Distance Learning Degrees: The Next Big Thing?

No longer considered the 'poor relative' of campus-based courses, distance learning degrees have rapidly evolved to become a major player in the higher education world. Ross Geraghty examines the evolution and current state of the sector.

Distance learning, the catch-all term used to describe any of a number of educational courses offered off-campus, from the recent innovations in web-based education to videos, DVDs, correspondence courses by snail-mail and by TV, has entered an advanced phase.

The education style, which started off principally through snail-mail correspondence courses, has been going on for a long time. The pioneering Open University in the UK opened its doors in 1969 and, since then, a number of very advanced courses with a good deal of integrity have enabled people to earn life-changing or career-enhancing degree courses from the convenience of their own home.

The distance learning method suits a variety of people, those with families, who don't wish to relocate, those perhaps with disabilities, people for whom it is simply not affordable to attend full-time classroom degree courses or for any number of other reasons.

One respondent says: "It also depends on which industry you are looking at. For example for hiring an auditor, it would not make much of a difference if the candidate has completed an online or on-campus postgrad degree."

As with any kind of education, distance learning has its pros and cons, its supporters and its detractors, especially among the crucial ingredient at the end of the line in most education, the opinion of employers.

During its early stages, according to Richard Wheatcroft, Master's Program Director at the Open University in the UK, employers didn't take distance learning seriously.

"When we started in 1969 there was a lot of scepticism because employers didn't have access to information about the courses. But through the 70s and 80s it became demonstrable that graduates were as well educated as those from face-to-face universities."

Recruitment expert Damir Latte, of global-workplace.com, agrees: "In the past, distance learning courses didn't achieve high recognition. The courses were seen as the poorer cousins of the on-campus method and, in some cases, perhaps they were.

"The overall experience of attending university was seen by employers, who probably went through the on-campus education system themselves, to provide a rounded experience of networking and communication that distance learning courses couldn't provide."

With more recent technological advancements such as the Internet, audio-visual technology such as CDs and DVDs and telephony, distance learning has developed into a viable alternative to the quality face-to-face learning universities have to offer.

It is as far from the realm of reams of dusty correspondence-courses packages landing on your doorstep as modern universities are from Dickens.

Richard Wheatcroft says, "We call it 'structured open learning' as it's a complete package of carefully produced materials away from a base, with provision of all the support that would be expected from a face-to-face course. There are some great advantages.

"There is only a 15:1 ratio student:faculty ratio on master's programs. There are face-to-face seminars every few weeks, a large electronic backup and electronic support from the library. You need a very strong infrastructure for distance learning and it's hard to do it well on a small scale to enable students to be self-directed learners."

This self-motivation, or the lack of it, is what keeps some students from considering a distance-learning course.

Some doubt their ability to get up and actually do the work, to force themselves to the books or the computer when TV or other distractions seem far more appealing. Those people may function better with external motivators, such as lecturers or peers and if they are honest self-assessors, distance learning may not be for them.

For the self-motivated student - and it is important that you assess yourself and be realistic about this because it is definitely not an easier option over on-campus degrees - taking a distance learning course and balancing this with the rigours of work, life and family can work to your advantage in an employer's eyes.

One respondent says: "Employees can prove to employers that doing an online degree is just as intensive as doing an on-campus one. They should use it as a tool to explain to employers how dealing with current personal or professional obligations while doing a course online has honed them into a more capable, agile and dynamic professional."

Richard Wheatcroft agrees. "From an employer's point of view, not only did the student get an education, they got it in their own time and proved the work and lifestyle balance. They have demonstrated their self-motivation. The concerns about distance learning these days have genuinely been dispelled."