university continuing education in canada policies and practices of cauce member institutions...

University Continuing Education in Canada

Policies and Practices of CAUCE Member Institutions

November, 2007

Prior Research

Continuing Education in Canadian Universities: Policies and Practices, 1985 (W. M. Brooke and J.F. Morris, CAUCE, 1987)

An Overview of Continuing Education Policies and Practices in Canadian Universities (J. F. Morris and J. Potter, CAUCE, 1996)

Research Objectives develop an up-to-date, comprehensive

overview of the field of practice identify emerging trends and changes that

have occurred in university continuing education over the last 15 to 20 years

publish a summary report for distribution to CAUCE member institutions that will serve as a general description of practice and a reference document for practitioners, policy makers, researchers and others interested in this area of higher education

Methodology

Revised the 1996 questionnaire Pre-test with current and former deans and

directors in April, 2006 Mailed the questionnaire to 48 member

institutions in late May, 2006 As of November, 2006, we had responses

from 39 member institutions (~80%)—35 (73%) completed the questionnaire using 04-05 data (Sept. 1 to Aug. 31)

Context

Primarily Undergraduate (15/34) Comprehensive (11/34) Medical/Doctoral (8/34) Mean institutional enrollment:

14,970 students (range ~750-43,000) No reliable institutional data available on #

institutional registrations in non-degree and non-credit

Definitions Degree Credit: Courses that can be taken

for credit toward an academic degree awarded by the university. Degree credit courses may be bundled into programs that do not, by themselves, constitute full degrees

Non-degree Credit: Courses that do not normally carry credit toward a degree but may be taken for credit toward another credential offered by the university. Non-degree credit courses generally involve evaluation of students

Definitions Non credit: Organized courses, classes,

workshops, seminars, forums, initiatives, symposia, and/or public lecture series which have sustained instruction but which do not carry credit toward a university degree or other diploma or certificate (other than a certificate of participation) awarded by the continuing education unit or the university. Non-credit offerings do not generally involve evaluation of students

Context

Types of programs respondents deliver:

Only degree: 2/35 Only non-degree/non-credit: 12/35 Both degree and non-degree/non-credit: 21/35

(60%) Distance and Off-Campus: 27/35 (77%)

Organization and Management

Unit name: still majority contain “Continuing Education” or “Continuing Studies”.

13 units have undergone name change in last 5 years and 9 units are considering one.


Separate Program Portfolios: 32/34

N

%

Distance Education 23 73 Professional Training 21 66 Business/Commerce 18 57 Seniors Programs 17 53 ESL 17 53


Distinct Service Portfolios (22/35)

%

Marketing 91 Finance/Information Systems 68 Student Services 52 Facilities Management 50


28/35 Deans/Directors report to VP (Academic)

Representation on senior decision-making bodies:*

N % Top (e.g., BofG or equiv.) 3 9 22% Senate 28 80 Decanal 17 53 Presidential Advisory Committee 11 37

*% with representation where these bodies exist.


CE Unit has: N %

Own mission statement 28/33 85 72%

Strategic plan 27/34 79 70

3-5 Yr. Business plan 24/35 68


Has CE undergone significant change in the past 5 years? N %

Yes 20/33 60 Impetus

U Admin 15/20 75 CE 11/20 55

Nature of Change Admin. 9/19 47 Academic 4/19 21 Admin./Acad. 6/19 32


Changes to CE in past 5 yrs:* Non

Degree -degree Non-credit

Increase net revenue expectations 15/24 16/25 21/30

Expansion of mission/functions 9/24 8/25 Reassignment of responsibilities 8/24 Increase co-op. post-secondary 7/24 8/25 9/30 Increase co-op. business/gov’t 11/25 13/30 Move to full cost recovery 10/30

* Identified by a minimum of 1/3 of respondents


Anticipated Changes to CE in next 5 yrs:* Non Degree -degree Non-credit

Increase net revenue expectations 18/23 18/26 21/28

Expansion of mission 13/23 14/26 13/28 Increase co-op. post-secondary 11/23 10/26

