Socio-economics of virtual universities

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Policy makers and practitioners will gain valuable insights to assess and validate their plans in Higher Distance Education against socio-economic criteria. Drawing inspiration from presentations at the EADTU/FernUniversität workshop on University Level Distance Education in Europe (Hagen, Germany, December 1994), a working group was established by the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities to explore the socio-economic impact of distance education systems. Supported by the SOCRATES/ODL Programme of the European Commission, research was conducted on six key socio-economic issues of the Virtual University: Political Issues, Socio-Economic Effects, Distance Teaching Market, Consumers' Satisfaction, Economic Efficiency, and Efficiency of New Technologies. This publication aims to serve the interests of both established Open Distance Learning institutions looking to enhance their operations and those considering the adoption of Open Distance Learning methods to expand their program offerings. It provides a platform for policy makers and practitioners to evaluate their plans in Higher Distance Education, drawing from past and present experiences while looking ahead to future projections. Ultimately, it seeks to improve the quality of University Level Distance Education and the development of the Virtual University.