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What is distance learning?
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Distance-learning courses provide flexible, learner-centered instruction to students who experience barriers of time and place with traditional course offerings. It uses various methods of delivery, including television-based, video-based, and computer/Internet-based course content.
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Who can take a distance-learning course?
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Distance-learning courses have the same requirements as traditional courses. For example, some upper level courses require prerequisites. If you are qualified to take the courses at a particular institution, you are qualified to take their online courses.
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How do I know if I am ready to take a distance-learning course?
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The Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium (CTDLC) has created a sample course that is available free of charge for any prospective distance learning student. It will help you discover if you are prepared for the type of learning that online-based courses will require and if you are technologically prepared.
To investigate this sample course (which takes about an hour), please visit the CTDLC website. You will be given a link to the sample course and a username and password.
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How do I find out what distance-learning courses are available?
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The Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium (CTDLC) was created to provide just this sort of information. If you go to the course offerings section of the CTDLC website, you will find a listing of what courses are available.
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How do I register for a course?
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You will find the registration information for each institution that is offering courses at the CTDLC website. Some schools register students on their web sites and some even offer students the option of paying for the course online.
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What technology will I need?
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You can find techincal assistance at the CTDLC website. You can also test your technology by spending an hour in the sample course.
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How much does a distance-learning course cost?
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Each institution sets its own price for its distance-learning courses, just as they do for their on-campus courses. We have a range of prices for distance-learning courses just as we do for on-ground courses. So you will see prices that start at $250 for a three-credit course and rise to about $800. Graduate course prices follow the same rules.
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How do I get a degree online?
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Several of our member institutions offer complete degree programs at a distance. This means you can do all the coursework for a degree using distance-learning courses. You can discover what these programs are and who is offering them by following the link for program offerings on the main page of the CTDLC website.
But you can also use distance-learning courses as part of a traditionally delivered degree. For example, some students take a mixture of on-ground and online-based courses to meet their program requirements.
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What is required to get a degree online?
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A degree at a distance has the same sorts of requirements as a traditionally delivered degree. Most institutions require students to take general education courses as part of their first 60 credits to create the necessary background for a bachelor's degree and most institutions require students to take a series of courses that will form their major.
You can find out about these requirements by requesting a catalog from the school at which you wish to earn your degree. This catalog can be requested by visiting the school, calling the admissions office, or even using e-mail from the school's website.
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How do I pick a college or university?
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Most adult students make this decision based on such variables as proximity, cost, degree program availability, and now online course options. You can discover which institution is right for you by visiting the CTDLC Members section of the CTDLC website and clicking the link to the websites of those schools that interest you. On their websites, schools describe their programs, costs, locations and online options.
Remember that you can find out who is offering a program that is entirely online by following the link for program offerings.
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Can I take courses at more than one institution?
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Yes, you can. But it is important to check with your advisor at the institution at which you are matriculated to see if the courses you wish to transfer in to your degree program will fit. In other words, it is up to the school that will grant you your degree to decide which courses transfer and how they will be counted.
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What does it mean to matriculate?
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When you enroll in a school and begin to pursue one of its degree programs, you have matriculated. In other words, you matriculate at the institution that will award you the degree.
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Can I receive financial aid?
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Yes, you can. If you are taking an occasional online-based course as part of your degree program, it does not change your eligibility for financial aid.
If you are enrolled at a program that is entirely at a distance, you may also be eligible for financial aid because 25 of the institutions in the CTDLC are part of a federal demonstration program to create new procedures for offering Title IV financial aid to students like you. We have received a series of waivers and permission to begin offering financial aid. You can discover more by writing to Velma Walters (vwalters@mail.cosc.edu), Director of Financial Aid for the CTDLC, or by contacting the financial aid office at your home institution.
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Can I transfer the credits I have earned over the years into a current degree program?
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Yes, but the rules on credit transfer are a little different at each institution. Most institutions place some limits on the number of credits you can transfer and how old they are. For example, some institutions limit you to transfer credits that are no more than 10 years old.
And most institutions have something called a residency requirement that means you must take a certain number of your credits through the college awarding the degree. This number usually varies from 15 to 45 credits.
One of the CTDLC members, Charter Oak State College, specializes in adult students with lots of transfer credits. They do not have a residency requirement, and they do not outdate credits. Charter Oak offers associate's and bachelor's degrees in general studies. You can find out more about them from their website at www.cosc.edu.
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Why can't I just take the courses that interest me?
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You can do this, but it may not lead to a degree. Colleges and universities create learning plans (required courses) so students will do more than accumulate credits. They believe that by taking courses that relate to certain outcomes and that interrelate in certain ways a student has an educational experience where the whole is greater than the parts.
So you are free to take courses that interest you, but if you want to get a degree, it is critical that you talk to an advisor at the institution that offers the degree you are seeking.
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What is the difference between undergraduate and graduate courses?
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Colleges and universities award degrees that proceed in the following order:
Associate's degree (60 credits)
Bachelor's degree (120 credits)
Master's degree (30-60 credits beyond the bachelor's)
PhD (30 credits beyond the master's)
Generally, students take courses at the appropriate level for the degree they are pursuing. For example, associate degree programs like those at Connecticut's community-technical colleges use courses from the freshmen and sophomore level (designated 100 and 200 level at many institutions).
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Do I need textbooks?
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Yes, most courses do require textbooks. You will be able to purchase most books online. Your instructor will share this information with you as part of the syllabus.
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Where do I ask my technology questions?
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The CTDLC has a technical support staff that can answer your questions by e-mail, over the phone, and by using their online form. The staff monitors the calls and e-mail 7 days a week. In addition, there is a frequently asked questions section under Technical Support that provides answers to common questions and problems.
CTDLC Technical Support
E-mail: ctdlc@cosc.edu
Telephone: (860) 832-3887
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Who do I contact with my questions about the course content or assignments?
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Each course has an instructor who teaches the course. He or she will be available by e-mail and in the course conference. Some even hold virtual office hours when they are sitting at their computer answering e-mail. In their syllabi, most instructors will tell you how fast they answer e-mail and when they are most available.
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Do I have to be online at a certain time?
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Courses often require that you log on with a certain frequency, but most courses do NOT require students to be online at a certain time. Those few that do employ synchronous activities like chat sessions usually offer multiple opportunities to participate so students will not be inconvenienced. You should read the course description carefully to see if the course(s) you are interested in require such meetings.
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Can I move more quickly through a course and finish faster?
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Good question. Right now most courses are scheduled using the semester system. Some schools have an accelerated semester system (e.g., 8 weeks for a course), but even these are sequenced so the cohort of students moves at approximately the same rate. So, you can move faster but you won't be able to take the next course until the next start moment arrives.
But, we expect to begin offering more flexible courses in the near future, and if you are interested in such improvements, please let your instructors, your home institution, and the CTDLC know. Your course will have a final evaluation where you can tell us about such needs.
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For additional information about the Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium, please contact:
Ed Klonoski, Director
Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium
E-mail: eklonoski@mail.cosc.edu
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