11/28 Increase co-op. business/gov’t. 12/23 15/28

13/26

* Identified by a minimum of 1/3 of respondents


N % Title of unit head:

Director 21/35 30 Dean 10/35 60

Rank: Academic 16/35 45% 59% Gender: Female 25/35 71 40 Education: Doc. 15/34

Masters 15/34Bachelors 4/34


Gross revenues (04-05):

Range: ~$15,700 - $18.9M Mean: ~$5.8M

Largest Net Surplus: ~$5.4MLargest Net Deficit: ~$282,800


Primary Sources of RevenueMean %

N* of total Revenue

Non-credit offerings 20/26 27 Non-degree credit courses 16/27 18 Degree-credit courses 15/29 28 Univ. core budget allocation 13/30 14

* Number of respondents reporting these revenue sources


Units with revenue/profit sharing agreements: 22/35 63%

Based on net revenue afterexpenses: 10/22 46%

Agreements vary by program: 16/22 73%

Informal/can be changed at CE’s discretion: 9/22 41%


To what extent is your unit self-supporting? Degree Non-Degree Non-Credit

100% 14/19 74% 12/19 63% 19/31 61%

What costs are you expected to cover on campus? (N=29) N %

Personnel salaries/benefits: 26 90 Info Systems support/maintenance:14 48 Ongoing repairs/improvements: 12 41 Space/rental: 11 38 Info Systems development: 10 35 Utilities: 7 24 Capital costs and major renovations: 7 24 University overhead for services: 7 24


% Gross expenses allocated to promotion:

N (32) %

<5% 10 31 5-9 6 1910-14 8 25

15-19 4 13 20-24 3 9

>24 1 3

Has the Web reduced gross promotion expenses? Yes 22/35 63% Somewhat 14/22 64

Degree Credit Courses

Definition: Degree Credit Courses

Courses that can be taken for credit toward an academic degree awarded by the university. Degree credit courses may be bundled into programs that do not, by themselves, constitute full degrees.

Degree Credit Courses

23 of 35 respondents (65.2%) completed this section

Structure of CE with respect to degree credit delivery most commonly reported: - academic responsibility decentralized and

administrative responsibility centralized (65.2% or 15 institutions)

- academic and administrative responsibility centralized (21.7% or 5 institutions)

Composition of Degree Credit Course Course Registrations (N)

On Campus Off Campus

Range Mean* Range Mean*

Part-time students 0-100% (18) 47.4% 5-100% (18) 58.6%

Full-time students 0-100% (20) 40.4% 0-75% (20) 24.8%

* including “0’s”

Emphasis on Mature Learners

60.9% (14 institutions) indicate an emphasis on mature learners

Examples of special emphasis include: - support services:

e.g. registration, scheduling, delivery, advisement

- recruitment - course and program development decisions, e.g. after degree graduate

Degree Credit Formats (N=23)

N %.

DE using instructional technologies 20 87.0

Spring/Summer 16 69.6

Off-campus using f-2-f or blended 1669.6

Weekend 14 60.9

Evening 13 56.5

International 3 13.0

Types of Programs

On Campus Off Campus N % N %

(of 23) (of 22)

Undergraduate degree 13 56.5 20

90.9

Graduate degree 7 30.4 13 59.1

Definitions

For part-time student, definitions vary considerably:

- just over 52% use “fewer than 24 ch/year or 12 ch/term” or “fewer than 4 courses/term”

For mature students, 55% use “21 plus who does not meet standard entrance requirements”

Admission Policy for Part-Time Undergraduate (N=25)

Same as for Full-time (85%)

Basis for admission mostly:

- high school academic standards (88.9%) - age requirements (66.7%)

Policies/Procedure for Recognizing Prior Learning

60.9% (14 institutions) have policies and procedures in place within university or CE unit

85.7% (12 institutions) of above have responsibility within CE unit

Types of responsibility: N %

- advising/support for students 10 83.3

- faculty advising/support 8 66.7

- coordination of PLA services 7 58.3

Methods of Assessment for PLA (N=13)

N %

Portfolio 8 61.5

Interview 7 53.8

Combination 4 30.8

Student Narrative 3 23.1

Demonstration 3 23.1

Registration Methods (N=22)

FrequencyN % of

Use.

