I came across another school with Online master degrees. This one is Gonzaga University, and I had to pay a little attention since it is a Jesuit institution. After all, those wacky Jesuits did good by me in High School. Gonzaga University is actually a highly rated US News and World Reports school, so I was kind of surprised to discover they had an online degree program. I mean, there are quite a few schools that are either online-only or…well, should be since they lack any substantial facilities and actual full-time faculty.

It seems that Graduate schools with more competitive reputations have shied away from the online game, as though distance learning diminishes the education. Gonzaga University is taking a different view, however, offering their well-respected curriculum to people who otherwise might not be able to attend an advanced degree program. Think business professionals and parents…free time is like an imaginary friend.

The Gonzaga offerings seem to be limited to leadership programs and Nursing degrees, I don’t know if that can be expanded. But nursing remains a hot profession in great need of more warm bodies, so this could be a great – perhaps the only way – for some people to get an advanced degree while raising kids and/or working another job.

And believe me, we needs nurses. Mars needs women, Earth needs nurses. Just ask the freaky dude I met in the dentist’s lobby waiting for Carol last week. Dude was off the wall. I think he actually might have been from Mars. But that’s a whole other story.