The Survey of Distance Learning Programs in Higher Education, 1999 Edition
The 1999 edition of our popular The Survey of Distance Learning Programs in Higher Education offers up-to-date 
information on the practices and technologies used in distance learning programs, as well as on students, faculty, 
and courses. Hundreds of tables provide the distance learning administrator with useful benchmarking data, while 
comparisons with the 1998 edition of the report offer insights into how distance learning has changed in the past 
several years.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SUMMARY OF MAJOR FINDINGS

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER TWO: NUMBER OF STUDENTS/COURSES

Mean Number of Students Enrolled in Distance Learning Courses

Mean Number of Students Enrolled in Distance Learning Courses, Fall Semester of 1998

Mean Number of Students Enrolled in Distance Learning Courses, Spring Semester of 1998

Mean Number of Credit Hours Earned by Distance Learning Students

Mean Number of Credit Hours Earned by Distance Learning Students, Fall Semester of 1998

Mean Number of Credit Hours Earned by Distance Learning Students, Spring Semester of 1998

Mean Number of Distance Learning Courses Offered

Mean Number of Distance Learning Courses Offered in 1998

Mean Number of Distance Learning Courses Offered in 1999

Mean Percentage of Distance Learning Students That Drop a Class Prior to Completion

Percentage of Respondents that Indicate that the Distance Learning Dropout Rate is Higher, Lower, or about the Same as it is For Traditional College Courses at the Institution

Mean Number of Students per Distance Learning Course

Mean Percentage of Students that Fail to Pay for Distance Learning Courses

CHAPTER THREE: MARKETING/BUSINESS

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Try to Sell or License Distance Learning Services to Other Organizations

Mean Spending on Marketing and Advertising of Distance Learning Courses within the Past Year

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Various Media In Marketing and Advertising Efforts

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Advertise on the Radio

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Advertise on Cable, Network, or Local Television

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Direct Mail Campaigns in their Marketing Efforts

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Videos about the Programs in their Marketing Efforts

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use the College or Program Web site in their Marketing Efforts

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Internet Newsgroups and/or Billboard Postings in their Marketing Efforts

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Advertise in Newspapers

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Advertise in Magazines

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Advertise on Billboards

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Advertise in Cardpacks

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that have a Separate Catalog for Distance Learning Courses

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that have Special Arrangements with Corporations, Government Agencies, Non-Profit Organizations, Other Colleges, Distance Learning Consortia, High Schools, or Other Institutions to Provide Distance Learning Services Specifically or Largely to that Organization

CHAPTER FOUR: INTERNET ACCESS

Percentage of Colleges that Have Various Types of Internet Service Arrangements

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Their Own Internet Servers

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use the College's Internet Server

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use an Outside Service Provider

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use an Outside Service Provider Used by the College

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have their own Servers that Purchased or Rent the Servers

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use the Same Server as Other Departments of the College

CHAPTER FIVE: TECHNOLOGY

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Various Practices and Technologies

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Mail Correspondence

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Fax

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Fax Broadcasting

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use E-mail Correspondence

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Internet Correspondence (WWW and E-mail)

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Internet Voice Applications (Phone Calls over the Internet)

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Campus Groupware or Intranet

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Voice Dictation Software (Writing by Speaking into a Computer)

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that use Audiocassette

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Live Audio

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Radio

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Telephone

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Voice Mail

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Interactive Voice Response

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Videocassette

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Tape Video

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Tape Video, Broadcast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Tape Video, Cablecast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Tape Video, Satellite

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Live Video

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Live Video, Broadcast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Live Video, Cablecast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Live Video, Satellite

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use Videoconferencing

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use CD-ROM

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use DVD

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Various Practices and Technologies

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Mail Correspondence

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Fax Correspondence

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Fax Broadcasting

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of E-mail Correspondence

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Internet Correspondence (WWW and E-mail)

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Internet Voice Applications

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Campus Groupware or Intranet

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Voice Diction Software

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Audiocassette

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Live Audio

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Radio

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Telephone

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Voice Mail

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Interactive Voice Response

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Videocassette

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Tape Video

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Tape Video, Broadcast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Tape Video, Cablecast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Tape Video, Satellite

