Distance and Flexible Learning at University of the South Pacific

Introduction The University of the South Pacific (usp) was set up in the South Pacific region in 1968 by its 12 member countries — Cook Islands, Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. A total of 14 campuses and 8 smaller centres are spread over an area of 30 million square kilometres of the Pacific Ocean (See Figure 1). The smaller centres are parts of the larger campuses spread in remote locations or on the smaller islands in some countries. The size of the campuses in member countries varies significantly, with a range of student numbers, courses offered, and facilities available. At one end of the spectrum is the main Laucala Campus (based in the Fiji Islands), which is the largest of all the campuses, enrolling about 14,000 students (full-time and parttime) at any one time. At the other end is the smallest campus in Tokelau, which has only about 20 students enrolled each semester. The regional campuses and centres are predominantly utilized to cater for the students enrolled in the Distance and Flexible Learning (dfl) mode of study. Most campuses have been appropriately