Distance Education

Dr. Susan D. Seal, Executive Director
301 Memorial Hall
PO Box 5247
Mississippi State, MS 39762
Telephone: 662-325-3473
http://distance.msstate.edu

Mississippi State University offers a variety of online graduate courses and academic programs for distance students. For a list of academic programs offered via distance, please refer to the section titled Degrees and Majors Offered, where a table lists all graduate programs and indicates the campus (Starkville, Meridian, or Distance) at which each is offered.

The University's Center for Distance Education (CDE) is a service unit that provides working and place-bound individuals with an alternative to traditional on-campus programs and courses and is dedicated to fostering the success of distance students. The website for the Center for Distance Education provides detailed information for prospective and current distance students as well as services that are unique to their needs, such as an online orientation, technical assistance, online tutoring, and information about online exam proctoring. 

CDE is also committed to working with faculty and staff to research, develop, and market distance education programs and to recruit students to those programs. CDE also specializes in quality student and departmental support for any distance needs. All distance courses and programs offered through Mississippi State University are fully accredited and possess the same rigor and standards as the main campus.

Students enrolled in graduate programs offered via distance education and requiring a thesis or dissertation must meet established research requirements as stated in the Mississippi State University Graduate Catalog. Should the student request, or be required, to conduct research at an off-site research facility, appropriate certification must be completed prior to beginning the research process. Details can be found in the Distance Certification subsection of the Academic Requirements section of this catalog.

Distance Student Certification of Off-Campus/Non-MSU Research Facility

Students enrolled in graduate programs (master’s, educational specialist, or doctoral) offered via distance learning and requiring a thesis or dissertation must meet established research requirements as stated in the Mississippi State University Graduate Catalog. Distance education students engaged in research will be provided the same student support services as those of on-campus students, including access to Library resources, thesis and dissertation workshops, etc. MSU believes that special attention must be directed toward the mentoring of the students and the development of a creative and supportive environment for research hours offered via distance.  Each academic unit which administers a Distance graduate degree program with a thesis or dissertation will determine and define the appropriate use of communication and technology. A student’s thesis/dissertation committee must approve the procedures which the student must follow to ensure quality and integrity of the research process at all stages: proposal, preparation and presentation, data collection/analysis, and final defense stages. Should the student request, or be required, to conduct research at an off-site research facility, appropriate certification must be completed prior to beginning the research process. The form is required of all Distance students submitting a thesis or dissertation and must be submitted to the student’s committee to document the research facility involved (if applicable), describe the software utilized, and provide a thorough description of the proposed research.

Any department offering such a distance program must include specific language that addresses delivery of research/thesis or research/dissertation hours via Distance in a published format (policy handbooks for approved distance programs, website, etc.).