New to this, where to start?

[saskgui]

Hello everyone,

I am an individual that is near to the end of my career however I am interested in learning biology and other life sciences, for now just to satisfy a personal interest. I was tempted to just sign up for the numerous courses one finds on the Internet (free or paid) but I am not sure on the quality of content. Also while I am not sure at this time if I will ever pursue a degree and I would like to have have the option of using the courses that I complete to possibly contribute to a future degree. 

However in all my searching I can't seem to find online biology degrees or even online college courses that count toward a degree. By browsing this forum I see people talking about taking courses through Sophia, Study.com and StraighterLine. Is it possible to take an entire degree through these courses, or are most people doing this to supplement their bricks and motar college classes/degree? When I was young the idea of taking higher education through "correspondence" (before the internet) was considered a joke. Is there still this stigma that taking courses online through some of these alternative schools is not legitimate learning or or where you credentials are not recognised?