Is online learning more difficult than taking a traditional class on campus?

Not really. It’s different. Possessing any number of the characteristics of successful online learners is important in terms of how you navigate the requirements of an online course. Most courses require completing weekly readings, essays, objective exercises, and Internet work.  Your evaluation, just like in a traditional course, will be based on building a grade from all of the exercises you complete. Most online classes do require more weekly writing than a traditional class. However, a tradeoff might be that there will most likely be less memorization of facts for an exam and more application of ideas in papers or projects. In this mix may also be figured your contribution to the class discussion forum. Students who are motivated, self-directed and who can develop a system to meet deadlines don’t find online learning more difficult than traditional classroom courses.

Does an online course take a lot more time than a traditional course?

Most online courses require between 6 to 9 hours of work a week. Of course, this will depend on the course. Some may require a bit more; others, a bit less. Keep n mind too, that there is a difference between just completing an assignment and completing it well. On this point there is no difference between online courses and traditional classes. As the old adage goes, the more you put into something the more you get out of it. Grades are tied to effort. The time you put into a course is correlated with the outcome.