What is distance learning?

Distance learning (or distance education) is instructional delivery that does not require you to be physically located in the same site as your instructor. UC Berkeley Extension distance learning courses are either asynchronous (you can enroll any time and finish within six months), or have fixed start and finish dates, like a classroom course. The history of distance learning lies in correspondence study (study by mail). Today courses are also delivered through computer technologies, audio, video, or a combination.

Online or online independent learning courses — what’s the difference?

All of our courses are carefully designed for learning at a distance. Formats differ for ease of delivery.

• Online Courses

Online classrooms are accessed remotely using computers with Internet access. In addition to text content, they incorporate message boards, chat rooms, and multimedia technologies. Some courses also require textbooks and other supplementary materials, which can be ordered online. To show what you have learned, you submit assignments and projects to your instructor via our Web site and, in most courses, sit for a proctored final examination at an approved offline site.

• Online Independent Learning Courses

Online Independent Learning courses offer you the convenience of distance learning via Internet correspondence. You access most course material directly from our Web site, reading or downloading course outline, syllabus, and instructor lecture notes. Textbooks and other supplementary materials can be ordered online. You submit assignments to your instructor via e-mail and/or fax (special symbols, such as mathematics, editing, and physics, may require submission by mail or fax only — this is mentioned in the course description). Your instructor assesses, grades your work, and returns detailed feedback. In most courses, you will sit for a proctored final examination at an approved offline site.

What makes a good distance learning student?

Before you enroll in a UC Berkeley Extension Online course, please consider for a moment whether distance education will work for you.

For all of our courses, we recommend that you

• Be able to dedicate from as little as 45 to as many as 225 hours total to a course, including readings and assignments, depending on the length and scope of the course
  
• Be self-motivated, self-disciplined, and independent
  
• Be unafraid to ask questions and receive feedback
  
• Be able and willing to meet deadlines
  
• Enjoy and be comfortable with reading and writing

Basic, practical requirements for online courses include

• Regular access to a computer with a modem or direct network connection
  
• Comfort with computers and the Internet, including e-mail and Web browser software
  
• Ability to download, install, and do basic troubleshooting of computer software
  
• Ability to learn through "virtual" interaction with your instructor and other students