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SMART Goals

Earning your diploma for higher education is a great feat for many people. The majority of the students that join ANU’s eLearning platform are working adults that have families. With so much going on, be that going to work, taking care of children, spouses, relatives, or pets, and going to school, it can be easy for students to lose focus. And if students don’t have clear goals, it can be a never-ending cycle of stress and even burnout. However, creating SMART goals for the tasks and accomplishments students want to achieve can get them to their success more effectively and with greater ease. The SMART goals strategy may be new to many, so let’s break it down.

What are SMART goals?

While these goals are smart, that is not all they are. SMART is an acronym that helps you develop your goals and serves as a guide to do so. For example, let’s imagine there is Jane Doe starting her business education at ANU. She wants to earn her higher education as fast as she can with our accelerated programs so that she can earn a management position on her marketing team at the company she works.

S – Specific: This is where you will start. Your goal should be specific, clear, and defined. Ask yourself these questions when you approach this step: Who will be involved? What is going to be accomplished? What will this goal achieve? Why do you want to achieve this goal?

Jane’s goal is to earn her Business Administration Management Bachelor’s degree to become a manager at her current company. This will be her education to provide her with the skills she specifically needs to move into a leadership role.

M – Measurable: You should be able to measure your goal so that you can assess your progress and achieve your goal. Ask yourself these questions when you approach this step: How many steps or how much will this goal have? Is there any way I can measure my success or failure on my way towards my goal? How will I know if I have achieved my goal or not?

Jane can measure her goal through the classes she takes at ANU. She will know how many courses she has to take in order to graduate. Along with that, passing or failing her classes will help her measure what steps she is taking in order to achieve her goal.

A – Actionable/Achievable: This step helps you in realizing if your goal is attainable and even worthy of doing. This helps you in developing the goals you should strive for and if the steps are within your control of accomplishing. Ask yourself these questions: Do you have the resources to achieve this goal? If not, are you able to obtain the resources needed to complete? Is it practical?

With ANU’s Business Partnership Grant, Jane’s education is achievable. The company who she works for believes in her earning her education to further her steps in their ranks, so they pay 2/3 of her tuition, and ANU admires that drive and matches 1/3. And since her books and materials are included in that tuition, she has all she needs to accomplish that goal. Not only that, but she chose evening classes so that she can attend her Zoom classes after her workday. Since she doesn’t have to drive to a campus to attend classes, she also doesn’t have to worry about who can watch her children while her husband works. All the resources afforded to her through ANU’s program make her goal achievable and actionable.

R – Relevant/Realistic: With so much already going on in your life, you should make your goals realistic to achieve. Along with that, they should be relevant to what you want out of life. Do not add unnecessary stress to your daily life with goals that won’t get you closer to where you want to be. Ask yourself these questions: Is your goal realistically achievable to your current circumstances and resources? Can you commit to it? Does your goal look relevant?

Jane knows her goal is realistic to what she wants out of life. She knows that most managers in her career field have gone to school. She wants to learn the education that will make her a better leader and better at her career. She can commit to ANU with how flexible the program and her professors are to her schedule.

T – Timebound: Setting a date or time to achieve your goal will make it better for you to stay on track to meeting it. Time also helps us motivate and challenge ourselves in achieving our goals. Ask yourself these questions: Do you have a date in mind? Do you have a start date? What is your time frame?

In order to get where she wants to be, Jane wants to earn her education as fast as possible. She knows with terms beginning every ten weeks, Jane can earn her bachelor’s degree in as soon as 3 years. Working with her advisors, she has a tentative graduation date to focus on to complete her goal.

Why Should I Use SMART Goals?

Creating SMART Goals provides you with clear, detailed plans. These goals are made to be achieved and create success. Not only that, but they give you a time limit to complete so that you actually accomplish what you want within the time you need it. They can help you prevent procrastinating your tasks, and you can better manage your time when you have a specific goal in mind. Jane is one step closer to stepping into the role she desires in her career because of the SMART goal she set to earn her education ANU. Because of the time she took to go through every SMART step, Jane has a roadmap of what it will take to accomplish what she wants.

American National University can help you set and maintain any goals you create and wish to achieve during your educational journey. From admissions to financial services, student services, career services, and your professors, you have support systems at every angle. Our teams are here for every student to provide you every resource you need to succeed – all from wherever you have an internet connection! To learn more about our eLearning platforms, go to an.edu/elearning.

