Modern school administrators are finding flexible opportunities to pursue doctoral degrees online. Cyber institutions such as Walden University, University of Phoenix and Argosy University--as well as a few traditional universities that have forged into the electronic arena--can accommodate time-strapped educators no matter where they live, as long as they have a computer with high-speed Internet access and the self-discipline to learn on their own. Programs typically require students to appear in occasional in-person seminars held at locations around the country. Or students may take courses scheduled on weekends and during the summer. The vast majority of the work can be done over the Internet. Yet there is a downside to this online pursuit. While more K-12 educators have easier access to earn the credential they need to open doors to higher administrative posts, some educators remain skeptical that online degrees require the same rigor and offer the valuable collegial experiences of doctoral degrees earned at conventional universities. However, leaders at the institutions now offering online doctoral degrees say their programs are as rigorous, if not more so, than programs at bricks-and-mortar universities. They contend their electronic classes emphasize practical skills and applicable research over education theory and say their instructors are practitioners who understand the public education landscape better than tenured professors who may be decades removed from working in school settings.