With the advancement of e-learning, online instruction is becoming a significant component of graduate education. This presentation is based on experiences in the Professional Skills Training Online Course: Abstract Writing for Scientific Meetings conducted by the American Physiological Society. Insights gained following discussions with colleagues who followed several other online courses in various disciplines and in different formats are also included. Online courses are more conducive in the global e-leaning environment. Compared to live courses covering similar material, the online courses have the unique advantages of being convenient, time and cost effective for both organizers and participants. The retention of knowledge through these online courses was largely dependent on the format of delivery, relevance and applicability. Well defined objectives and a tutorial on the course design with technical support at the beginning of the course greatly enhanced the knowledge gain. However, online only courses have the disadvantage of limited face-to face interactions and discussions which impedes the peer learning and professional interactions. The blended course design (i.e. a combination of live and online course components) was perceived as a more effective method of teaching in the current graduate education. The overall efficiency of learning through online courses was determined by the course content, context, incentives and commitment of the participants. Students who are self-motivated and prefer a self-learning approach in contrast to didactic teaching benefit more from these courses. The meticulous selection of topics and content is crucial in designing online courses as all subject matter and skills cannot be conveyed or conceived online. Expanding the opportunities for live interactions within the course will increase the overall appeal and success of online courses. The characteristics and the prerequisites of the target student population also need to be considered in designing, implementing and evaluating graduate level online courses. Well defined guidelines and measures of quality-control for online courses will greatly facilitate the sustainability of online education.