Growing Popularity of Distance Education

Distance education has gained immense popularity as a result of the numerous advantages of pursuing education through distance mode

Distance education has revolutionised the educational process in a way that is unprecedented. The reason for this can mainly be attributed to growing employment opportunities in the private sector. The general perception among students, employers and society has seen a positive change and students pursuing distance education get equal recognition and respect as those enrolled in regular courses. In fact, students studying through distance mode have transformed their lives which would otherwise not have been possible.

Study and work

Distance education provides an opportunity to be on the job and improve your skills and qualification at the same time. This is the reason why it is more popular with undergraduates who can easily choose to work as interns in a business of their interest at the same time continue with their studies. By the time the student completes graduation, he/she has three years of job experience which is crucial in positioning him/her in the corporate world. Even distance learning centres in urban areas have seen an immense rise in enrolment due to this reason.

Traditionally, distance education has always been a boon to students of rural areas who otherwise find it difficult to get admission to regular college for innumerable reasons: inability to travel to a bigger city for study, lack of financial assistance, absence of adequate number of colleges, etc.

Pocket friendly

The fee for distance education courses is usually lower than fees in regular colleges. This is especially so for specialised courses like management. Also, you save on travel and other related expenses. The fee levied is usually for the examinations and the study material provided.

Lifetime learning

Distance education does not place any bar on age of learning. Individuals who could not continue their education for any reason and are now past the age of admission in many institutes can choose to resume their studies by distance mode. This is one of the salient aspects of distance education which makes it so popular.

Meritorious students too see merit in distance mode

Delhi University’s School of Open Learning has even seen students with marks in the range of 80 per cent join various courses. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has been declared the world’s largest university by UNESCO for having around 30 lakh students. More than 6 lakh students joined IGNOU in the year 2009-2010 alone.

For all the reasons mentioned above, it can easily be ascertained that distance education is gaining popularity among young and meritorious in rural and urban areas alike.