In person 20 90.9 2*Online 20 90.9 1*Mail 19 86.4 4Fax 18 81.8 3Telephone (staff assisted) 13 59.1 3Telephone (computerized) 4 18.2 5

* Much higher than remaining

Regulations on Course Enrolments

Almost all (95.5% or 21 institutions) report that part-time students can take day-time courses

60% of these report that some limitations apply (e.g. Departmental permission - 54.5%)

95.5% or 22 institutions report that full-time students can enroll in degree credit courses offered under the aegis of the CE unit

47.6% of these report that some limitations apply (e.g. Departmental permission - 80%)

Fees and Payment Methods (N=21)

N %.

Cash 18 85.7

Personal Cheque 18 85.7

Credit Card 15 71.4

E-Commerce 10 47.6

Installment Payments 8 38.1

Fee Policies

73.9% (17 institutions) report that fees assessed for part-time learners are consistent with those assessed for full-time learners

63.6% (14 institutions) have a stated tuition waiver for seniors: - most commonly at 65 (9 institutions)

or 60 (3 institutions)

Minimum Enrolments

No institutions offer all courses on a guaranteed basis

Mean minimum numbers are 11.1 for fall/winter and 11.0 for spring/summer

Percentage of advertised courses cancelled annually ranges from 0-17.5 with a mean of 6.8%

Credit Course Instructors Only one institution requires that a minimum

% of instructors be regular FT faculty

72.7% (16 institutions) have a policy on amount of overload for FT faculty members

Mean % of instructors who are FT faculty is 33.7% in a range of 1-80%

42.1% of respondents report that they are able to reject a faculty member assigned to teach in their unit

Instructor Compensation Most commonly (78.3%), rates paid to PT

instructors are comparable throughout the University

FT instructor stipends are most commonly a flat rate regardless of rank (60%) or a flat rate dependent on rank (20%)

Mean stipend amounts: FT faculty PT Instructor

(overload)

1-term undergrad course 4705 (18) 4594 (18)1-term graduate course 4642 (13) 4658 (13)

Collective Agreements

Salary schedule for instructors most often (72.7%) determined by collective agreement

87.0% of respondents indicate that FT faculty have a CA

69.6% indicate that PT instructors are covered under a CA

Scheduling Formats for Degree Credit Courses

# Institutions Fall Winter Spring Summer

Daytime 7 7 13 13Late afternoon 11 11 13 11 Evening 19 19 19 18Weekends 16 16 12 9Other 5 5 3 3

54.5% report using condensed formats in other than Summer

PT Student Eligibility for University-based Academic Awards (N=21)

Bursaries 66.7%

Medals/Prizes for Academic Performance

52.4%

Scholarships 42.9%

Loans 42.9%

Dean’s List 38.1%

Part-time Student Organizations

Only 38.1% (8 institutions) report that there is a part-time student organization (compared with just over half in 1996 survey)

Non-Degree and

Non-Credit

Non-Degree: Definition

Courses that do not normally carry credit toward a degree but may be taken for credit toward another credential offered by the university. Non-degree credit courses generally involve evaluation of students.

Non-Credit: Definition

Organized courses, classes, workshops, seminars, forums, initiatives, symposia, and/or public lecture series which have sustained instruction but which do not carry credit toward a university degree or other diploma or certificate (other than a certificate of participation) awarded by the continuing education unit or the university. Non-credit offerings do not generally involve evaluation of students.

