COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF STUDENT SERVICES PROVIDED WHEN ENROLLED IN TELECOURSES (DISTANCE EDUCATION, COUNSELING, LIBRARY SERVICES)

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of distance-education students in two-year institutions toward advising, counseling, and library/media services. The study's objectives were designed to provide information to assist community college personnel in the development of relevant student support services for distance-education students.;After a descriptive analysis of the information received was conducted, ten institutions were selected for the second phase of the study. Students at these institutions were sent questionnaires requesting information regarding their utilization and satisfaction with the student services being provided. A total of 183 student questionnaires from 9 institutions were returned.;Data collected from this study indicated that two-year institutions providing degree programs via distance education used delivery systems for academic advising, counseling, and library/media services ranging from no-technology systems in which students had to come to campus to high-technology systems, in which students could access the services through various technologies.;The type of delivery systems used to provide those services did not significantly impact the utilization by students. Additionally, for the most part, the level of satisfaction of students with the services was not affected by the type of delivery system.;Two questionnaires were utilized in this study to collect the data. The first questionnaire--the purpose of which was to determine how advising, counseling, and library/media services were being provided--was sent to 59 two-year colleges. A total of 33 institutions responded to the questionnaire resulting in a 56 percent rate of return.;Age and ethnicity were not significant factors in either the degree of utilization or the level of satisfaction with the services.;Only in rare instances was gender of the students a significant factor in the degree of utilization or the level of satisfaction with the services.;Academic advising was found to be the most essential student service for distance students, access to library/media services was second, and counseling was found to be the least essential service.