Students attending online schools enjoy lots of perks that traditional students miss out on, and the most obvious is that they never have to go to an actual classroom. While online students experience varying levels of flexibility when it comes to logging into courses and discussions, their schedules are much more conducive to personal convenience than students get attending school on a real brick-and-mortar campus. Online students also rely primarily on remote-access online resources and don’t have to worry about lugging books around or paying for as many books, period. Online students may also feel like they get more one-on-one time with professors through video chat and e-mail, while also using chats and forums to connect with other students. But one major college experience can be missing from the lives of online students: school spirit and a deep connection with the campus community.
Traditional students live, eat, study and play together most months out of the year, and while technology forges certain connections among online students, it can’t substitute for the school spirit many students naturally feel the moment they arrive in the dorm, cafeteria, football game, or even at a college party. But just because it doesn’t arise organically, doesn’t mean online students can’t have school spirit: they just have to be a little more creative in finding it.
Getting involved starts with chatting up your fellow students. Find out if anyone lives in your general area, and try to set up social events or study groups every so often. If no one lives in your city, make a point to visit the college campus or headquarters once a semester at least. You may even be required to show up for orientation or graduation, but alumni weekends, sports events, concerts and college plays are also good excuses to find out what’s going on around campus. If you do set up a visit, email your professors and ask them if you can meet them for some real face-to-face time, off the computer.
Traveling to visit your school may not ever be a viable option for you if you’re too strapped for cash or just can’t take the time away from family or work commitments. But you can still follow your school’s sports on TV, attend official networking events organized through the school, visit with local alumni, take advantage of your school’s career counseling and mentoring services online, and purchase items like t-shirts, mugs and mouse pads that boast your school’s logo. As online learning becomes a more prevalent option for students around the country, more and more opportunities will open up for alumni relations and community involvement, but it’s up to you to make the connections.