Non-Degree and Non-Credit

32 of 35 respondents (91%) completed this section

N % Non-degree only 3/32 9 Non-credit only 7/32 22 Both non-degree and non-credit 22/32 69

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Source of Program Ideas CE program developers/coordinators 84%* Academic departments 58 Current/potential instructors 53 Senior management of CE 47 Students 36 Advisory committees, private sector

organizations, prof. groups, gov’t <30

* ranked as most frequent or next most frequent source

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Planning with relevant depts

Non-degree Non-credit N % N %

As a matter of practice 8/21 38 9/31 29

Required by U policy 6/21 29 1/31 3

From time to time 5/21 24 16/31 52

No working relationship 2/21 10 5/31 16


Responsibility for decisions on what courses/ offerings to develop and deliver:


CE sole responsibility 13/22 59 27/29 93

Non-Degree/Non-Credit: Role of Senior Acad. Dec.-Making Body

Responsibility of senior academic decision-making body WRT non-degree/non-credit programming:

Non-degree Non-credit N (22) % N (29) %

No assigned role 4 18 14 48 Must approve all 10 46 2 7 Officially deferred

approval to CE 2 9 4 14 No official role/periodic

reporting required 4 18 9 31 Other 2 9

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Program Clusters

Non-degree Non-credit

N (21) % N (29) %

Business/Professional 10 48 19 66 ESL/Language 6 29 19 66 Health 5 24 8 28 Information Tech. 5 24 9 31 Performing/Visual Arts 4 19 8 28 Writing/communication 4 19 16 55 Personal Development 4 19 16 55 Study Skills --- 9 31 Other 7 33 9 29

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Registration

Registration Methods Use #1 or #2 (N=32)

In Person 32 7Mail 31 11Fax 30 8Telephone: staff assisted 26 18Online 22 13Telephone: computerized 2 2

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Scheduling Formats


Sept.-April Daytime 13/20 65 26/31 83 Evenings 15/19 79 27/31 87 Weekends 12/19 63 23/31 74

May-June Daytime 12/18 67 24/30 80 Evenings 12/18 79 21/30 70 Weekends 9/18 50 19/30 63

Jul.-Aug. Daytime 11/17 65 23/28 82 Evenings 10/17 59 16/28 57 Weekends 1/17 1 13/28 46

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Funding Approach

N % Completely subsidized 1/32 3

Given budget allocation with expectation that all/most/some funds will be returned10/32 31

Cost recovery with expenditures covered by revenues 10/32 31

University provides no allocation and expectsa return from unit to general revenues 8/32 25

Other 3/32 9


After all costs levied against your unit are accounted for, does the operation break even?


Yes 17/22 77 21/29 72No 5/22 22 8/29 28

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Costs Expected to be Covered

N (32) %

Promotion costs 31 97 Direct costs incl. instruction 30 94 Comp. of prog. co-ord./admin 28 88 Comp. of sec./clerical 28 88 Compensation of unit head 18 56 Comp. of directors reporting to unit head 17 53 Overhead to U/cost recovery basis 11 34 Overhead to U/fixed % 5 16

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Instruction

Responsibility to approve instructors:Non-degree Non-credit N % N %

Exclusive to CE 13/22 59 25/31 81 In consultation with Fac./Dept. 6/22 27 6/31 19 No responsibility 2/22 9 --- Other 1/22 5 ---

% Full time faculty teaching: 17/22 77 26/31

84Mean 24% 21%

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Student Services

Day Evening Weekend N (31) % N (28) % N (27) %

Parking 21 67 19 68 19 70 Security 21 67 20 71 20 74

Food Service 19 61 17 61 15 56 Photocopying 17 55 13 46 13 48 Counselling 13 41 5 18 5 19 Rec./Athletic Fac. 11 36 10 36 10 37 Orientation 9 29 3 10 1 4 Financial Aid Advice 9 29 3 10 2 7 Career Develop. 8 26 3 10 3 11 PT Student Lounge 8 26 5 18 5 19

Non-Degree and Non-Credit: Advertising

Approach N Used #1 or #2*

Newspaper ads 24 20Brochures mailed directly 22 18Sessional calendars mailed directly 17 15Household drops/mass mailings 11 9Web 14 8Direct e-mail 9 3Radio 8 3TV 1 1

*By funds expended

Non-Degree: Credentials N %

Diploma 8/22 36% Certificate 20/22 89

Diploma criteria # credit/contact hours 100% ( 8) Evaluation of students 88% ( 7) Other criteria 38% ( 3)

