This guide to institutions that offer academic degrees through nontraditional means has four parts. Part 1 addresses issues in nontraditional education, such as degree requirements and transcripts, whether a degree is worth the effort, how to evaluate a school, accreditation, and financial aid. Part 2 specifically addresses alternative methods of…

This guide provides an in-depth look at distance learning. It lists hundreds of currently available undergraduate, master's, doctoral, and professional certificate programs. The courses listed are all offered for credit or certification by a growing number of accredited "electronic universities" that deliver their classwork via personal…

Distance education is used in this survey to cover the various forms of study at all levels that are not under the continuous, immediate supervision of teachers present with their students in lecture rooms or on the same premises, but which benefit, nevertheless, from the planning, guidance, and tuition of a tutorial organization. Familiar…

In a home-based institution like the Open University of Great Britain where enrollment is open and participation patterns are erratic, maintaining up-to-date, accurate records of students is imperative. A systematized data base is required for the administration of admissions, fee collection, materials distribution, monitoring and marking of…

The Open University of Great Britain is an open-enrollment, home-based educational system in which the majority of the instruction is conducted via broadcasts and correspondence. One radio program, one television program, and the related readings from a course on decision-making in the British Education System were evaluated to see if they: 1)…

The organization and scope of the British Open University are described, and the courses offerings available through it are listed. The first section, A Brief Explanation, presents the guiding philosophy and programs of the Open University. Subsequent booklets list each of the courses offered and the individual instructional modules available to…