6 Wrong Expectations From Online Courses That Only Hurt You

1. "Learning will be easy"

When we enter a university or a full-time course, we do not expect easy paths. Obviously, you will have to spend a lot of time and effort to go to classes, do homework, and so on.

Online courses often give the false impression that it will be easy. Including due to the efforts of marketers who promote them under the sauce "master a new profession for just ...". It reads as if to be trained - how to go for bread. It is understandable: if you write that on average it will not be easy or even frankly hard, there will be fewer people who want to pay for classes.

However, it is worth keeping in mind: any training requires effort, time, and great involvement. If this is not the case, then there will be no result.

2. "You can study online whenever it suits you"

This expectation is not entirely wrong. If you are buying online course without feedback, theoretically you can focus on your free time. But this will affect the result.

Learning will be more effective if you study regularly, do homework that is checked by the teacher, receive feedback and be in contact with classmates. Otherwise, there is a risk of quitting, because it is not clear, there was no time, I forgot everything, we must start over. Therefore, some kind of schedule will have to be adhered to, although online courses provide a little more flexibility than face-to-face ones.

3. “I can combine my studies with other things”

Before the pandemic, many romanticized remote work. Like, how convenient: you are sitting at the computer, borscht is boiling on the stove at that time, children are having fun under the table, grace. But it turned out that if you don’t sit at the computer, but really work, then you will have to forget about everything else for this time.

It's the same with training. Under it will have to free time. And this means that you need to give up some other activities, explain to your family that at some hours you are available only in case of force majeure, and generally restructure your day.

4. "Now they will tell me everything and show me"

No matter how good the courses are, they are not enough to become a sought-after specialist. They can provide a good base. But you will have to spend about the same amount of time on self-development. (In universities, by the way, the same principle usually applies.)

This applies to both IT and sewing courses. For example, on the latter, a student will be taught how to model standard patterns. But to put them on different shapes, hone the evenness of the seam and evaluate whether a particular fabric is suitable for the product, the person will have to do it on their own. Because some actions must be done many times before the result is close to decent.

So, of course, in good courses they will tell and show a lot. But one of them will not work.

5. “I will immediately earn big money”

Much depends on where the person worked before. For example, a novice IT specialist can easily earn more than a doctor in a district hospital. But if your real salary is good, be prepared for a temporary drop in income and status when you change industries.

6. "This will change my whole life"

Maybe it will change, maybe not. This is completely unpredictable and does not depend on the course or its quality. Usually life becomes different due to either sudden circumstances or personal efforts. By itself, online learning does not guarantee anything at all.