Modes of Equal Value: A Comparative Study of the Same Masters Degree Programme Offered in Two Different Modes of Delivery

This paper presents the findings of a survey recently carried out with two groups of students enrolled on the same Masters degree programme. One group were attending a conventionally taught programme at the university, the other group were studying the same programme in a distance learning format. The aim of the investigation was to discover what, if any, were the differences in motivation to choose a course, in perceptions of its overall advantages and disadvantages, and in the general levels of student satisfaction, which might be attributed to the mode of delivery of the course. The findings indicate that, far from one being a pale imitation of the other, each attracts a somewhat different group of students, with different expectations and needs. The conclusion of the research is that these are modes of different but equal value.