A Needs Assessment: A Study of Perceived Need for Student Services by Distance Learners

Education, in its traditional format, has rapidly changed as a result of technological advances. The present study examined what online degree seekers, at the undergraduate and graduate levels, express as their perceived needs for student support services and to what extent participants perceive these needs to be met. This study, the first conducted to investigate student services where participants were completely online degree seekers, utilized an inventory listing 49 potential out-of-class needs for online degree seekers. For all but one item, there was a significant difference between perceived need versus perceived availability of services. A Needs Assessment: A Study of Perceived Need for Student Services by Distance Learners Distance learning, and in particular, online education, has recently increased its presence within higher education. In 2000-2001, almost 90 % of American public colleges and universities offered electronic distance learning, and 60 % of these institutions participated in a distance learning related consortium (Epper & Garn, 2003). At the end of 2004, roughly one million students were enrolled in completely online education programs (Carnevale, 2005). Education, in its traditional format, is changing with the presence of technology in education rising. Meanwhile, societ