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Live Video

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of TV Broadcast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Cablecast

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Satellite

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Interactive Videoconferencing

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of Computer-to-Computer Videoconferencing

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of CD-ROM

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Plan to Make Greater Use of DVD

CHAPTER SIX: INTERNET ADMINISTRATION

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use the Internet whose Students Need Passwords to Gain Access to Course Materials

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Use the Internet whose Instructors Must Submit Materials for Approval before Posting Them on the Internet

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Used various Programs to Devise Internet-Based Courses or Support Services

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Used Pathware to Devise Internet-Based Courses or Support Services

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Used WebCT to Devise Internet-Based Courses or Support Services

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Used Vcampus to Devise Internet-Based Courses or Support Services

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Used InfoPrint to Devise Internet-Based Courses or Support Services

Percentages of Distance Learning Programs that Have Used Programs Other Than Those Listed on the Questionnaire to Devise Internet-Based Courses or Support Services

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Have Outsourced Web Program Design to an Organization Outside of the Campus

CHAPTER SEVEN: FACULTY

Percentage of Distance Learning Instructors that are Adjunct Faculty

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Compensate Instructors for the Development of Technology-Based Lessons

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs whose Instructors are Required to Undergo Formal Training in Distance Learning

Mean Cost of Distance Learning Training per Instructor

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs whose Students are Required to Undergo Formal Training in Distance Learning

Mean Cost of Distance Learning Training per Student

CHAPTER EIGHT: FINANCES

Reported Profit Margins of Distance Learning Programs

Costs and Expenditures

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Administration and Oversight

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Instructor/Tutor Salaries

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Advertising and Promotion

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Course Development/Purchase

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Equipment

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Teacher Training and Recruitment

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Telecommunications Costs

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Facilities (Buildings/Classrooms)

Percentage of Total Costs and Expenditures Attributed to Costs other than Those Mentioned Above

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support or Some Sort of Grant for Development Purposes

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support that Receive such Support from the State Government

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support that Receive such Support from the Local Government

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support that Receive such Support from a Private Foundation

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support that Receive such Support from a Private Company

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support that Receive such Support from a Telecommunications Provider

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Receive Outside Financial Support that Receive such Support from a Source other than the Ones Listed

CHAPTER NINE: COURSE PARAMETERS

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Describe DL Course Content as Tailor-Made for DL Applications; Similar or the Same as in Traditional Courses with Few or No Modifications; Similar or the Same as in Traditional Courses with Some Important Modifications

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs whose Courses are Offered over Certain Time Spans

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs whose Students Fill Out Course Evaluation Forms

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs in which Administrative Staff "Sit In" on DL courses to Evaluate Instructors and Course Offerings

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Indicate that Students Enrolled in Distance Learning Courses Have More Difficulty, Less Difficulty, or About the Same Level of Difficulty as Students Enrolled in Traditional Courses in Obtaining Loans and Other Types of Financial Support from the College

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Indicate that Students Enrolled in Distance Learning Courses Have More Difficulty, Less Difficulty, or About the Same Level of Difficulty as Students Enrolled in Traditional Courses in Obtaining Loans and Other Types of Financial Support from Outside the College

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs that Indicate that Students Enrolled in Distance Learning Courses Have More Difficulty, Less Difficulty, or About the Same Level of Difficulty as Students Enrolled in Traditional Courses in Transferring Credits to Other Colleges, or Qualifying for More Advanced or Graduate Study

Percentage Of Distance Learning Programs that Indicate that Certain Percentages of Current DL Students Have Taken DL Courses in the Past

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs for which Exams are Administered at Various Locations

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs for which Exams are Administered at Home

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs for which Exams are Administered at a Common Physical Location Outside the College, for Some or All of the Students Enrolled

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs for which Exams are Administered at the College

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs for which Exams are Administered at College Sites that Serve as Proxies

Percentage of Distance Learning Programs for which Exams are Administered at All of the Above Locations

CHAPTER TEN: BEST PRACTICES AND PURCHASES

Best Practices

Best Purchases and Suppliers

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