Certificate criteria # credit/contact hours 75% (15) Evaluation of students 80% (16) Other criteria 5% ( 1)

Non-Degree: Other Interesting Bits

N %

Tuition waiver policy for seniors 2/22 9 Seniority/group benefits for PT instructors

4/22 18 Support staff assistance for PT instructors

7/22 32 PT instructors unionized 5/22 23 CE offers PD to instructors 18/22 82 CE does orientation for instructors 17/22 77 CE does orientation for students 10/22 45

Distance Education/ Off Campus

Definition: Distance Education

Course offerings, either face-to-face or technology based, that are fully available away from the main campus

Organization

11 of 27 units (40.7%) have a separate unit responsible for distance

In most cases (66.7%), this unit does not handle all of the CE unit’s DE programming

15 of 25 units (60%) indicate that their university has other providers of distance education (Education, Business, Nursing)

Registrations

N Range Mean

Degree Credit (23) 20 104-18,7384,749

Non-degree Credit (19) 11 34-3,015

1,043

Non-Credit (18) 11 3-3,770 948

Registration Distribution by Course Format

Mean # registrations (N)Degree Non-degree Non-credit

Face-to-face off campus 1,566 (6) 173 (3) 471 (4)

Primarily print based 3,774 (7) 690 (6) 90 (4)

Primarily online 1,132 (13) 195 (5) 1,343 (3)

Primarily teleconferenced 321 (2) - -

Primarily televised 953 (3) - -

Mixed media 2,125 (3) - -

Learning Management System

19 institutions report using WebCT as a LMS for distance learning courses

4 institutions report using Blackboard

7 institutions report using another LMS, e.g. Desire2Learn, Moodle, Elluminate, in-house system

In 87% of cases, the LMS used by CE is also supported institution wide

Off-Campus Centres

Fewer than one-third (32% or 8 institutions) operate off-campus centres/offices

Of these, mean # is 9.5 sites

Staffing for DE Operations

N Mean #.

FT DE Staff 22 9.3FT (part of other resp.) 13 6.0PT (half or more) 8 4.5PT (less than half) 7 6.3

Majority of staff time (73.2%) is invested in degree credit offerings

DE Students (N = 21)

Range Mean

% of students in DE courses living: a) within reasonable driving distance 1- 94% 50.7% b) beyond driving distance but within province 2-100% 30.0% c) outside province but within Canada 2- 75% 20.4% d) outside Canada .01- 40% 5.4%

Instruction of DE Courses

% of DE courses taught by full-time faculty:

N * Mean

a) degree credit courses 19 37.0% b) non-degree credit courses 1122.4% c) non-credit courses 8 31.5%

* Includes only those institutions in which FT faculty teach

these types of courses

Remuneration for Teaching DE Courses

52.0% of respondents indicate that their unit has a policy of supplemental remuneration for instructors teaching courses by DE

In most cases, these supplemental amounts are for course adaptation and teach/tutoring

Support Services for Instructors

80.8% of respondents (21 institutions) provide special training for instructors (largely in LMS and best practices)

88.0% of respondents (22 institutions) provide support for DE course development (largely instructional design and technical support)

DE Student Support

Only 12.5% of respondents (3 institutions) indicate that their university limits the # of courses that a student can take by DE

70.4% of respondents (19 institutions) report that their university provides some student services especially for DE students (primarily advisement, learning/study skills, library and financial aid advisement in degree credit area)

Financing and Institutional Commitment for DE courses

Financing for all types of DE courses comes primarily from tuition fees

Institutional commitment for DE delivery methods or systems:

Full Partial Commitment

Commitment (N) % (N) %

a) degree credit courses 13 62 6 29b) non-degree credit courses 6 46 4 31c) non-credit courses 5 36 4 29

university continuing education in canada policies and practices of cauce member institutions...

Documents

university degree

nondegree credit courses

definitions degree credit

noncredit slide

degrees nondegree credit

academic degree

continuing education

area of higher education