Student Spotlight: Monica Manolas (MJ '18)
If you attended college on campus, you may be a little uneasy when first considering joining an online graduate program. But in addition to offering the convenience you need for a livable work-life-school balance, the digital classroom brings the rigorous and collaborative nature of grad school to students wherever they may be.
For current online Master of Jurisprudence in Labor & Employment Law student at Tulane University Monica Manolas, she knew the traditional classroom very well, having already earned several master's degrees from excellent universities. But her schedule demanded she study online—something that's already paying off for her.
"The Tulane program has really changed my perspective on distance learning," Monica admitted. "I, of course, thought that the program was going to be excellent, because Tulane's a top law school, but it really has surpassed my expectations in that way."
By offering a mix of traditional educational resources—including assignments, readings, and more—and online tools—video lectures, the online class, etc.—students are able to study and complete the coursework on their schedules but still collaborate and network with classmates, while seamlessly receiving additional support from your professors as needed.
In the online class, students transform their office or workspace into a communal classroom experience, bringing collaboration and networking—potentially even lifelong connections and friendships—to them. "That live class is really dedicated to answering the questions, coming up with specific scenarios, and you question each other," Monica said. "That dialogue creates a virtual networking that you would never get other than in a traditional classroom. So, it really does become just like a classroom in that way."
Even though it's far from her first master's degree, she had to add, "The fact that it is from a law school gives it an edge that really a business school wouldn't have."
To hear more about Monica's time in the program so far, watch her full spotlight in our video below.
To read Monica's testimonial when first joining the program, visit our blog post here. For another student spotlight, check out what current student Maggie Fechtel has to say here.