Now 50, Rollins found many of the positions she wanted required a bachelor's degree. Distance learning presented the quickest way to bolster her career. Rollins is typical of many distance learners. They tend to be women over age 28 with full-time jobs or children at home. By taking self-paced classes online or through video conferencing, they can mold their class schedule to their work and family lives.
People crave being in a community.
Some of the pluses of a traditional college education, such as learning how to speak in public and understanding different perspectives, can be lost in the rush to get a degree or to obtain training that will lead to a pay raise. With those aspects of learning in mind, the University of Arizona Eller Graduate School of Management signed on with a company called TeleSuite Corp. to provide a dual-location evening MBA program. Students in Tucson and Santa Clara, Calif., in Silicon Valley, attend classes at the same time. Besides the MBA program, UA's Extended University offers online programs such as master's degrees in optical sciences, and information resources and library sciences. More than a quarter of the university's students are enrolled in the program.