Distance learning becoming more popular in US

19:30 5th June 2008

Economic problems in the US have led to a growth in the number of students undertaking distance learning courses, it has been revealed.

The spiralling cost of oil has led to substantial price rises at the petrol pump, leading many learners to change their habits and stay at home, according to George Gabriel of Northern Virginia Community College.

He told WTOP Radio the number of distance learning students at the college had climbed to 14,000 across 100 courses.

"About one out of four students is doing distance learning and that is a very high percentage by any standard in the education system," Mr Gabriel added.

Distance learning has proved to be a successful solution for people looking to retrain in order to follow IT careers.

Former soldier Milton Reed recently explained that his course with Computeach had been particularly flexible, as it allowed him to undertake training while based in Germany during his last few months in the army.

Computeach is the UK's leading IT distance learning provider