Do Off-campus Courses Possess a Level of Quality Comparable to That of On-campus Courses?

The purpose of this study was to describe and compare perceptions of the quality of on-campus and off-campus courses held by students enrolled in courses offered through the College of Agriculture OffCampus Professional Agriculture Degree Programs @= 173) and faculty members with teaching responsibilities or with teaching experience in the same college of agriculture ( N = 2 6 2 ) . Faculty and students provided a positive assessment of the overall quality of both onand off-campus courses. They also providedapositive assessment of both onand off-campus courses on the manufacturing-based user-based value-based and transcendent-based quality factors. Even so, both students and faculty perceived offcampus courses to be of lower quality than on-campus courses with the greatest difference on the transcendent quality factor. It was recommended that the focus for improving the quality of off-campus courses be on the manufacturing-based factor. When the production and delivery processes are handled correctly and aligned to achieve outcomes based on student needs, off-campus courses will be recognized for innate excellence (transcendent quality). If quality off-campus courses in agriculture are to be offered, special attention must be given to improving the production, quality control, and distribution systems for courses and course materials,