I was not pointing out the negatives in online classes; rather I am pointing out a facet of on-campus college life that, for some reason, is not often discussed. My S is loving his HS online classes and is actually more productive with his time. College is, however, much more than classes and homework. Classes for some majors, as well as introductory classes where the expectation is that there isn’t a close relationship with the instructors/TAs (think 300-person intro Chem class), are probably perfectly fine online. But the reason people seek out the elite top-30 schools is for the intangibles they offer – the opportunities to get involved in special research projects outside the day-to-day classwork and to form long-term personal and professional connections that will extend well beyond their four years as an undergraduate. There is an old saying “It’s not what you know but who you know” for a reason.