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Plagiarism

The academic integrity and honesty of every student is important to not only every higher education institution in the US, but to American National University. In ensuring that integrity, ANU prohibits any kind of stealing or cheating through the act of plagiarism. However, with students having so much access to information with today’s technology, it can be difficult to remember what needs to be cited in papers, or when the right time to cite sources is within work. Learn about the definition of plagiarism, how to avoid it, and ANU’s policies when approaching academic integrity.

What is Plagiarism?

As defined by the University of Oxford, “plagiarism is presenting work or ideas from another source as your own, with or without consent of the original author, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement.” This includes, within Oxford’s definition:

• All published or unpublished works – in any form like within the manuscript, electronic, or printed form.
• Re-using your own work without citation.

Plagiarism.com also includes this as they work to understanding and preventing plagiarism: “Plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone else’s work and lying about it afterward.” They also go on to explain that as words are intellectual property, they can be stolen and breaking copyright laws. And this includes more than just written work, but anything that is created. From photos, videos, music, and more – if someone can create it, someone else can try to take credit for it.

The act of plagiarism is much more than stealing someone’s words and calling them your own within a paper. As plagiarism.com described, it is also passing someone else’s ideas as your own without giving credit to the author or describing that your information comes from another source. There is nothing wrong with finding your information from other sources and minds, but it becomes wrong when you take that person or entity’s information and passing it off as your own. The best way to combat plagiarism is to properly give credit to those resources you derive your work from.

How Do I Avoid Plagiarism?

The best way you can avoid plagiarism is by going into your assignments with a goal to achieve – like an outline to an essay. Plagiarism.com describes the best way to do so by planning your papers, or in many cases at ANU, you can plan your discussion posts as well. By planning, you can create places to interject your sources information, where to put direct quotes, and get your ideas in line with what needs to be cited. And in doing so, it is important to establish a direct quote, paraphrasing, and summary. Purdue OWL, an invaluable resource for all student citation needs, describes them as this:

• Direct Quote – These are narrow quotes, not an entire passage. They have to be exactly the same as the material source and must be within quotation marks. They are followed by your writing formats citation within the same sentence so that they are clearly that author’s phrase and not your own.
• Paraphrasing – This involves taking a passage and describing the information in your own words. This way is usually shorter than the original source section. This rephrased passage must also be followed by your writing formats citation within the final sentence of the source information. This ensures that you are telling the reader that this information is not your intellectual property.
• Summary – In this way, you take the main points of the passage you are deriving from and putting only those main ideas in your own words. This is different from paraphrasing because they are typically short and only mention the broad ideas. These also need to be followed with your writing formats citation within the final sentence of your summary.

If you’re ever unsure if you need a citation or not, it won’t hurt you to be cautious and do it anyway. This is how you can avoid accidentally committing plagiarism. Another valuable resource to you is talking with your professor. They are more than willing to help you avoid this mistake and provide you resources to better your citations.

What are ANU’s Policies on Plagiarism?

Within ANU’s course catalogues, you will find all academic policies for students. This is  the Code of Academic Integrity Policy: “The members of the American National University community are pledged to academic honesty. As academic honesty is considered to be the keystone of the educational enterprise, any form of dishonesty is considered to be an affront to the entire University community. Academic dishonesty is any form of giving, taking, or prescribing of information or material with intent to gain an unfair advantage in an academic setting.”

Forms of dishonesty include:

• Plagiarism
• Cheating
• Self-Plagiarism (wherein you re-use work previously submitted without prior permission)
• Poor Scholastic Achievement (not properly citing sources or following published citation criteria)

It is on ANU faculty and staff to enforce this policy, and that enforcement can include receiving a failing or incomplete grade for the course, expulsion from the course, or expulsion from the university.

Plagiarism is important to the integrity of not only the student, but American National University as a whole. The pride of ANU comes from the students and their willingness to learn, achieve, and create with academic honesty. Today’s technology and capabilities allow students to learn at every turn they are online, and it can be easy to plagiarize when copy and pasting is at the click of a button. These best practices can help every student at every point in their education to not steal from others intellectual property. To learn more about the integrity ANU expects of students and faculty, go to an.edu.

