Online programs especially benefit students who (a) are homebound, (b) live long distances from the on-site campus, and/or (c) have busy lives often juggling family, professional, and other responsibilities. Online courses can also benefit traditional students, especially those who want or need to engage in accelerated learning or who may need to take an online class because alternative on-campus courses conflict with their work/family schedule.

An online student must assume an active role in the Virtual Classroom and understand the important characteristics necessary to succeed. In a collaborative learning environment highly dependent on written dialog and high synergy, students are able to shape the learning objectives by contributing information related to the course content that is directly applicable to their own academic and/or professional goals.

Attitude, skills and commitment determine whether the student will be a good candidate for the online experience. The student must be mature, open-minded, self-motivated, accepting of critical thinking, willing to work collaboratively, and trusting of the online experience. Good written communication skills and a minimum level of technological experience is necessary. Finally, the student must commit the time necessary (four to six hours per week) to stay current, and he/she must have access to the necessary equipment.

Students who usually sit in the back of the classroom and avoid speaking in class often blossom in the online environment. Participants are more willing to risk written participation than spoken, perhaps partly because they can rethink and edit before posting to the classroom. In the online environment, the visual barriers that hinder some individuals in expressing themselves are largely eliminated.