'VIRTUAL' COURSES ARE REAL DILEMMA

As Internet-based coursework is introduced into more undergraduate engineering programs, the challenge of quality control and accreditation is growing. For-profit providers such as the National Technological University and the Western Governors' University offer inexpensive and convenient online degree programs that are forcing traditional universities to consider dramatic changes in the way they market their services. Marianne Phelps, chief of staff of the U.S. Department of Education's office of postsecondary education, believes that the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and others will have to abandon traditional accreditation approaches to accommodate new delivery methods. ABET officials do not know how many undergraduate students are online, but they say the numbers are high enough to worry about how they will be assimilated into the profession and how their skills will be evaluated. Insuring academic integrity and student-to-teacher interaction are tough new issues to be handled. The growing trend is also earning the ire of teachers' unions.