I have two degrees - a Bachelors degree in Mass Communications and a Masters Degree in Elementary Education. While getting my BA I was too serious, perhaps, putting in over-the-top amounts of studying to graduate Summa Cum Laude from the University of South Florida's Honors program. Still, I made friends, opened my mind to lots of new thoughts and possibilities, challenged myself, learned that unlike in high school, there are actually people who value people who want to learn, and learned some kickass card games.

When I decided to go back for the Masters degree, I enjoyed being a full time student. After getting out in the real world and working diligently at a boring job that I hated, being challenged at school was a joy. I also learned that you could put in a lot less work and still get As. That was nice! Of course, being a married home-owner, I didn't attend parties and drink myself stupid (didn't do that the first time either!), but I did still get a lot out of the on-campus experience.

There's nothing quite like being in college. I'd do it again if I could, assuming I could be as carefree now as I was then. When I got this web release for earning a "Bachelor degree online," it made me reflect on my learning experiences. How many people are getting degrees entirely online nowadays? According to the release, Capella University was founded in 1993 and it serves 16,000 students across all 50 United States and in 63 countries. It offers graduate degree programs in business, information technology, education, human services, and psychology, and bachelors degree programs in business and information technology. Capella offers 76 graduate and undergraduate specializations and 16 certificate specializations.

That's a lot of people who are getting degrees without ever setting foot on a college campus. No college food, no athletic events, no trying to stay awake as a boring professor drones on, no being fascinated by professors so enamored with their subject that they bubble over with enthusiasm, no passing the time between classes in a slightly musty library eating smuggled-in vending machine food, no group projects with people you like and people you don't... I don't know. Can you get as much out of an online degree as you can a traditional one? Maybe you can learn the same amount of book work - maybe - but isn't college more than that?

What do you think?