Acceptance of Distance Learning Programs at the Graduate Level A Pilot Study

Acceptance of Distance Learning Programs at the Graduate Level A Pilot Study

Daytona Beach, Florida

The number of Americans seeking college degrees is expanding at a rapid pace. To meet the challenge of the non-traditional student, one, who because of other commitments, cannot attend courses in a traditional campus setting, colleges and universities have instituted distance learning programs. There is little disagreement on the value of these programs in providing a service to students who cannot attend traditional classes. But at locations where students do have an option of attending a traditional course, or taking one through a distance learning approach, which will a student select? The study expanded the perceptions of the traditional versus distance learning approach to higher education, and the choice students would make if given the option. The results of the study revealed that students would significantly favor courses utilizing the traditional delivery approach versus a distance learning approach. The study also found that students at a university which does not have a distance learning program favor this approach to a significantly higher degree than students at a university which has a distance learning program. The study also found that students are almost equally divided on the perception of quality of the distance learning delivery approach, versus a traditional delivery approach.