Grad School on the Cheap?

Over the last few months, Heather's expressed a desire to return to school for her Master's in Social Work. Actually, she even applied. We'll see what happens and where the Lord leads (which, turns out, could be virtually anywhere. See hmcolletto.blogspot.com for any developments in that unfolding saga).

Anyway, all this talk about further education naturally got me thinking about grad school myself. I mean, I've kicked the idea around for years now but, to be honest, nothing specific has ever jumped out at me. Well, except for this program from American University. Totally up my alley. Sadly, the price jumps out a little, too, and not in a good way. Yikes.

So, in lieu of a patron (I'm taking applications if any of you are interested), now I'm looking at cheaper ways to continue lifelong learning. Take, for example, Academic Earth—a website offering free video instruction from top profs at institutes like Berkeley, Stanford, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, and Yale on topics ranging from economics to mathematics. Lectures aren't available for credit, of course, and are of little value to one's resume, but provide an interesting educational exercise nonetheless.