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Discover more about WVU Online. New podcasts debut every other Monday from February 21 - May 2, 2022. Podcast topics will cover the importance of resumes and graduate school recommendation requests, to support services and financial aid. Listen in for some valuable tips! Let’s go!
The Online Road Map podcast is sponsored by WVU Online and produced by WVU Student Media.
Kapaudio FINAL
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[00:00:00] So thank you again for taking time to talk with me about your student experience in a WVU online academic program. As you know, WVU Online has a long standing tradition as part of the West Virginia University community, and the programs have been in existence long before the recent covid 19. Our student and alumni are doing incredible things, so it's really exciting to hear more about your student experience, and I know it'll resonate with other current and prospective students.
So to get started, can you please just share what academic program you are in or completed with WVU Online and what were so important program qualities that you were looking for in an online program? Yeah, I had completed the graduate certificate program in leadership studies. I just recently completed it, and I would say the things that I was looking for outta that program, particularly when I was investigating it initially, was I wanted something [00:01:00] that could fit with my, my busy work schedule.
First of all, I, I. You know, I wasn't in a position where I was looking to step away from my job for any period of time or anything like that, so I needed something that was gonna be flexible and, and work with that. And I also wanted it to be something that was practical. I work here at WVU for the Office of Accessibility Services, and I'm a, I'm a, a supervisor in that department and I wanted to make sure that whatever I was studying was going to be something that I could take back to, to my, my office job and, and, Be something that I would utilize and, and that would make me a better supervisor, hopefully.
And then I also wanted it to be something that was gonna keep me stimulated and engaged kind of from a scholarly and intellectual capacity. You know, I, I have degrees already and, and I'm something of a lifelong student, I guess, but, I, you know, I wanted it to be, I didn't want it to be something where I was coming in, reading, taking tests, coming in, reading, taking tests, kind of wash, rinse, repeat.
I wanted to be something where I was gonna be stimulated, [00:02:00] where I was gonna be able to express ideas and come up with ideas and, and engage myself in kind of creative and, and scholarly activity as well here. So it really checked all of those boxes for me. That's really awesome. I appreciate you sharing and I think as we talk with students, a lot of times they're looking for those flexible and actually practical programs and experiences that they can immediately and long-term apply to what they're doing.
And I think, you know, as a working professional, I think that's the goal for everyone because they do wanna take that back and help better themselves and their teams. As you mentioned, you know, you're a supervisor, so that's incredibly important. How would you describe your student experience in regard to having access to your faculty members and advisors and then also being able to connect with classmates?
I would say it was a wonderful experience, even though it was an online class. I still had connected with quite a few of the other graduate students in the program who I would be taking class, you know, class after class with them. We were part of that same cohort [00:03:00] and got to know them a little. Also worked very closely with the faculty and had a lot of freedom to kind of explore different, different avenues and, and kind of make the academic work my own, I guess.
You know, I would say that, you know, I was able to kind of adopt, adapt, you know, my course assignments. To kind of align it with my professional work here in accessibility services. I'm also a fiction writer. I have that as a, a creative background and was actually even able to adapt some of what I was doing in the leadership studies graduate program to kind of align with that area of interest as well.
And, and faculty really were receptive to that and work. I worked closely with them to get feedback. The kinds of things I was doing and, and you know, I always knew that I could pick their brains about things and, and have those conversations, so it was very hands on. That's really amazing that you were still able to have a really connective experience, even though you may not necessarily see them.
On a daily basis or at all, you know, within your online en environment and [00:04:00] programs. So that's really great that you were able to even tailor your experience to really mold and fit what you were doing and what you do, you know, in your writing. So that's really great. I'm glad to hear that. Is there anything that has surprised you or that surprised you about the online student?
Maybe not as such, you know, just because I work at WVU and I've taught online before, and so I wouldn't necessarily say, I would say I came in kind of understanding what like online classes, you know, would look like. Well, I think what I would would say is that, you know, during Covid we all sort of became, I think, a, a little bit better at using Zoom and other technologies and things to, you know, to deliver our, our communications, including our, our teaching and.
And so I, you know, I think the, the one thing that maybe, I don't know if I, if it was a surprise, but it was, at least, I was very relieved to see that even though these are online classes, they didn't feel like a correspondence course or, or, or something like that. They felt like real [00:05:00] university classrooms.
You're meeting with students, you're meeting with faculty, or you're even in asynchronous classes where it's happening via writing. There's still, you know, professional. Academic communication happening. It's not like I'm assigned to this class. I never meet the instructor and it's like a robot teaching me and I'm just completing a module or something like that.
No, it was, there was definitely, you know, always a, a direct engagement with the other people in the class and with the instructor. And in that sense, it, it felt like any other college course just delivered in a, a different, That's really great cuz I know we have a lot, you know, questions that come up that, you know, am I still gonna get the same experience as I would on campus?
And you don't have that classroom environment, but you have the online classroom space. So I think to still have those connections and personal, you know, conversations and all of that, I think definitely help in this experience. And I do like that. You mentioned Zoom too and kind of enhancing your [00:06:00] te.
