A little bit about what you should know about being an online student:

Preparing to Take an Online Class: Finding out if you would be a good candidate for taking your courses online is critical to your success in the online program. You have chosen a wise path, coming to this page! After reading a little about what it takes to be an online student, you will be able to take a short self assessment quiz that will assess your readiness. If you decide you are not ready for online courses some suggestions are available at the bottom of this page.

Types of Distance Learning Courses

Mt. San Jacinto College offers a variety of distance learning courses in addition to traditional face-to-face courses. The two major types of distance learning courses offered to students at MSJC are hybrid and fully online courses. You can read about each course category in more depth below:

Hybrid Courses (Courses taught partially online, but have regular on campus meetings)		Hybrid courses are courses that have some regularly scheduled meetings on campus that are accompanied by online activities. The hours spent on campus vary from course to course and you should check the schedule carefully to know when the course meets on campus.
Online Courses (courses taught via the web using the Blackboard courseware system)		Online courses provide students with an opportunity to complete coursework without attending classes on campus. Although online courses do not meet on campus, the curriculum for online courses is the same, as the curriculum provided in a traditional face-to-face course. Sometimes, according to the instructor's preference and the course content, tests are done on campus or arrangements can be made for them do be done at an alternative site, if you don't live near a MSJC campus.

Course Management System: Blackboard

We use Blackboard as our courseware system, which allows us to use some pretty great tools for carrying on discussions and delivering lectures and content materials just like you would in an on campus class. There are some differences between online and on campus, though. Read on....

The online learning environment is somewhat different than the traditional classroom experience for most students. Our courses are not self paced. That means that you are expected to be involved in the course on a regular basis and move through the course with the other students who are enrolled.

Online students are required to:

possess adequate to send email with attachments

navigate the Internet

download browser plug-ins to view multimedia enhanced web pages

be able to participate in threaded discussions

troubleshoot their own computer and connectivity problems

Students not possessing these skills should complete a short, one unit introductory course to technology before enrolling in an online course. It is highly recommended that you take CAPP 080 - Introduction to Technology, if you're at all concerned about your technical ability.

A successful online student will:

take responsibility for their own learning.
set aside time each week to complete the requisite reading assignments required by their instructor.
complete and submit all assignments in a timely manner.
read threaded discussions at least twice weekly (in Blackboard this area is known as the Discussion Board).
respond to threaded discussions as required by the instructor. (Expect to read and respond to the threaded discussions at least twice weekly. This should take approximately one to two hours reading students posts and responding to them.)
utilize communication tools (e-mail, threaded discussions, chat, etc.) to ask questions and provide information valuable to the course.
view other students as valuable resources to their learning experience.
rely on classmates for evaluation of assignments before submitting them to the instructor for final evaluation.
realize that learning is a lifelong journey and not a destination.

Assess your own readiness to be an online student:

Follow the quiz link below to take a short self assessment about your readiness to be a successful online student.. If you are not ready, do not despair! We can get you there. Taking CAPP 080, a one unit short course will introduce you to the technical information you need to take a course online. Another way to get ready for fully online courses is to start with a partially online course called a "hybrid". Taking a hybrid course will give you an idea of what online is about and you can decide from there. Speaking to a counselor is also a good idea before enrolling in your first fully online course. To contact a counselor, please see the Counseling Page

Quiz: This quiz is short. It opens in its own browser window. When you finish, close the quiz window and you will be back here. Quiz

Specific Course Requirements: Some courses may require proctored examination or special software. Find out more about a specific class by checking the course list. Some, but not all, instructors use the link from this list to provide students with information that may be helpful before they enroll in their course. Course List

Think you are ready for online learning? Search for classes online, by using the "Search the Schedule of Classes" tab in Blackboard, or you can download an electronic copy of the paper schedule by clicking here.

Preparing Your Computer:

Below are the common plug-ins that may be used by your instructor to help facilitate the course.

Adobe Acrobat

Quicktime

Real Player

Shockwave/ Flash Players

Java Runtime

Microsoft Office Viewers

(Microsoft Office owners need not install)