What do you think the best online colleges are? I'm thinking of getting my Masters but there are so many choices.
I got my MLIS (masters of library science) from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. My process was:
1. Picked the area I was interested in.
2. Checked the "governing body" which in my case was the American Library Association for schools they accredited.
3. Checked out the programs that were online, for the amount of courses offered online in a given semester, the variety of courses, called the school and got names of students I could talk to (they actually took my name and asked some students to contact me-privacy reasons).
4. For me, it was important the online program had a bricks and mortar school attached, that might not be important to you. I just wanted the comfort that they had been around awhile and sort of knew what they were doing.
5. Investigated whether or not you have to visit the program periodically. If I had to go to a physical location periodically, and that place was a plane flight away, that might be a problem.
I chose a program that had a physical location and was accredited and had an online program that was not new.
The reality was that the program required more work than a program that was physically based, because the professors needed a lot of writing to get to know you and judge the quality of your work. As it turned out I loved it, I don't love being lectured and would rather read to get my information. I also interned at two libraries in my area, which allowed me to network locally, and get face to face time with professionals in my field.
Good luck with whatever you decide.