At the mention of the idea of "distance learning", it is hard not to envisage typical stereotypes. Perhaps we see an elderly man hunched over on his diarrhoea-coloured suede sofa slogging through some hideous Open University tape from the Eighties? Or the prim and proper librarian, M&S cardie buttoned tightly to the top, the fourth finger of her left hand distressingly ringless, leafing through a yellowing Tudor history coursebook? "Distance learning" conjures up terrible thoughts of Gillian McKeith ("World Renowned Holistic Nutritionist", otherwise known as Camel Lady from You Are What You Eat) and her "PhD" from the non-accredited Clayton College of Natural Health, Alabama.

If you’re a snob like me, distance learning – which is now mainly internet based – is just riddled with negative connotations. Although getting a dodgy online qualification in the UK is now more difficult than ever, in America and elsewhere there are literally hundreds of institutions who apparently cannot wait to snatch your cash and give you "credit". Ex-Burgher Adam Smith would probably turn in his Canongate tomb to hear that his eponymous American university offers unaccredited MBAs in Financial Management. Chased from every American state it has tried to settle in, "Adam Smith University" is now based mainly in Liberia. Excluded from groups of institutions where students have to both work and attend to gain a degree, these dubious distance-learning institutions have come together and established their own accreditation organisation – the grandly titled "World Association of Universities and Colleges".

What concerned me most when I first considered it is that it could now be possible to forget about the actual work, pay a lot of money and get an impressive-sounding degree from some exotic online degree mill; whilst at a traditional university you could get the same (albeit accredited) degree, but coupled with monstrous fees and mountains of work.

With Lord Browne proposing potentially limitless fees for students of traditional universities, the outlook seems set to worsen. Surely there must be a cheaper option for those of us willing to work for an accredited degree.

"Degrees by online-learning" are apparently the innovation we’ve all been waiting for. Resource Development International (RDI) is a UK-owned provider, partnering with ten traditional UK universities now offering online programmes of study. "We do not offer ‘online degrees’," says Dr. Ben Culling of RDI. "They are exactly the same qualification as full-time on-campus students receive. We offer UK university Bachelors degrees, which are merely studied in alternate ways."

Unlike the Open University, RDI brings together various distance learning courses offered by traditional universities, such as the University of Birmingham, the University of Wales and Sheffield Hallam. "We can offer a modern alternative to those students who want a degree," said Dr. Culling.

Andy Cain is twenty-eight years old. He left school at sixteen with five GCSEs and went to work as a chef. "All I was interested in at that point was getting out of school as quickly as possible and going to earn some money," he says. "It wasn’t until I was about twenty-five and I’d left the catering industry to work for local government that I realised I needed to have some kind of skill-set to develop my career any further." Andy enrolled on a BSc course for Business Computing through RDI. "At twenty-five, I had a mortgage on a house, so affording a traditional university education was simply not an option. The degree by online learning seemed the best option for me financially, as it also allowed me to keep my career."

Remaining in employment seems vitally important for the online learners I have spoken to. All cite the advantages of earning whilst learning and progressing up the career ladder. "The vast majority of our students have full-time jobs alongside their studies," says Dr. Culling. "They can do this because their study is so flexible. Because they ‘earn and learn’, the risk of debt is massively reduced and we can also give them pay-as-you-go options so that they remain in control."

Andy feels that remaining in work gives him a major advantage over traditional university leavers. They may have a degree when they enter the workplace, but will be three or four years behind their colleauges, burdened with debt and still have to work their way up. "I’ve got the best of both worlds. I’m learning and simultaneously progressing with my career, rather than learning and then having to jump into a career at a later stage."

So how do degrees by online learning work? "On average I spend about 10 hours a week studying," says Andy. "I’m sent articles and books through the post and have tutorials and other reading material online. We also have a discussion forum called ‘ilearn’ where we try to recreate a classroom environment so that we can bounce ideas off the teacher, and we’re in regular e-mail contact with the tutor for any questions we have, or any extra help we may need."

Dr. Culling applauds RDI’s "ilearn" facility, essentially a fancier version of WebCT. "Online learning has developed just as fast as communications technology," he says. Andy adds: "At first I thought ‘ilearn’ was a bit of a gimmick, and I tended to plough through the work myself, but as the degree has picked up I’ve found the resource pretty useful."

It might be possible to argue then, that in terms of teaching support, online-learning programmes could easily rival traditional universities. "I think the way my degree is delivered is a really efficient way of learning," says Andy. "Everyone who does these distance courses really wants to be there to learn and I’m not sure if that’s always the case at a traditional uni."

But what about the much-hyped ‘student experience’? Is there an online Union with a sticky-floored virtual Potterrow? Is it strange not actually meeting the people you work with? "I guess it is different," Andy replies, "but I’ve got friends from work and elsewhere, so I’ve never really felt I’ve missed out. I think the people who do online learning are just focussed on getting their qualification, and the fact that they are doing it at a distance sort of shows they have other things in their life."

Tarun Bathija went to a traditional university before doing an online MSc, but missed the "student experience": "I’m glad I was a normal student beforehand. The online learning is in some ways better than uni because it is flexible enough to fit around employment, but it still isn’t like being a ‘proper’ student."

However in some respects attempts are being made to ensure that the "student experience" is preserved online. RDI students are still invited to graduation ceremonies and are arguably a more global and diverse group of people than the students attending traditional universities.

"I could never see myself going to a normal uni," Andy says. "Although it is difficult to motivate yourself when you’ve got mountains of books to read and there is no facilitator in a classroom guiding you through, learning online fits around my needs, and there is enough support to make sure that you don’t feel completely on your own."

"The proposed tuition fee increase will obviously make potential students and their parents think about the longer-term value of any degree and will increase the pressure on universities to offer value for that money," says Dr. Culling. "University places are also getting harder to come by, so degrees by online learning can offer students who’ve just missed out on campus-based courses a chance to get a good-quality qualification. The average age of online students is decreasing, with more and more people in their teens and twenties wanting a degree but equally not wanting to miss out on a regular wage and opportunity to develop their careers."

"It sounds cheesy," laughs Andy, "but I really think that degrees by online learning are the future. Employers recognise that it takes serious motivation to do an online distance course whilst still being at work, which really helps career progression, and because I’m in employment, I’ve already covered the cost of my entire degree programme. People assume that you have to go off and attend a university to get a good degree, but I’ve found that with online learning, that’s just not the case."

Could it be, therefore, that for many young Britons facing more competition than ever before for university places, distance learning will turn into an unforeseen alternative?