67 percent of distance education students in higher education were satisfied with the distance courses they began during autumn term 2010. Among those who finished their courses, 90 percent were satisfied. However, only 55 percent finished their courses. The most common reasons for not completing courses were that they worked instead or were focused on other courses.
Among campus students, 81 percent were satisfied with the courses on the whole, while among campus students who finished their courses, 86 percent were satisfied. 81 percent of the campus students finished their courses.
Internet based courses are the most common
Half of the distance students in higher education autumn term 2010 studied courses that were completely based on the Internet, that is, no obligatory meetings were held for the courses. Among freestanding courses, 59 percent were completely based on the Internet, while among courses that were included in a programme, 24 percent were completely based on the Internet.
Common to combine other activities with distance studies
Distance students are more often busy with other activities aside from their studies, compared to campus students. These activities include being employed at a job, looking for work, taking parental leave or being on sick leave. Four out of ten distance students study full-time, compared to nine out of ten campus students. Distance students work full-time as much as they study full-time. Those who studied full-time were as a rule younger and those who worked full-time were as a rule older.
Subject interest main reason for choosing a course
Nearly half of the distance students reported that the reason they applied for courses was because of their own interests in the subject or the subject content. Other common reasons why they applied for courses were for further training for their jobs, to increase chances to get a job or another job, because the course was included in the programme they were studying, or to train themselves for their occupation or receive a degree.