Are you tired of working a dead-end job just to ensure your own survival? Are you tired of your established career, which you kind of fell into instead of making a premeditated choice to pursue, and doing the same thing each and every day? In the wake of the pandemic, has it become clear to you that you and your coworkers are disposable despite being put into dangerous working conditions every day, and are you looking for a job where you'll be treated as the valuable associate you are? Or are you just looking to finally pursue your dream job, the job you told people you'd be one day when you were just a kid?

If any of the above describes you, you'll be pleased to know there has never been a better time to switch professions. The pandemic shocked the American working class to the core, giving them a more visceral, more immediate sense of class consciousness than they might have had otherwise. This sense of class consciousness is what has resulted in a widespread labor shortage, as workers who have been underpaid and underappreciated for decades are now striking out on their own, looking for better opportunities elsewhere. People who have been working retail and fast food for decades are now founding and running their own small businesses, attaining their dream jobs, and making more than they ever have before.

It can be both tempting and terrifying, considering making a switch to a different occupation. While you may be passionate about your dream job, you may be concerned about the costs involved in going back to school and getting equipped to transition into something new properly. Fortunately, you don't have to go back to a four-year university and spend years and thousands of dollars on a new degree: you can choose to pursue online schooling instead, earning what you need to pursue your dream job, such as licensure for trades, online at a much, much cheaper investment of both time and money. 

Interested in hearing more? Here are just a few reasons why you may want to consider online schooling over a more traditional university education.

Online Schooling is COVID Safe

We're all tired of the pandemic, and we all wish it was over: unfortunately, the various variants sweeping the country right now, evolving into even more contagious, more threatening versions of themselves, have different ideas. The best way to stay safe is still to limit your exposure to other people, and with governments and institutions getting laxer about their COVID restrictions to avoid angering their patrons, a fully-remote education might be your safest bet. 

A More Affordable Education

Traditional universities and trade school programs typically have their students stay on campus for the first year of their education, tacking on all kinds of fees for amenities that they assume students will use during their tenure at university. Online schools cut your bill down to the quick, requiring you to pay for your coursework and only your coursework: moreover, online courses tend to be cheaper than traditional courses anyways, and materials for those classes will likely also be less expensive, as they'll occasionally be fully online as well. 

Go At Your Own Pace

Online courses tend to have inherent flexibility, as it's no longer necessarily on an instructor to set your pace: instead, it's on you. As an online student, you'll get to choose between traditional 16-week course options and more intensive 8-week course options, deciding how quickly you breeze through your required courses. You also get to choose both the time and location you work on your schoolwork, making it easy for you to work a full-time job and keep paying your bills while you're looking to transition to something better. Getting to choose the place you complete your work in also means that you can switch up your environment as needed, working in spaces that are the most comfortable for you.

Online schooling requires a lot of self-discipline, no matter what kind of program you attend. It requires you to hold yourself accountable for your own learning, and this model has been traditionally difficult for those that don't have a take-charge attitude with their own education. But for those who are interested in switching careers quickly at an overall low cost, online schooling is the best option for trades and industries of all kinds.