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about six months ago started an online program for a cs degree (i already had a few years of college a few years ago, so i didn't need any general studies). i wasn't interested in using the degree to get a better job, instead i was just interested in the knowledge. i hate dayjobs, can eek out a living with some websites i run and contract work, and am busy with my own nonprofit projects and just wanted to have more skills for doing them. no interest in getting a degree just to get a better job. i just wanted to be better at what i do and be able to do some new things.

i ended up deciding on http://www.accis.edu/. they aren't accredited, which didn't bother me, and they were the cheapest i could find where i could also find people who had done their program who were happy with it, and who attested to the fact that it wasn't a degree mill like some of the online places you'll find.

anyways, the program seems fine. it's basically what i expected: it's no different than me making up my own program of books to read and doing the assignments in the books other than with a personality like mine i probably wouldn't get as much done without someone laying out the program of study for me --- but i think that's true of any online program. i have since decided that i'm dropping the program after this one semester and am going to attend a normal university next fall. i realized that the advantage of low cost was totally offset by the fact that, as a non-accredited school, there is no way to get any federal financial aid or federally supported loans (which i wouldn't pay back anyways, so it's like a grant to me). and scholarships are basically out of the question.

i also realized that i did want to attend grad school in-person, not online though a similar program, and that it would be hard or impossible to do that with an online degree from a non-accredited school.

anyways, in the end, i think it's an okay option to do an online program as long as someone knows what they want and it fits the bill. if you do want the degree, the piece of paper that supposedly gets you respect, not just the knowledge, make very sure the online school is accredited. if grad school is something you might want, make sure your online program is accredited and seriously consider not getting your degree online, even if it's accredited, because of the lost experience of the in-person courses that will benefit you when you get to grad school.

I looked at ACCIS when they were the American Institute for Computer Science. Seemed legit, and they're still around several years later.

Looks like they've branched into certifications as well as degrees since.

Perhaps instead of a cheap state school, consider a cheap online school and look for a local integrator/VAR to bring you on board as a networking apprentice-type. You may even be able to find a local network helpdesk type position working under some PHB.

I went to the university once, started working as a software developer and I quit school. Now I'm going back to school but doing it all through correspondence work. It's all on my own time, on my own schedule. I am enrolled at The American College of Computer and Information Sciences. Also the University of Phoenix does online degrees too as far as I know. ACCIS is fairly easy but you have to keep on doing it. It's easy to stop when you don't have due dates for anything. Right now I'm in 3 classes and you only have to turn in 1 assignment from any of your classes every 2 months minimum. Obviously you'll want to turn in more than that.... else computers will be obsolete when you graduate. :)

Anyhow... might want to browse the websites. Can't hurt to poke around. Feel free to e-mail me personally if you want to know more about it (or anybody can e-mail me if they want).

anyone have any experience with ACCIS? I'm been thinking about trying to get a CS degree from here.. They seem ok.. Anyone?

I'm considering a Masters at ACCIS. It's a web based accredited college offering computer science degree's. The online part sounds great because it's all self paced, plus you can get up to 30 credit hours for work experience.