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Four Misconceptions About Online Education

In March of 2020, many schools found themselves facing the same problem: how to provide education in a global pandemic. Some institutions closed their doors. Others adapted to the technology they had and moved classes online. Those who transitioned to these newer methods faced misconceptions and myths of the legitimacy of an online education. However, this is where American National University thrived through our innovative High Tech, High Touch approach to education. Many misgivings about online education are proven wrong in our approach.

Misconception 1: Your Education is Easier if it’s Online.

One of the most common misconceptions that people have about online education is that the courses are easier than an in-person environment. At American National University, we are accredited by Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) and follow strict quality standards just like any other accredited institution. Whether ANU students attend online, or a hybrid mix with in-person classes, the quality, syllabi, and course materials will remain the same. Moreover, attending classes online provides more accountability to students to keep up with their classes from attending to making sure their assignments and discussion posts are turned in.

Misconception 2: Online Classes Quality is Lower Than In-Person

Much like people believe online classes are easier, many believe that the quality is lower than an in-person institution. ANU’s accrediting bodies ensure that our education is the same quality as other institutions. ANU provide students with the skills, tools, and knowledge they need to succeed after they graduate. American National University’s professors challenge that myth in how they teach every student. Our instructors are career professionals who bring their experience to their teachings. Students learn from real world examples that will affect their careers from those who lived them. Many degree programs require externships so that students can put their education into practice. For example, our health sciences programs, like pharmacy technician and medical assisting require these external practicing.

Misconception 3: You Don’t Connect with Others During Your Courses

A harmful narrative that comes in online education discussions is many people think students do not get to connect with their peers or instructors during their courses. While students do not meet face-to-face physically in a school building at ANU, they do meet within Zoom conferencing. The synchronous class meetings bring students together with their instructor to promote discussion about assignments and course topics. Instructors also make themselves accessible outside of the classroom through email, text, and video conferencing. Class meetings are interactive and engaging. There are assignments and projects that students collaborate together in some classes. There is ample opportunity to network and interact with your instructor and classmates. ANU courses are just like being in a real classroom. Read about how many of our students and graduates have not only been able to create meaningful bonds with their fellow students, but also feel supported by our instructors.

Misconception 4: Employers Do Not Accept Online Degrees

Many people assume that employers will not hire them due to their online education experience. There is no difference in the appearance of your transcript or your diploma, regardless of the modality you earned your degree. Along with that, many employers encourage an online degree to their workforce to develop their skills without having to leave the job. We offer flexible, in-demand distance education programs that meet the needs of employers in a changing global marketplace. With today’s new and adaptive technologies, many corporations are moving to a remote environment. Earning your education will give you soft skills an in-person classroom cannot give you.

As mentioned previously, ANU has a High Tech, High Touch approach to student education to make online education easier for students. What does High Tech, High Touch Mean?

High Tech Classes

ANU’s eLearning environment utilizes advanced technology for a highly interactive experience so that you can access your classes anywhere you have an internet connection. ANU has online classes you can touch – meaning our online classes don’t forego the in-person learning experiences and quality. When you join one of our programs, you get the materials you may need to succeed included in your tuition. This can include textbooks or lab kits to ensure you get the most out of your education. You will also have access to your instructors online and  all of our academic services that we offer you. Connect with career services, student services, financial aid planning, and more, all without leaving your home! We commit to bringing students all the services a university provides you from the comfort of your home. You can experience the modern classroom from your own home.

High Touch Instruction

With our High Tech Classes, we promise you High Touch Instruction. Our all-inclusive tuition means we provide you with the materials you will need to succeed. With our health sciences programs, like medical assisting and pharmacy technician, we will ship you an at-home lab kit, which materials can include a large human skeleton model, a blood pressure cuff, a virtual microscope software, a dissection kit, and more! When you interact with these kits, you will be taught under live instruction from your instructors to ensure you’re getting the most out of your eLearning experience. Our faculty are selected from experienced professionals through our national and global networks – meaning you will get instructors that are experienced in their fields to teach you.

It’s simple: with American National University, you can be live, in class, from anywhere. You have the flexibility of an online class without the loss of in-person experience. Learn more about our High Tech, High Touch education – and dispel these four common misconceptions people have about online college education.

