The first round of attempts to extend the access of working people to higher education began in 1873 with an imitation of the University of London on the prairies of Illinois. For all practical purposes, it ended in the legislature of the State of New York in 1892, although it took more than a decade to formally close all of the external degree…

Transnational higher education is a rapidly growing phenomenon that is under-researched and often even misunderstood. As the world's most promising market, China has the potential to dwarf all traditional offshore markets. Little research has been done to seriously analyse the fast growth in China. A sound understanding of the Chinese situation…

Describes a successful model for offering counselor training to paraprofessionals. Shows this external degree program with a competency base to be a viable educational alternative for training human service workers without removing them from their work, their families, and their communities. (Author/BP)

Describes the West Germany "Fernuniversitaet," an innovative distance education university. Organization, governance, enrollment, course content, and research activities are discussed. (SK)

The delivery of off-campus postsecondary programs for military personnel presents formidable challenges. As such programs come under critical examination, the University of Maryland's University College's experience in providing the armed forces with off-duty education opportunities at home and abroad is a successful example. (SK)

Place is material, conceptual and symbolic. Physically, the Library at Townsville College of Advanced Education was central, visible and distinctive. Internally, it provided a dramatically different environment from other college buildings. It functioned as the (metaphorical) "hub" of the external studies programme and, when the college…

The external degree path to a doctorate is becoming more popular among established professionals unable to take leaves of absence for traditional programs. It is successful with minorities and adult learners because programs link theory with practice and offer flexible and distance programming. Student lack of access to research facilities,…

Describes the university and community perceptions of the role of the university in providing outreach off-campus degree programs, perceptions of the impact of the bachelor of science in nursing program in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and the process by which such a program can be identified, negotiated, and conducted. (JOW)

The history, functions, and organization of the Open University International Documentation Centre on Distance Learning are described. It contains information on distance teaching projects and institutions in over 80 countries, samples of course materials, theoretical information on distance education, and documentation on education in all…

Describes use of laboratory kits for home-based experimental studies for external science students. Contents of kits and extra equipment the student would need are listed, selection of suitable experiments and arrangements for loan of kits are discussed, and performance of external students using kits is compared to that of internal students. (EAO)

The use of audiotapes in an external degree program in psychology at Massey University, their effectiveness, and helpful study habits are examined. A model listening sequence using the tapes on different occasions for different learning tasks is outlined. (MSE)

Australia's external degree programs have managed to maintain high standards for graduate degrees through residential and weekend schools, teaming of visiting or part-time faculty with regular full-time faculty members, faculty-wide approval of grades, direct supervision, strict admission standards, and rigorous programs. (Author/WD)

A federation was established among several of France's Centers for University Teaching through Broadcasting to pool resources and activities to better serve external degree students. The administrative organization and activities of the group are outlined. (MSE)

Issues relating to identifying pathways whereby pharmacy practioners can obtain additional training and experience leading to an advanced professional degree or certificate are identified. A scheme for assessing the prior learning of external degree or certificate candidates is suggested. (MLW)

The Open University set out ten years ago to solve the problem of dropouts in external degree programs. The importance of its success for itself and other institutions is discussed, although there is caution due to the lack of unanimity in terminology in dropout research, and the danger of using dropouts to compare institutions. (MSE)