 Especially for Students...
The North Carolina Community College System Virtual Learning Community is committed to providing a quality educational experience to students through distance learning course offerings available at most North Carolina Community Colleges.
This page is designed to answer some basic questions about distance learning, including options, courses and degrees available, plus give contact information for you to learn more about accessing courses at a particular community college.
Quick Links
Distance Education Options
 Distance learning occurs when the interaction of a student and instructor is separated by place and/or time.
These "non-traditional" courses are designed for students who are self-directed, meaning that they are responsible to do their lessons and assignments without having a set schedule of class meetings (except in ITV classes). More importantly, these classes maintain a level of academic quality comparable with so-called "traditional" courses which meet at a specified day and time in a specific location.
We strongly recommend that new students considering a distance education course be aware of the differences in instruction and of the commitments they must make to complete their lessons before they enroll.
Distance education classes are taught using a variety of methods of content delivery:
- Digital Media Courses are where 100% of the instruction is delivered by
non-telecourse digital video or media resources.
- Hybrid Courses are where the primary delivery is on- line with a
requirement that students also meet in traditional
face-to-face sessions as determined appropriate
by the college.
- Information Highway Courses are
where 100% of the instruction is delivered by
interactive video.
- Internet Courses are where 100% of the instruction is delivered
through the Internet.
- Telecourses are
where video, television or cassette delivers 100%
of the instruction.
- Teleweb Courses are where 100% of the primary delivery of instruction is via
telecourse and also requires Internet accesses as
a supplemental part of the course.
- Web-Supported Courses are where the primary delivery is via traditional
face-to-face sessions with a requirement those students have Internet access as a supplemental part of the course.
 Search For Courses
One of the major benefits of the Virtual Learning Community is that students can select from distance learning courses offered at Community Colleges across North Carolina. So, if you're looking for a course in say, History, and it's not being offered at your local college, you can find another institution that is offering the course and make arrangements to enroll and then transfer the credit hours.
You can search for North Carolina Community College distance learning course offerings on this Website here.
You can also search for distance learning courses from other colleges on the Southern Regional Education Board's Electroinic Campus website here.
Search for Programs
 Maybe you're already in a career and you're looking to add to your job skills. Or, you're looking to change jobs but you don't have time to go back to school.What if you're wanting to enroll in a particular course of study, but it wasn't offered where you live?
Whatever the reason, North Carolina Community Colleges are committed to helping you fit college into your schedule. Several of our member institutions offer full degree, diploma or certificate programs online, and all you have to do is see what is offered.
You can search out online degree programs on this Website here.
 North Carolina Community College Contacts
You've found the course or program you want. Now what do you do?
Contact the college, of course.
But how do you contact a college? Who do you need to talk to? Glad you asked, because we provide a database of distance education contacts at VLC member institutions and a way to contact them for more information.
You can search out contact information on this Website here.
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