Students do not have to leave home. The rest of the time they devote to studying the subject or course is time spent alone, time in which they take the leading role in the teaching-learning process. The kind of education offered is theoretical and practical, based on experience and direct contact with the occupational and social sphere which students intend to enhance. A very high quality multi-media education is possible, since course content can be commissioned to leading specialists in each field. This is an advantage of distance education, although generally in UNED course materials are drawn up by the professors responsible for the various subjects, whether or not they are leaders in their field.
Costs are lower than in conventional education.
These figures do not take into account, moreover, other savings to students, who need not travel, give up their jobs, etc. Finally, the high cost of the initial investment and the cost of producing materials is offset in UNED by economies of scale. Drawbacks Some of the drawbacks were mentioned in the discussion of the characteristics of distance education. Others are considered below. Interaction among pupils and between pupils and professors is much reduced, so that objectives of a social nature are not generally met.