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Let’s Talk About…

Why General Education Courses are Important

When studying for a degree in America, students must take general education courses that do not center around their selected major. These general education courses usually consist of math, science, English, and history classes, among others – and for some students, these classes seem unnecessary. Why are students required to take courses they do not have an interest in or may not even be needed in their majors?

What is General Education?

General education is defined as “a program that develops students’ general knowledge, literacy, skills, and competencies to equip them with the foundation for lifelong learning and advanced academic curricula.” Essentially, general education courses provide students with skills in several disciplines to become well-rounded students and professionals. Students will take classes in different subjects, like natural sciences, English, history, mathematics, and foreign language to provide them with a working knowledge to round out their education. These courses provide a broader knowledge in many subjects to create jack-of-all-trades of students so they can become successful in career and life.

Why is General Education Important?

Because general education provides students a broader scope of knowledge to apply to their academics and career, students are earning skills in multiple disciplines to maximize their success. For that, there are several reasons students should make the most of their general education rather than dreading it. Those include:

1. Learn Soft Skills Employers Are Looking For

With a broad education from general courses, you can learn skills that every employer wants from their employees. These can be in communication and working within a team, literacy and writing, critical thinking, social, technology, and leadership skills, among many that these courses can provide you. Employers are looking for professionals not only well versed in their field, but those who have a well-rounded education to bring to the table.

2. They Provide You with More Knowledge

While your major gives you the education you need to succeed in your field, your general education courses allow you to see outside of that scope. A business major will need to take English classes to enhance the writing in their business plans, a medical assistant will need to take a social sciences class to better their understanding of their patients, and a network developer will need a foreign language to help bridge a gap of understanding with developers around the world. With general education, you’ll be able to apply the aforementioned soft skills you learn to every aspect of your career.

3. They Can Help with Your Career

As mentioned previously, your general education helps your career in soft skills and broader knowledge scopes. However, it also aids your career so that you can see how your field is relevant in the grand scheme of the world. A business major working in a medical equipment company will be able to market their products more if they have a general understanding of the science and even social market of the medical field. Having a general understanding of multiple disciplines will allow students to see the world past their designated field.

With general education, students gain a more comprehensive understanding of the world and the skills they need to become successful. This is how an American education stands out from the rest of the world – where many other countries focus on the specific discipline, a degree earned in the USA provides students with a general understanding in many subjects to create soft skills, broader understanding, and career boosting benefits. American National University provides students with general education courses they can access all from the comfort of their own home. To learn more about our general education courses or our eLearning platforms, go to an.edu.

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ANU Strives for Excellence in Financial Aid Amid National Uncertainties

For new college students, financial aid is crucial in order to succeed. New research findings have found that some schools are giving students unclear presentations about the total cost of their education and what financial aid covers. At American National University, however, we present every option to our students so that they have all the information they need in order to earn their education. Not only that, but our students have multiple opportunities to sit with our financial services team to ensure that they know the ins and outs of what they have to pay for on their journey to their education. In a time where many students are struggling with loans, incorrect information, and unhelpful advisors, ANU sets a high standard of excellence with comprehensive financial aid statements and attentive and approachable staff.

Vice President of ANU’s Financial Aid Services, Beth Overbey, and her team wish to help every student earn their education through mapping out the steps they financially need to take in order to start. “The financial services team meets with every student who is interested [in enrolling] and we review their financial assistance eligibility and availability of funding,” Beth describes. “We traditionally have two appointments with each student.  In [the first] meeting, we talk about how the student expects to fund their education, like if they have outside resources, savings, tuition assistance, or only wish to use federal financial aid.  Once we gather all of this information, we provide the students with the next steps: what they need to do to prepare for our next (enrolling) meeting, if they need to complete the free application for federal student aid (FAFSA), reach out to their employer to complete documents, provide us their agency counselor/manager, etc.”

Beth describes that in the second appointment, after compiling all the information they need from the first appointment, they explain the entirety of the students funding options from their first day all the way through to graduation. They go step by step so that students will have the full picture of what they should expect financially throughout their entire time at ANU. There is no false information, there are no hidden fees, there is nothing that financial aid will hide from those looking to enroll at ANU. They don’t just go over direct costs, like tuition, but also indirect costs outside of university billings, like living expenses, daycare costs, school supplies, etc. Our students not only get an all-inclusive tuition cost laid out for them, but they also get the chance to go over how this will affect their personal costs with our financial aid team.

