taking online college courses, bad decision?

I love online classes. I love the fact I can get a ton of extra credit hours without going into the actual school. It's easier on my schedule. I have about a week or so before each chapter and all the assignments are due for it.

I know what you're going through. I have a bunch of health problems, and two of them are severe depression and anxiety/social anxiety. I just had my first day at a new college yesterday and I was going crazy beforehand. When I got settled into the first class, I wasn't even anxious for the rest of the day.

I recommend taking courses offline that are more lectures than anything else. I would then try a class with a lab next semester. Something like an intro to bio with a lab is a great idea. You'll end up needing a partner (or group), but that's the point. You need to work on your social anxiety. The social aspect of college is one of the biggest things. What will you do after college? You'll have job interviews, you'll be seeing a bunch of people everyday (depending on your job). and so many other things that won't work well with your anxiety.

You can't expect to do every class online. Science and math are not good classes to do online. More challenging classes aren't good to take online as well...

No one can stop you from taking college courses from other places. They do have the choice to ACCEPT the credits you earned from that college. Doing your homework, before starting to do any homework starts in the guidance office. Ask what classes are transferable, which CLEP exams are accepted (those tests you study on your own, pay to take a test and sometimes get credit for), how many actual class hours you need to pass a subject or if passing a test is acceptable. Today's secondary education world is a new one. You can move ahead faster. You can attend a community college for cheaper courses for the most basic subjects; so, you can save your money for a better university and higher quality courses. Make sure to double check on transfer credit, graduation credit, etc. Definitely take a look at online educational courses if you are a good self starter and finisher.

Taking online classes offered by traditional public or private non-profit colleges and universities should be fine.

Taking online classes offered by for-profit schools that offer very little that *isn't* online is a bit riskier. I'd recommend watching 2 "Frontline" stories -- "College, Inc." and "Educating Sergeant Pantske" -- before you enroll in one of those. (I found them both engrossing as well as informative, and I hope you will as well.) Some people are very happy with their programs at schools like the University of Phoenix and with the opportunities they have for jobs after they graduate, but some are quite unhappy, and because credits may not be transferable students may find that they can't transfer without running out of financial aid before they complete degrees. For-profit education, as it is currently offered, is not for everyone, and those people for whom it doesn't work sometimes end up feeling swindled.

There are not many options for completing an entire bachelor's program offered by a traditional non-profit school, but especially if you are willing to consider community colleges outside of your home state (you'll have to arrange to be proctored for some tests), you can get an awful lot of many degrees online, and the number of wholly-online options is increasing.

I don't know what your high school online classes were like, but many college online classes these days involve interaction with classmates and a schedule imposed by a syllabus, just like the same class when it is offered in a traditional classroom. The old at-your-own-speed correspondence courses have not been the model for most schools. But I think Athabasca (in Canada) and Western Governors may let you go at your own speed.

Whatever you decide, good luck. I hope you get a great education at a school that fits your needs and preferences.