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February 28, 2006
New Tuition Policy for Distance Education Courses
Effective summer 2006 Iowa State University has revised its tuition policy for distance education courses. The number of Iowa State courses delivered by convenient and accessible methods through continuing education has increased. Many courses that previously were closed to on-campus students will be open to those who choose to pay additional tuition. This policy gives on-campus students new schedule and delivery options.
Students will be assessed tuition at the resident (in-state) rate for courses offered through continuing and distance education. Students will incur tuition charges for distance education credits above the on-campus 'full-load' tuition cap.
Distance education courses are denoted by an X in the section number. For any course required in a major or minor, both on-campus and distance education (X) sections will be offered.
Some distance education courses have a delivery fee that is charged in addition to tuition and other student fees. All students enrolled in distance education courses will continue to pay delivery fees. Delivery fees are listed in each course description on www.lifelearner.iastate.edu.
Policy Statement
Assessment of Tuition and Delivery Fees to On-campus Students Enrolled in Distance Education Courses
November 7, 2005
Pursuant to the Distance Education Council’s request for a change in the policy regarding assessment of tuition and delivery fees to on-campus students enrolling in distance education courses and the unanimous support of that proposal by the deans of the colleges, Iowa State University will adopt the following policy:
Tuition and fees will be assessed and collected for each enrollment in a distance education course without regard to a student’s on-campus / off-campus status. For the purpose of this policy distance education courses are defined as those courses designated by an X in the section number. The tuition and fees paid by on-campus students for distance education courses will be distributed in the same manner as other distance education revenues. Colleges or departments may continue to exclude on-campus students from distance education courses for pedagogical or administrative reasons. When a course is offered only via distance and is required by a department, the department must offer an on-campus alternative in the same semester. This does not apply to majors or minors offered exclusively off-campus.
The effect of this policy will be to require on-campus students to pay additional tuition and fees if they choose to enroll in distance education courses.
This policy is intended to reverse the trend of colleges and departments barring on-campus students from enrolling in distance education courses. This trend is the result of two forces: the costing mechanisms used by the colleges for developing and delivering distance education courses and the preference of some on-campus students for the convenience, accessibility, and/or mode of delivery of distance education courses. The allocation of distance education tuition and fees directly to the originating college/department and the associated administrative units is intended to subsidize these costs. Re-opening these courses to on-campus students will provide those who choose to pay the additional tuition and fees access to those courses.
This policy is not intended to affect courses or sections created for on-campus students using digital learning content or other non-traditional means of delivery. Only those denoted by an X in the section number will require the assessment and collection of additional tuition and fees from on-campus students.
Provost’s Distance Education Council
In April 2001, Provost Rollin Richmond established the Provost's Distance Education Council.
Chaired by Continuing Education and Communication Services Director Bill Tysseling, the council provides institutional leadership in distance education policy and strategy, and advises the Iowa State University president and provost on all matters related to distance education. The council's purview of interest and activity is by broad: distance education policies and procedures; acquisition and development of distance education technology; staffing, budgeting and planning; and informing the Iowa State community on matters related to distance education.
Comments
Well this is a shame.
There are other, more positive ways to “reverse the trend of colleges and departments barring on-campus students from enrolling in distance education courses”. This policy strikes me as a defensive posture design to protect the status quo rather than a forward leaning strategy designed to take advantage of emerging realities.
Allowing students to take classes when and where they want is simply responding to realities – customer needs and expectations if you will. If we don’t adapt to the flexibilities that new technologies provide someone else will, and we will loose.
The technologies that produce distance education are now very cheap, very easy to integrate into the classroom and they produce high quality products. Resident student surveys clearly indicate their perceived benefit.
To charge resident students for access to these technologies is analogous with charging students 20 years ago for the luxury of viewing the overhead projector. Distance ed technologies are now cheap and easy, they will soon be ubiquitous - and instead of realizing the significant recruitment and retention benefits of early adoption, we’re looking like old fogies failing to respond to modern needs and opportunities.
Posted by: Joe Monahan | March 2, 2006 10:46 PM
For those of us who believe that publicly financed education is, if not a right, at least a very smart thing for society to do, the price of higher education is a great disappointment.
This policy change was initiated because departments were excluding on-campus students from their courses. The departments rely on tuition to cover the costs of distance education courses, especially the additional costs of developing and delivering online content. And, while off-campus students did pay tuition that came back to the departments, “full-time” on-campus students did not.
Some programs charge “delivery fees” in addition to tuition. These fees pay for the costs related to digitally-delivered courses. But, most ISU departments teach students who will not or cannot pay hundreds of dollars in delivery fees. Their students are generally not reimbursed by their employers for their distance education courses and are not working in high-wage jobs.
The bottom line is that either all on-campus students are excluded from these courses or some are excluded because they can’t afford the additional tuition. Most of us wish that this wasn’t true… and many believe that these costs should be publicly subsidized. It just isn’t the reality in which we work.
And, Joe is right, over time the difference between on-campus and off-campus courses will erode away and the allocation of costs and the revenue models that support them will be adapted to “modern needs and opportunities.”
Posted by: Bill Tysseling, CECS director | March 27, 2006 02:03 PM