5 things to know about distance education in India If you're planning to pursue your higher education through distance learning in India, here are five things that you must know: 1. You have the option of pursuing a distance learning programme from the one and only national Open University of India - the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) or any of the 14 state open universities in India. Apart from these there are 140+ dual mode universities which offer programmes through the distance mode. 2. All distance programs must be approved by the Distance Education Council (DEC). You can access the list of ODLs (Online and Distant Learning Institutes) that are currently approved by the DEC on their website. 3. Distance learning has evolved a lot in the last couple decades. With advances in technology, distance learning now also includes online learning or e-learning. A traditional open university like IGNOU now provides a host of online programmes, some of which include: #>Post Graduate Diploma in Sustainability Science (PGDSS) #>Appreciation Programme on Sustainability Science (APSS) #>Post Graduate Diploma in Food Science and Technology (PGDFT) #>Post-Graduate Diploma in Food Safety and Quality Management (PGDFSQM) 4. Though two degrees cannot generally be pursued simultaneously, a student can pursue two programmes simultaneously through the distance mode or combination of distance and regular modes from the same or different universities/institutions in the following various combinations: Read More.........