Girls, because everyone's kind of enforced to do that within, you know, , everything's shut down within a day and it's like, how do you even start working remotely if you're not set up to do that? So, you know, it's great that WVU online had, uh, a longstanding history with the online education. That's not something that stemmed from the pandemic, but it's something that we've been able to, like, grow upon, but have had a really solid foundation.
Yeah, I think a lot of older students, I mean, we work with students of all populations, and I think some are more reluctant because they may not have those technology skills that a lot of people may have grown up with, and it's just second nature to them, so I'm glad you mentioned that too. Were you able to take advantage of any additional like services or resources that are offered to online students, like tutoring or career services or libraries or anything else along those lines?
Well, I was sort of, as a non-traditional student who works here at the institution, I didn't utilize as many services as I think an under typical undergraduate utilize, you [00:07:00] know, the library a little bit and things like that. Of course, as I was doing research, but you know, I think what I would would do is just maybe.
This is an opportunity to plug the office where I work, which is the office accessibility services and, and just let folks know, like we're, so, we're the office on campus that ensures that students have equal access and an even playing field in their class. Students with disabilities have equal access and, and an equal playing field in their classes so that, you know, they can have that full experience here at the institution.
And I think sometimes, Individuals don't realize that that extends to online classes as well as on-site classes. And so, you know, if there is somebody out there who's interested in taking WVU online classes and there's someone with a disability who maybe needs some accommodation for that, I would really encourage them to reach out to our office and, uh, and, and speak with, register with us and speak with a specialist and, and kind of explore that as a resource here on campus.
That's a little bit of a, a pitch, but I think it's, you know, really important that, that folks know that that's available. [00:08:00] That's fantastic and I kind of left it out cause I was hoping you were gonna touch on that , knowing that that's where your area of expertise lies. So it is important because I think whether it's a short or a long-term disability that students may have or they just need a, you know, that accommodation or whatever it may look like for each individual student, I think it is important that they know that it exists and it's an option.
Yeah. For them to be a successful student in an online program, Absolut. So, yeah. Thank you. I appreciate that so much. The next question is, how have you grown per personally and professionally as a result of your WVU online academic program? Yeah, I could kind of go on and on about this one. I think that the, the kind of theoretical discussions of, of leadership theory in the classes that I was taking were really kind of, and, and the different models we were looking at.
I think it was useful going back to, you know, my day job here and, and the kind of. Hands on, like boots on the ground, kind of, you know, supervising that, that I do, you know, and I won't go into all the details about, about that, but I think what I will [00:09:00] share is like when the pandemic hit our office, so our office does some, or, or the particular team that I oversee in our office, we provide, uh, among other things, closed captioning support for media, you know, for students who rely on that in their classes.
And, uh, when the pandemic hit, we saw the number. Media requests for closed captioning that we field go up by, uh, over 900%. It really was a tremendous kind of phenomenon where suddenly there's all this video in, in need of captioning, you know, felt to us as a responsibility. And the first thing I would say is that we have a wonderful team here of professional transcribers and interpreters who, who did a, a tremendous job to, to ensure that all of that captioning got done.
But I found myself, you know, in, in a position where I had to. The unit and support the team and, and kind of come up with a plan for, for that. And, uh, and I found myself relying heavily on and, and coming back to things that I had learned in my leadership studies curriculum, particularly a model of leadership called adaptive [00:10:00] leadership, which I found really helpful in, in dealing with this challenge, which was, at the end of the day, an unexpected kinda adaptive challenge and required a a, a certain kind of approach.
You know, it wasn't something that I could just. Fixed by edict or something. I couldn't just say. And now the captioning is done and it's done. You know, we had to work together and figure that out. And, and the adaptive model I, I think, was really useful to me as I, I navigated that, uh, professionally.
That's really great. It sounds like your program, it's definitely widely applicable to. What you're doing. And I think what anybody in a supervisory role or even just in a professional role can really benefit from and being able to take that theory and actually put it into practice. For sure. I mean, every business, every company, every school everywhere has, you know, someone in a leadership capacity, whatever that may look like, whether that's sent entry level or middle management or executive.
So that's really great. I'm glad you [00:11:00] were able to really take that and apply it and hundred percent. And I didn't, you know, anticipate it. Yeah, 900%. It was, I mean, over 750 videos. And so, you know, it wasn't something that heading into the program I anticipated like, oh, and then I'll, you know, learn some things and, you know, I wanted it to be practical.
I didn't necessarily think that this scenario was going to occur in, in such a way that I was then referencing things from, from classes. Sort of made, made decisions, you know, in the office, but it makes sense, right? I mean, you use what tools you have at your disposal and this was a, a new tool for me and it, it turned out to be a big help.
That's awesome. I'm so glad, and it makes me happy that you're able to get so much out of the program and, and truly apply it. So, just kinda more of a fun question is, what's your favorite thing or what's your favorite memory about your WVU online experience? Yeah, that's a, that's a tough one. I mean, I think there are a lot, a lot of really positive things that, that happened with the, [00:12:00] the, the online experience.
