Grad School in Your PJs? Today's Grad Students Increasingly Opt For Distance Learning
Yet programs must offer complete package of reputation, affordability and flexibility
CHESTER, PA, February 28, 2003 -
More and more students are looking at distance learning as a way to fit graduate school education into their busy schedules. Yet, as a new survey reveals, convenience is not their sole criteria for choosing a course of study. As they face an ever-increasing number of options and offerings, today's prospective grad students have become extremely discerning about the programs they select, seeking a "complete package" of reputation, affordability and flexibility.
The survey was conducted in December 2002 by GradSchools.com, the most comprehensive online source of graduate school information and programs, in partnership with the University of Texas TeleCampus, the support center for fully online degrees within the UT System. Over 11,500 students participated in the Distance Graduate School survey, which sought to identify the most influential factors affecting a prospective student's consideration of distance versus campus-based programs. Respondents were recruited through a link on the GradSchools.com Web site.
Over 28 percent of students surveyed who are seeking to begin graduate study within the next 12 months said they were considering either a campus-based or a distance program, or a distance program only.
When asked, "What is the most important criteria when choosing a distance program?" nearly 33 percent cited "reputation of program." The response indicates that today's students, looking for graduate degrees that they can complete via distance learning, understand the importance of reputation and seek programs that their employers and colleagues recognize and respect. These students shy away from "degree mills," a finding further supported by the fact that 19.3 percent of the survey respondents cited "high level of interactivity between professors and students" as their most important criteria for selecting a program.
"Learning is an interactive process, even in graduate-level distance programs. The Distance.GradSchools.com student survey shows that students are less concerned with the delivery method of their education and more concerned with the content and the value of a program. That value is determined by both the learning experience and the enhancement to their careers," says Mark Shay, president and CEO of Educational Directories Unlimited, Inc., the parent company of GradSchools.com and its related sub-portal, Distance.GradSchools.com. "The days of isolated distance learners are coming to an end, based on the providers' desire to integrate effective instructional design into the course production process."
Affordability ranked as the third most important criteria in selecting a graduate program, which is not surprising, given the fact that many distance learners rely on some kind of financial assistance to fund their education. Indeed, in today's tough economy, many companies have tightened their purse strings when it comes to providing tuition assistance to employees seeking graduate degrees. They often require the degree to be entirely specific to the employee's current job, a requirement that may not be in tune with the employee's future goals. Since most degrees are funded by the students themselves, cost is a key factor.
The Distance Graduate School Survey also revealed why students choose online education over campus-based programs. Many of today's prospective graduate students are not entering graduate school right after completing their undergraduate degree. In many cases, they are professionals juggling demanding jobs as well as family responsibilities. Nearly 28 percent of the survey respondents cited "convenience" as the primary deciding factor between choosing a campus-based or distance-based program. To them, the idea of working toward their degree on their own time, at midnight in their PJs if need be, is especially appealing. To further support this finding, 40.3 percent of the survey respondents cited "flexible hours" as the primary reason they chose to pursue a degree through distance education.
"There was no option for me to work on my degree through any method other than the University of Texas TeleCampus," says Major Daniel Quick, an operations officer in the Texas Army National Guard, who is just nine course hours away from completing his M.Ed. in Educational Technology. "During my enrollment, I have made three trips to the Czech Republic and Bosnia, and actually presented a group presentation with my team while in Tuzla, Bosnia. No other program allows for that amount of flexibility."
"It's clear that distance learning is being viewed as an increasingly attractive option to today's prospective graduate students, many of whom are juggling jobs, families and other responsibilities and seek the flexibility that such programs provide," says Shay. "At the same time, students are very selective about the type of program they will consider. They want a program with a good reputation that will challenge them and earn the respect of their employers and peers, and only a program that offers high interaction with their professors and other students fits the bill. And as discerning shoppers, they require a program that is also affordable.
He adds, "The good news is there are a wealth of programs out there that offer all of these criteria. Distance learning has come a long way in the past few years, and students have more options than ever before."
To research distance learning graduate programs throughout the country, visit http://Distance.GradSchools.com. To research distance learning graduate program offerings through the UT TeleCampus, visit http://www.telecampus.utsystem.edu. For an interview with Mark Shay of Educational Directories Unlimited, Inc., please contact Matt Ulmer at (610) 499-9200 or email mulmer@edudirectories.com.
About GradSchools.com
GradSchools.com is the Internet's leading online source of graduate school information. A clearinghouse for graduate education information, it is dedicated to providing the most comprehensive online directory of graduate programs. It provides in-depth and current information on over 53,000 graduate programs in the U.S. at no charge to prospective students. GradSchools.com is a service of Educational Directories Unlimited, Inc. (www.edudirectories.com).