Do universities and employers discriminate against people with an online degree?

[cookderosa]

Everywhere I go, I hear people talking crap about online degrees. Most when pressed do it because they are ignorant of what's been going on with education the last five-ten years. The internet puts a hurt on traditional schooling. But there are a lot of people that associate online / distance education with 'diploma mills'.

This is the bleeding edge of education, with the other being immersive technology education. (I'm watching 'teacher in a box' and using virtual reality really take off.)

If you're concerned about name brand recognition (I kinda am), harvard and loyola both have online degree programs... lol Even then, there will be a stigma. The people that had to spend years slugging it out in classrooms sometimes hold a grudge towards compressed and online degreed recipients. I was at a guys' house the other day that told me, (when it happens for me) "we both may be bachelors, but I (he) earned mine the old fashioned way..."

Is what it is. Be prepared to sell your experience until general acceptance comes (and, I feel it will. These kids and their internets... lol)

Yeah, distance learning is the future. Traditional brick-and-mortar universities will progressively go down as the stigma associated with distance learning is removed (there has been quite a lot of progress these last few years, like you said). 

I think people are catching on that degrees are not that important or useful (sometimes even worthless) and carry a ridiculous price tag—where actual skills are gained in the real world (since a lot of things that are taught in schools is outdated). These days, degrees are (sadly) more used as a way to filter applicants.

It's interesting to see what the future has to offer!

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But I did answer your question - the one you should have asked instead of the one you asked.

The one you asked is looking for certainty from a small and biased sample size.  
Our answers, thoughts, and opinions don't get you into Nottingham.  Furthermore, even if the entire population of the planet was asked, that also doesn't get you into Nottingham.  My getting accepted into all of the grad schools I applied to doesn't get YOU into Nottingham.  My resume doesn't help you.

Unlike many people here with vague or uncertain goals, you have a very specific one- and in this case, you're ahead of the game.  You know exactly what you want.  Now that you do, work backward and build a plan to get there.  Can you get into Nottingham?  Yes.  How?  That's the million dollar question.

Hmm, I think the part that created confusion regarding my plan description is Nottingham—which I heard is a university that is extremely difficult the get into. However, the PGCEi, or Post-Graduate Certificate in Education International, (not the standard PGCE, but the "International" version) is an online certificate (although you do need to meet them in person at a Nottingham center, which are scattered around the globe) offered by Nottingham for teachers, that lasts 6-12 months, and which is quite popular in some countries (doesn't lead to teacher licensure, though).

I get that you are saying my chances of being accepted at Nottingham are slim and asking about it doesn't make sense (I agree), but I'm not trying to get into Nottingham at all, but just want to be prepared for the certificate application and not get singled out (i.e., discriminated against) because I have an online degree (although, a third of the credits are from in-person classes). From knowing this, I can get a better idea of the situation, and if discrimination might happen, I would boost my portfolio to increase my chances (although this would be a lot of work and resources, which could be used somewhere else if having an online degree is a non-issue).

Since the program they are offering consists of distance learning, it seems unlikely that they'd disallow credentials earned the same way. Still, you could email them and ask. It's a simple question- one I sent to MULTIPLE medical and nursing schools when I was in the market. I asked point blank if sciences with labs taken via distance learning were acceptable. Initially I was going to send it to all the MD and DO medical schools (and some nursing) but it got boring after a while when EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. told me it didn't matter....with their requisite "ideally taken in person" thrown somewhere in there.
It is my OPINION that applicants to post-bac programs are evaluated differently than those teens applying to undergraduate programs. Post-bac/grad applicants are multilayered and have life experiences. They are 3D whereas sometimes a teenager may have very little to fill up an application with- making things like high school transcripts/SAT scores very important. Wherever you apply, they'll be looking at much more than whether or not you studied online, so taking care to meet all the requirements exactly as they've asked and then filling in all the blanks with robust and positive reasons they should let you in would be my plan. Volunteer, letters of rec, etc. - these are all good ways to make a good impression. I wish you all the best, and for now, let's get that bachelor's degree!