And there are definitely a couple papers that I wrote that I, I really, really enjoyed. A couple projects that I had engaged in that were. A lot of fun and, and personally meaningful to me. But probably, I'd say the thing that I, I found most useful or, or most engaging or, or that I enjoyed most about the program was just the conversations, you know, with, with classmates and, and with faculty kind of, you know, you come in, everybody thinks they know kind of what leadership is and a kind.
You know, general sense, the way we all talk about it, but, you know, a very kind of top down authority, you know? Mm-hmm. situation. Mm-hmm. and learning all of these different leadership models, like formal theories of leadership, that, that present different forms of leadership and, and different theories and models of leadership.
It was really in intellectually stimulating. It kind of expanded my, my way of thinking about things challenged me, challenged other people in the class, and so to kind of navigate that together, have those discussions. [00:13:00] Share different perspectives and, and debate things and, and things like that where I, I found that really kind of meaningful and, and I, and I really enjoyed it.
Like I said, I, I like working with, with the folks that I work with. It's good to kind of come out of a program and, and feel really good about it. And those people that you connected with along the way and, you know, you learn from and with each other ultimately. So my last question is, what advice would you give to students who are considering furthering their education in an online program and specifically with WVU online?
Yeah, I mean, I think I have maybe two, two things I would say to that, and probably not too different from what I would say to any student in general. The first is just, you know, ask a lot of questions, gather a lot of information. You know, don't be afraid. Reach out to the program and, and the faculty and the, you know, director of the program things and get information about it.
If it looks interesting to you and you're, you're not sure about it, you know, I, I find generally people want to talk about their programs and they're excited by the [00:14:00] prospect of, of having new students and things and, and so, you know, in order to make kind of an informed decision and, and things like that, you know, don't, don't talk yourself out of it.
Don't think you're in positioning somebody or, or, or, or something like that. Just reach out and, and ask the questions you have and get the information you want. And then I guess the, Thing would be like, once you're in a program, I think at least it's been my experience that you kind of get out of it what you put into it.
And so like I know for instance, I, I didn't want to just kind of come in, sit wa you know, watch class, do the reading, type up a few thoughts, or take a test or something like that and be done. And, and that was it. I wanted something that was more, gonna be more personally fulfilling. You know, I could have.
Kind of written the papers, submitted them, gotten a grade or something. But I actually, you know, spent a lot of time working with faculty, kind of taking on ma making the projects my own and, and things like that. And one of the things that I was able to do was actually do some research and begin developing a, a theory of followership that, that I'm hope, hoping to [00:15:00] present someday, conferences and, and publish and, and things like that.
And so I kind of took this as I, I kind of treated it the way that many people. Treat a, a graduate program that is a, a degree conferring program, you know, where you're doing a thesis or something like that in kind of a miniaturized way as opposed to just saying, well, it's just a certificate program. I just have to rack up enough hours and enough credits to get my certificate and I'm done.
I, I wanted to kind of do some, some scholarship cause that was important to me. And, and in that, Got out of it, what I, I was willing to put into it. For other people, their interests may be very different and, and that's great, but I, I would just still kind of come back to that, like, you're gonna get out of it, what you put into it.
And so, you know, put into it what. That sounds redundant, but put into it what you wanna get out of it, like work towards whatever outcome is gonna be satisfying to you as a student. I appreciate that. That's super important because a lot of people are not necessarily just overly generalizing, but. You know, it's [00:16:00] just to get that extra credential after their name or their signature or on their resume without, you know, really fully investing in what they're learning and doing.
And so I think that is really important that you're, you're investing in your current self and your future self, whether that's academically, Personally, professionally. So I'm really glad that you were able to kind of take it to that next level in your program. And I know WVU is better for it, for having you also.
Thank you. You know, as a, a staff member and part of the community in that regard too, and I'm excited. Well, it was, it was meaningful to me and I, and I really enjoyed it so. That's awesome. Well, I know you're always willing, really willing to help and to kind of go that extra step in offering kinda the services that your office provides and, and your role as an ambassador for WVU Online.
And I can say the same for our team too, with the online admission coaches. Like we're here, I know you mentioned, you know, reach out to the programs, reach out to the people who have. You know, more insight into the, the details and everything that's, I mean, it's our passion what we do and working with students.
So I'm really glad that you mentioned that [00:17:00] too, because you have to kind of take that initial sometimes scary step and you never know where you may end up. And so I'm truly grateful for your time and your expertise and your experiences and, you know, being willing to share that with all of. And yeah, I'll be excited to see what you do next.
So you're gonna be presenting and all of that, maybe eventually one day. So I'm hopeful to, yeah, I'm gonna keep working. I, you know, kind of have this paper and I'm gonna kind of clean it up a little bit for, you know, some different possible, you know, audiences I guess. So, yeah, I'm excited about it. It's exciting.
But thanks for the opportunity. To chat with you and, uh, you know, hope that if there are folks out there who are interested in, in leadership studies, that they'll take a look at that program. And if you're interested in other programs, then take a look at those ones too. Awesome. Thank you so much again, I appreciate everything and I appreciate your time and.
We'll definitely talk with you soon. Sounds great. Thank you. You're welcome.[00:18:00]