1. Do you have the time?

Successful online students manage their time to ensure that assignments are done well before the due dates, without the sort of prompting from an instructor that is often taken for granted in a face-to-face classroom environment.

2. Are you self-directed?

A good online student will take initiative in asking for help when assignments or information are not totally clear. Successful online students are self-starters, they like working on their own and take responsibility for their own learning. They have good organizational skills and can stay on-task and meet deadlines.

3. Do you have the necessary learning skills?

An online student needs to be a good reader, to be able to communicate well by reading and writing, and needs to be able to ask for help if something is not clearly understood. Almost all online courses are reading and writing intensive, more so than courses taught in the face-to-face classroom environment.

4. Do you have access to an internet-connected computer?

The ideal setup for an online student is a computer of her/his own with a fast and reliable internet connection, located in a quiet room where study and testing can be done without interruptions. View technology requirement for WNMU online students here.

5. Do you have the necessary computer skills?

A good online student does not need to be a computer whiz, but does need to feel very comfortable using a wide range of computer features.  Online course instructors have different expectations, but a list of basic computer skills includes:

• Accurate keyboarding
• Using the internet
• Identifying and using URLs
• Using a search engine
• Using and saving email and email attachments
• Saving and copying files
• Using a word processing program
• Copying and pasting
• Saving in RTF
• Making, playing and saving audio and video files
• Manipulating PDF documents
• Using chat and web-conferencing tools