Developing distance learning courses in a traditional university

Distance learning is becoming more popular in the traditional university setting. The term traditional is used to denote the main fulltime approach to educational provision that has been evident in higher education. In this paper, we argue for the need to approach such flexiblelearning developments with a businessplanning approach. This is illustrated in two casestudies where business planning was and was not used. Such a considered approach to fullcost course development will ensure that a course delivered by distancelearning mode is not seen by academic managers as a cheap option.