Press Release from Primary Research Group, Inc.

68.66 percent of adult and continuing education programs in higher education offer courses through distance learning.

New York, November 4, 1999: 68.66 percent of adult and continuing education programs in higher education offer courses through distance learning, according to a study recently published by Primary Research Group, Inc. The two-volume study – The Survey of Adult and Continuing Education Programs in Higher Education (ISBN# 1-57440-037-1) – is based on a survey of 70 randomly selected adult and continuing education programs throughout the United States. The study provides data for the entire sample as well as data broken out by type of control of the college (public/private), level of the college (two-year/four-year) and number of students enrolled in the college.

Other findings of the study include:

38.57 percent of the adult and continuing education programs in the sample offer undergraduate degrees; 25.76 percent offer graduate degrees; 80.88 percent offer non-degree certificate programs.

52.38 of the programs participate in educational consortia, which enable students to take courses offered by other colleges and universities under the auspices of the programs.

Instructors' and tutors' salaries account for the highest percentage of the programs' total costs – 31.27 percent. Equipment (19.27 percent) and administration and oversight (17.00 percent) account for the second and third highest percentages, respectively.

A mean of 23.86 percent of adult and continuing education program revenues is derived from arrangements with industry to provide specialized worker education or training.

Only 5.18 percent of the adult and continuing education courses are taught by full-time faculty members that teach primarily or exclusively in the adult and continuing education programs. Most of theses are taught by adjunct faculty members (39.73 percent) or by full-time faculty members that teach primarily in other divisions or programs (37.48 percent).

The programs directly employ a mean of 23.29 faculty members.

83.67 percent of the programs use the Internet or the World Wide Web to offer courses at a distance; 60.42 percent use videoconferencing; 36.17 percent use videotapes.

50.91 percent of the programs grant credits for life experience or corporate training programs.

Percentage of adult education programs that offer distance learning courses, based on the entire sample and then broken out by type of control of the college, public or private

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