The degree-granting programs offered by 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ at Nellis Air Force base set a new enrollment record this month with more than 300 students signing up for the current term.
Barbara Quade, 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ-Nellis program coordinator, said the program, which allows Air Force personnel to take courses right on the base, continues to grow in popularity.
Jeff Halverson, 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ's dean of admissions and records, said, "We offer three degree programs to base personnel at a location convenient to them and on a modified semester system designed to accommodate their sometimes-unusual work schedules."
"This is a community service we're happy to provide," Halverson said of the program that began in August 1986. "It's our way of reaching out to the Air Force personnel stationed in Southern Nevada."
The courses are open to other 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ students if there is room available after the Nellis students have registered, he said.
The three degree programs currently available at Nellis are:
* A bachelor's degree in management offered by the College of Business and Economics. Students pursuing this degree may concentrate in any one of three areas: management, management information systems, or human resources management.
* A bachelor's degree in post-secondary and adult education offered by the College of Education.
* A master's degree in instructional and curricular studies with an emphasis in post-secondary education offered by the College of Education.
All courses necessary for a student to complete these degree programs are available at Nellis over a two-year period, Halverson said.
The semester schedule is modified to help accommodate the schedules of military personnel, he said. Rather than offering the traditional 16-week semester, eight-week semesters are offered at Nellis with two taking place in the fall, two in the spring, and one in the summer. Because the semesters are shorter, classes are offered on a more intensive basis.
Quade said the main reason these programs are so popular with Air Force personnel is that they are frequently sent on temporary duty assignments to other locations, and many would not be able to complete a 16-week course.
Another important factor, according to Roscoe McGee, the Air Force's education services officer at Nellis, is the cost. "The price is good," he said. "Tuition is not expensive, so it enables most people to work toward a bachelor's degree."
