Information for Academic Advisors

Academic Advisor Information

Correspondence study is defined by The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) as a formal educational process under which the institution provides instructional materials, by mail or electronic transmission, including examinations on the materials, to students who are separated from the instructor. Interaction between the instructor and the student is limited, is not regular and substantive, and is primarily initiated by the student; courses are typically self-paced.

The primary differences between a correspondence self-paced course and a distance education course offered through an academic department are that correspondence self-paced courses are not semester-based, and the interaction between a correspondence student and instructor is asynchronous.

Correspondence self-paced courses offer an additional way for students to satisfy degree requirements. Also, students may enroll in a correspondence self-paced course at any time of year. Students have six to nine months to complete their coursework. 

Academic advisor meeting with a students seated at a table

The Office of Distance and Extended Learning is happy to work with academic advisors to improve service to students. To this end, we've compiled some basic information that is useful for academic advisors with regard to correspondence study.

Expand FAQ List

    • Course samples for all correspondence self-paced courses are available from the Course Offerings webpages on our website.
    • The Office of Distance and Extended Learning does not provide academic advising and does not "police" prerequisites. Students must meet any prerequisites for correspondence self-paced courses.
    • All Texas State correspondence self-paced courses parallel courses offered on campus. The same amount of student time and effort is required for correspondence self-paced courses as for semester-long courses. The ability of students to "self-motivate" and "self-teach" plays a major role in successful completion of correspondence self-paced courses.

    • A maximum of 18 hours of correspondence credit can be applied toward a bachelor's degree.
    • Correspondence Studies students are required to be in compliance with the TSIP regulations.
    • Correspondence students are responsible for adhering to the Texas State Honor Code as it relates to academic honesty. The Office of Distance and Extended Learning does not discourage students from enrolling with a friend or study partner, but our office does counsel them about doing their own work in their own words. Sending the same work, even though it may be the product of students working together, constitutes plagiarism. Students found cheating on assignments or exams will be held accountable. 
    • The Office of Distance and Extended Learning works with the Office of Disability Services to provide adequate accommodations to students with special needs.

    • A student on active suspension from Texas State is ineligible to enroll in Texas State correspondence self-paced study courses unless permission is explicitly granted in his/her suspension contract. Access to a correspondence self-paced course is controlled by departments through an override in Banner.
    • Enrollment solely in correspondence self-paced courses does not constitute official admission to Texas State. 
    • Enrollments are accepted throughout the year. 
    • The enrollment is for a period of nine or six months, and the Office of Distance and Extended Learning no longer offers course extensions. If a student fails to complete the course within the enrollment period, it will be necessary for the student to re-enroll, make full payment, resubmit all assignments, and retake all exams. 
    • The Office of Distance and Extended Learning encourages first-time correspondence students to enroll in only one course. In general, our office does not encourage any student to enroll in more than two correspondence courses at a time.

    • Texas State correspondence self-paced study students are not entered into the main Texas State system until a final grade has been determined and forwarded to the Registrar for posting to the transcript. 
    • The Office of Distance and Extended Learning encourages students to check with their academic advisors to determine personal deadlines for obtaining course grades, and then to complete the Personal Study Schedule, found in all correspondence self-paced courses, to plan for meeting personal deadlines. 
    • Correspondence self-paced courses count toward the Texas State GPA, overall GPA, and as a replacement grade for any Texas State course, just as on-campus courses do. 
    • Instructors are allowed one week (5 working days) to grade and return assignments and exams to the Office of Distance and Extended Learning. 

    • Students must make payment of the full tuition amount at the time of registration in a self-paced correspondence self-paced study course through  Texas State Self-Service.
    • For dropping a course, please see our Costs page. 
    • Students who owe money will have a hold put on their transcripts until payment is made to the Texas State Cashier.

Benefits to Departments

There are advantages not only for faculty but also for departments and colleges when developing and offering a correspondence self-paced course. Through correspondence self-paced study is viewed by some as taking formula funding away from the department, actual enrollment figures are less than one-tenth of one percent of the total SCH generated annually at Texas State. Of that, approximately 50 percent of the total enrollment comes from Texas State students. So, what are the advantages? 

  • Enrollment in courses is not limited geographically, which results in nationwide exposure for faculty, the department, the college, and Texas State.
  • Correspondence self-paced study offers an excellent solution for providing students access to popular courses, or courses that are difficult to staff and schedule.
  • Correspondence self-paced study alleviates the dependence on limited classroom space.
  • Correspondence self-paced study can help meet departmental outreach needs.
  • Offering a course through correspondence self-paced study rather than adding sections that may or may not make due to low enrollment or lack of faculty is more cost-effective and provides better student service.