What does a director of distance learning do?
A director of distance learning oversees the development and implementation of a college or university's distance learning programs. They take the lead in conducting research to develop learning programs, establishing curricula and teaching materials, utilizing asynchronous learning modules and interactive media, and supervising the recruitment of the workforce. They are also in charge of setting goals and guidelines, arranging workshops and other services, coordinating staff, and monitoring operations, solving issues and concerns if any arise. Moreover, a director of distance learning leads educators and staff to reach goals and implements the institution's policies and regulations.
Director of distance learning responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real director of distance learning resumes:
- Manage and deliver an influential distance learning program utilizing a professional videoconferencing studio.
- Collaborate in developing the organization's constitution, syllabus and lesson plans.
- Provide general leadership and oversight for e-learning and e-learning support projects; develop faculty workshops, assessments, and improvement strategies.
- Trouble shoot and shoot and up keep of computers and A/V n system.
- Create, design and implement production of courses with professors and post online through Prometheus.
- Conduct quarterly train-the-trainer in-services with all instructors.
Director of distance learning skills and personality traits
We calculated that 18% of Directors Of Distance Learning are proficient in English Language, Technical Assistance, and Technical Support. They’re also known for soft skills such as Computer skills, Organizational skills, and Problem-solving skills.
We break down the percentage of Directors Of Distance Learning that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- English Language, 18%
Established and managed RedNova Learning, Inc., Macmillan's first ELT (English Language Teaching) company in US.
- Technical Assistance, 18%
Provide technical assistance to faculty and staff in online course delivery methodologies.
- Technical Support, 18%
Provided distance learning technical support for faculty and over 650 executive MBA students distributed throughout the U.S. and across four continents.
- Strategic Plan, 8%
Developed a strategic plan to satisfy new accreditation requirements for applied learning.
- Instructional Design, 5%
Assembled teams of content experts, technical developers, instructional designers, graphic artists and video editors to deliver compelling content.
- Needs Assessment, 5%
Designed and implemented design model, training needs assessment project and tool to support technical occupational training needs and forecasting.
Common skills that a director of distance learning uses to do their job include "english language," "technical assistance," and "technical support." You can find details on the most important director of distance learning responsibilities below.
Computer skills. One of the key soft skills for a director of distance learning to have is computer skills. You can see how this relates to what directors of distance learning do because "postsecondary education administrators need to be comfortable working with computers so they can use software to manage student and school records." Additionally, a director of distance learning resume shows how directors of distance learning use computer skills: "distance education director for a non-profit organization concentrating on designing and developing multimedia computer based educational courses for healthcare professionals. "
Organizational skills. Another essential skill to perform director of distance learning duties is organizational skills. Directors of distance learning responsibilities require that "administrators need to be organized so they can manage records, prioritize tasks, and coordinate activities with their staff." Directors of distance learning also use organizational skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "committed to maintaining confidentiality in all aspects of the admissions processes efficient organizational skills for a wide range of tasks. "
Problem-solving skills. This is an important skill for directors of distance learning to perform their duties. For an example of how director of distance learning responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "administrators need to react calmly when a difficult situation arises and develop creative solutions." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a director of distance learning: "conduct on-going academic staff meetings to focus on professional development and resolution of classroom issues with staff and learners. ".
Interpersonal skills. For certain director of distance learning responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "interpersonal skills." The day-to-day duties of a director of distance learning rely on this skill, as "postsecondary education administrators need to build good relationships with colleagues, students, and parents." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what directors of distance learning do: "service-oriented, well-rounded pga professional with strong interpersonal skills. "
The three companies that hire the most director of distance learnings are:
- KPMG LLP17 directors of distance learning jobs
- Americorps2 directors of distance learning jobs
- Boston Public Schools2 directors of distance learning jobs
Compare different directors of distance learning
Director of distance learning vs. Co-chair
A co-chair is responsible for supporting the duties and responsibilities under the supervision of a chair. Co-chairs help with the implementation of effective plans and programs that would benefit the organization. They handle fundraising events, marketing campaigns for promotional programs, audit reports, and evaluating the committee's suggestions and recommendations for its success. A co-chair must have excellent communication and leadership skills and critical-thinking on developing strategies to supervise meetings and events alongside the chair.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a director of distance learning are more likely to require skills like "english language," "technical assistance," "technical support," and "strategic plan." On the other hand, a job as a co-chair requires skills like "community outreach," "alumni," "plan events," and "facebook." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Co-chairs tend to reach lower levels of education than directors of distance learning. In fact, co-chairs are 12.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 2.9% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Director of distance learning vs. Committee chairperson
A committee chairperson or chair is a presiding officer in an organization who is responsible for leading committee meetings and establishing agendas for the committee members to tackle. Committee chairpersons must provide strong leadership to the organization while reminding committee members about their purpose, mission, and strategic direction. In terms of confidentiality, committee chairpersons must keep business meetings confidential and they must be willing to address committee members who fail to protect confidentiality. They must also report the committee's findings to the organization's board of directors.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real director of distance learning resumes. While director of distance learning responsibilities can utilize skills like "english language," "technical assistance," "technical support," and "strategic plan," committee chairpeople use skills like "committee chair," "financial statements," "community outreach," and "alumni."
In general, committee chairpeople achieve lower levels of education than directors of distance learning. They're 11.6% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 2.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Director of distance learning vs. New member educator
A New Member Educator is a person who prepares new members to uphold the standards and ideals of a fraternity and sorority and continually strives to improve it especially found in colleges and universities. These positions are; educating initiated and active members on how to support and mentor the younger members to become successful within an organization, recruit new members whose ideals match those of the organization, assist new members to navigate campus, and make use of campus resources.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, directors of distance learning are more likely to have skills like "english language," "technical assistance," "technical support," and "strategic plan." But a new member educator is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "phone calls," "role model," and "cash handling."
When it comes to education, new member educators tend to earn lower degree levels compared to directors of distance learning. In fact, they're 17.5% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 4.9% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Director of distance learning vs. Department chairperson
A Department Chairperson is a faculty member who provides academic and administrative leadership to an academic department. They exercise leadership in recruiting and retaining capable faculty, communicate departmental needs and desires to the Dean and Provost, and coordinate the academic advisement process.
Types of director of distance learning
Updated January 8, 2025
