January 24, 2001

Husband, Wife Earn Engineering Degrees at NC State, Never Saw Campus

— Distance Learning Is Popular Alternative for Working Students

The first time Steve and Pam Mount ever saw the NC State campus was Graduation Day.

Distance learning at North Carolina State University has grown tremendously in the past few years. During 1999-2000, the College of Engineering granted more than 45 master's degrees long distance, including two awarded to a husband-and-wife team from South Carolina who never set foot on the NC State campus until they came to the graduation ceremony in December 2000 to receive their degrees.

In 1994-95, Stephen and Pamela Mount of Darlington, South Carolina, graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology with undergraduate degrees in mechanical engineering. After hearing about NC State's Video-Based Engineering Education (VBEE) program, the Mounts decided to take a statistics class through distance education in the fall semester of 1997. Since then they've taken classes every semester as part of the off-campus Master of Engineering degree program at NC State. Their interests diverged somewhat: Steve focused on industrial and mechanical engineering courses; Pam concentrated on chemical engineering.

According to Pam Mount, the video-taped classes were delivered by United Parcel Service (UPS). "I used email, US mail, and the fax machine to communicate with my instructors and submit homework assignment and tests," she said. "I accessed class lecture notes using the Internet."

Both Pam and Steve enjoyed their experiences with distance learning through NC State. It was a challenge at times, but the experience was rewarding as well. "The VBEE program gave me the flexibility to build a curriculum that pertained directly to my work in industrial and mechanical engineering and to study without quitting my job," said Steve. "I doubt I would have ever pursued an advanced degree if I had to quit working full-time. The Master of Engineering degree has been the best thing yet for the development of my career."

Approximately 30 courses per semester are offered through NC State's VBEE program (www.vbee.ncsu.edu).

-- rudd --

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