Know your professor's contact information and hours of availability. When you need help with a hard assignment or challenging material, you'll know exactly how to get in touch.
Get a feel for the course's level of organization. Some Internet professors are experts at organizing course material, assignments and exams, while others struggle to put together basic lesson plans.
Evaluate the professor's availability. Although you'll likely be limited to e-mail and phone calls, the more ways you can get in touch with your professor, the better.
Think about how quickly your professor responds to your questions and requests. Email responses should be timely, informative and concise, especially in courses with tight deadlines and fast-paced assignments.
Notice the quality of actual online instruction. Some professors like to sit back and let their students do most of the work via chat boards and blogs, but the best instructors take a hands-on approach and lead by example. Live chats are a plus.
Give professors bonus points when they're friendly and helpful outside of course matters. Good professors act more as mentors than they do as teachers and will help you out with personal problems as well as academic difficulties.