“Once the student’s funds are set to be approved, after a quality assurance check, we provide the student with their final award letter.  In this letter, we list everything for their first academic year (first three terms) just in case they have forgotten the items we discussed. In this final award letter, we breakdown the direct and indirect cost again.” Beth explains. ANU students will continue to receive final aware letters for each academic year they are enrolled at our institution so that they continue to stay within the loop of what their education costs.

Though many schools have awarded false information to their students, ANU does things differently so that our students are well-informed before they make the commitment to their education. “We pay close attention to the student’s needs, questions, and concerns.  We take pride in our appointments, and we want to make sure the student has a clear understanding of the full process,” Beth remarks. Our financial aid staff are dedicated to providing counseling to all those who wish to attend ANU. To learn more about our programs, financial aid services, or admissions services, go to an.edu.

American National University – Be live, in class, from anywhere.

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The Purpose of a Business Plan

American National University has over 130 years in helping people earn their higher education, with a rich history in helping our students become the next leaders in business. And an integral piece to our business programs, ranging from diploma to master’s programs, is providing you with the skills to create your own business plans. For this National Create a Business Plan month in December, we want to break down some of the reasons why these plans are so important when it comes to creating your own business.

What is a Business Plan?

From Adam Hayes on Investopedia: “A business plan is a document that defines in detail a company’s objectives and how it plans to achieve its goals. A business plan lays out a written road map for the firm from marketing, financial, and operational standpoints.” All companies, at any time, will use business plans to detail their objectives, from start-ups to established companies.

Basically, a business plan is your number one too that outlines what your business is and what it hopes to accomplish. The plan you create will show both internal and external audiences what the financial, technical, and economic feasibility of your business.

Why Should You Create a Business Plan?

A business plan allows you to evaluate your business idea and the feasibility of it – does your business fulfill a need in the market? It answers the basic questions that your business should answer:

• Which markets are you entering?
• Who is your customer? Who is your partner? Who is your investor?
• How long will it take you? When will it be a viable business? When will you achieve these goals or factors?
• Where is your business based? Where are you going to find success?
• How will you do it?

Along with these questions, it allows you to analyze and research strategies you need to become successful. For any business, new or existing, it allows all who work for the business to stay on the same page with the same goals and strategies in mind.

The business plan is a map you create for not only you and your business, but those interested in your business, like agencies, banks, and other entities to see the action you plan to take to make your business become a project and not just an idea. It can act as a business card for you to attract anyone from partners, investors, employees, and even customers. Your plan will be the key to understanding if your business should enter the market.

Why Should I Choose ANU to Learn How to Make a Business Plan?

Whether you join ANU in our diploma program or in our master’s program, your business education will provide you with the skills you need to succeed in the business world. We have over 130 years of being a trusted school for business professionals – our goal is to help you change your life through your education. We provide you with the foundations, the principles, and the information you need to become a career professional through our High Tech, High Touch approach to your education.

ANU alumna Rupali Patel has found that her education continues to help her in her business ventures, even seven years after her graduation. After a successful career at a large radio conglomerate, Rupali jumped full force into creating her own business.

“I actually took the business plan that I made at ANU in my bachelor’s program…I used that concept model and I actually presented it to the bank, and that’s how I got my SBA loan.”

Through her education at ANU and the skills she learned while attending, Rupali successfully created a business plan that secured her a small business loan and turned her idea into action. Because of what she learned, Rupali says, “I learned a lot from ANU. I couldn’t be happier to get my degree from there.”

Not only do we have accredited business programs, but our programs are also 100% online so that you can earn your education anywhere you have an internet connection—attend sessions from the comfort of your own home and no longer deal with expensive room and board or commuting to classes. Earn a business diploma all the way up to your MBA from career experienced instructors – all online. You are given the tools you need to succeed—support systems from your instructors, peers, and faculty at ANU, and learning materials needed to bolster your education. ANU makes it easy for you to be live, in class, from anywhere!

No matter if you come into our beginning business programs or join our graduate degree program, ANU will provide you with new skills and opportunities to become a successful business leader. Our faculty, which come from our global networks of career professionals, will give you the knowledge and experience you need to create a business plan. To learn more about our business programs and what we offer, go to an.edu/programs. Or to learn how we provide you with in-class quality education through an eLearning platform, go to https://an.edu/elearning/.

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