so you can be sure you're getting a high-quality education for your tuition dollar.

Our blogs keep you informed about the latest higher education and online learning issues. Read feature articles for classroom management tips, new technology trends in the classroom and other reports on innovative movements in higher ed and the job market. Melissa A. Venable, PhD, writes our Inside Online Learning blog providing online instructors and students with information needed to make decisions about your programs. You can look forward to articles from Inside the industry covering:

Resources for Online Students and Instructors
Current Trends in Online Education
Product Reviews – for online students and faculty
Educational Advising/Online Student Expectations
Career Advising

We're also learning about all the ways online education is transforming our society, from the ways we learn and teach to how we're preparing to enter — and change — the job market. Keep up with our research by reading our white papers and guides and let us know what else you'd like to see.

Continue following our dialogue about online learning on Twitter (@OC_org) and Google+ (add us to your circles!) We also sponsor a live chat on Twitter — #IOLchat.

Thanks for joining us on this journey. We look forward to hearing from you along the way!

About the Authors

Melissa A. Venable, PhD

An Education Writer for OnlineCollege.org’s Inside Online Learning blog and host of the weekly #IOLchat, Melissa's background includes work in higher education – private, public, and for-profit – as an instructional designer and curriculum developer. Melissa is also an experienced instructor, academic advisor, and career counselor working with both undergraduate and graduate students. She earned her doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction – Instructional Technology from the University of South Florida and is actively involved in research related to online education and the support of online students. She is a 2012-2013 Chairperson for the Technology Committee of the National Career Development Association and has served on the Editorial Board of eLearn Magazine since 2012. She has been mentioned in Inside Higher Ed and NPR’s All Tech Considered for her expertise in using social media in education, and her work has been published on notable blogs like Brazen Careerist and Faculty Focus and in various publications and journals, such as:

Melissa has also spoken at numerous conferences on online education, technology in education, and new learning and teaching methods. You can see her next as a guest presenter at the ed Social Media Summit in Boston on April 2.