Online Student Spotlight - Laura Evans

What is your major?

Bachelor of Business Administration: Marketing

How are online classes making it possible for you to keep working towards your degree?

Work times and class times can overlap, but online classes let me work in the day and get an education at night. Classes bring me further to completing my degree, while work prepares me for life after I get the degree.

What did you like the most about online classes?

I love that online classes reduce the stress of schedule-making. Without the online option, I would not be able to take two classes whose days and times overlap. This is especially helpful for upper-division courses that only offer one section per semester. It is great to know that even with limited course availability, I can still work towards my degree.

What is the most important benefit offered by online classes?

While the increased schedule flexibility is incredible, the ability to learn at one’s own pace is the most important benefit of online classes. Specifically, in video stream classes, students can watch lectures as many times as necessary to understand the content. Professors do not need to repeat themselves as students can simply rewind the videos. This is more efficient; students that need to spend extra time learning a topic can do so while the students that understand it immediately do not have to hear the same content twice.

How do you balance work, family and school?

Balancing my education and social life is possible because I can follow online classwork at my own pace. Family/friend events and emergencies do not always occur at the most convenient times. If I know I need to be somewhere at a set time, I can schedule my studying for another time. With in-person classes, I am forced to choose between missing an important lecture and missing an event/emergency.

What advice do you have for future Owls considering FAU?

Put your best effort into your studies immediately. Remember to keep a balance; do not focus solely on your social life. The consequences will follow you until you graduate, especially when classes start to build on information taught in previous classes. You can avoid much stress by building healthy study habits in your first semester.