NCSU offers a number of courses taught on the Raleigh campus through cable television in the Raleigh/Wake County area. The mission of this activity is to provide NCSU's credit courses to nontraditional students. Instruction consists of regularly scheduled NCSU courses taken by regularly enrolled students. Members of the public who wish to take these courses for credit do so by enrolling as Lifelong Education students, and they are subject to the same norms and procedures for evaluation of the quality of their work as students taking the class on campus. Course offerings are detailed in the publication Courses via Telecommunications (see self-study library). All procedures relating to enrollment for credit as a Lifelong Education student are contained in the Handbook for Students Enrolled in Extension Credit Courses (see self-study library).
NCSU is authorized by the University of North Carolina system to offer instruction leading to degree programs at sites other than the Raleigh campus (see self-study library, UNC Inventory of Authorized Degree-Related Extension Programs). All of these degree programs were approved by the UNC General Administration following the same procedures as the degree programs offered on the Raleigh campus, and are subject to the same processes of review and evaluation as all other NCSU degree programs.
For the past six years, NCSU has offered courses leading to a bachelor's degree in business management to working adults who are employees of the IBM facility at Research Triangle Park. Courses in this degree program are taught on-site at the IBM facility by NCSU faculty and consist of sections of regular NCSU courses that are also taught on the Raleigh campus. The program provides both coursework and academic support. Annual reports give a full description of this program, including program history, courses offered, and results of evaluations (see self-study library, The NCSU/IBM Program: 1993 Annual Report).
NCSU offers two years of study toward an engineering bachelor's degree at UNC-Asheville. The mission of this program is to provide a measure of engineering education to the population of western North Carolina, geographically the most remote region of the state in relationship to the NCSU campus. Students can take courses approved for transfer to NCSU while in residence at Asheville and then complete their degrees while in residence in Raleigh (see self-study library for a statement giving details of this program).
One mission of the Office of Academic Affairs in the College of Engineering, through the Graduate Extension Education Program, is extending the graduate-education boundaries of the University to reach qualified off-campus students. Programs that fulfill this mission satisfy important responsibilities of the University to provide graduate and professional instruction to people active in various fields who need to enhance their credentials. In fields of textiles and engineering, these programs provide for direct interaction between faculty and industry and enable industries to bring their employees and managers in touch with the newest developments in technology and the applied sciences.
NCSU, in cooperation with UNC-Wilmington, offers instruction leading to a doctorate in marine science in the Wilmington/New Hanover County area. All academic work for this program is offered on the Raleigh campus and is taught by regular members of the NCSU faculty.
NCSU is offers instruction leading to a doctorate in Adult and Community College Education to one cohort of students on the UNC-Asheville campus. Courses in this program are taught by regular members of the NCSU faculty, either by interactive audio-video hookup between the Raleigh campus and UNC-Asheville or in person on the campus of UNC-Asheville. This off-campus offering will end after the one cohort has completed the degree or left the program (see self-study library, Doctorate of Education Program in Adult and Community College Education, for a description of this program).
NCSU offers instruction leading to a master's degrees in textiles and textile chemistry via telecommunications at sites in the state of North Carolina and at sites out of state. Academic instruction in these programs is provided by members of the NCSU faculty and consists of video recordings of classroom lectures presented on the Raleigh campus. Students enrolled in these courses are subject to the same norms and procedures for evaluation of the quality of their work as students taking the class on the NCSU campus. Textbooks and other classroom materials are available for students by mail through the NCSU Bookstore (see self-study library, Textile Off-Campus Televised Education, for a description of this program).
NCSU also offers a number of courses for professional advancement leading to a master's degree in general engineering through telecommunications at various sites both inside North Carolina and out-of-state. All instruction in these programs is offered by regular members of the NCSU faculty, who videotape their classes on the Raleigh campus for distribution. Further instruction is offered through periodic personal on-site visits by instructors and interaction by means of e-mail, fax, and teleconference. Students enrolled in these courses are subject to the same forms and procedures for evaluation of the quality of their work as students taking the class on the Raleigh campus. Textbooks and other classroom materials are available for students by mail through the NCSU Bookstore (see self-study library, College of Engineering Master of Engineering, for a description of these programs as well as a description of a variant program offered through UNC-Asheville).
Students who live in the Raleigh area and who have registered in telecourses for credit are provided library privileges upon enrollment. Students who do not live in the Raleigh area and who register for off-campus courses or programs are provided with course materials and library resources through mailings from Raleigh, through cooperative arrangements with other UNC libraries or other institutional libraries near the student, or, for professional-degree programs, through arrangements with companies for whom students work. NCSU limits enrollment to students who have access to library, computer, or other resources needed for successful completion of degree work.
All of NCSU's off-campus degree programs meet requirements established by the UNC system for degree programs, including consistency with NCSU's overall mission. In all coursework and degree programs offered by NCSU at sites other than the Raleigh campus and through nontraditional delivery systems, comparable quality is maintained by having instruction be provided by regular NCSU faculty--often through videotaping of actual course sections taught in Raleigh--and by having students complete the same assignments and take the same examinations as their counterparts in Raleigh.
Off-campus programs help fulfill the University's mission to "improve the quality of life for North Carolinians into the twenty-first century" through "public service activities whereby the expertise resident among the faculty and students is disseminated across the State through extension, technical assistance, professional development, lifelong education, and technology transfer programs" [4.0.3, 4.0.6, 4.0.7].
