Actions recommended by students for the successful achievement of distance learning degree studies

Abstract

Taking as a reference the high drop-out rates that affect Distance Education, this research presents a comparative description of the perceptions of two groups of undergraduate students (new and experienced) in a Spanish public distance learning university on the actions that can be deployed by the institution to help them successfully complete their studies. A descriptive qualitative-quantitative approach with an exploratory purpose has been applied. The data was collected through a survey of a non-representative sample of 1,166 students in the 2021/2022 academic year. The results indicate that the most characteristic profile is still that of an employed person who chooses distance learning to combine it with their work or family activity, as well as a reduction in the average age of students, who would opt for this modality as their first choice. From the inductive content analysis, 16 thematic categories emerged that constitute a compendium of the actions that, from the students' perception, should be prioritised to support them in the successful completion of their degree studies, among them; increasing teacher feedback and supervision, improving teaching resources, intensifying the coherence and connection between the curricular components, offering more academic guidance, the possibility of taking the exams in a non-attendance-based manner and improving educational platforms.