Midlands Technical College Flips the Script in Response to COVID-19

The largest technical college in central South Carolina is leading the way in real-time instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, Midlands Technical College (MTC) announced details of its highly-revised course delivery options.

As part of the response to COVID-19, Academic and Corporate as well as Continuing Education courses for Fall 2020 can be taken in four different ways. In addition to traditional on-campus and online courses, the college also now offers virtual and hybrid classes. The new virtual class format meets digitally via web conferencing at set times with live, real-time instruction and classmate interaction. Online courses are self-paced with due dates for assignments, and hybrid are a mix of traditional on-campus and online or virtual.

“Up until the pandemic hit, a normal fall at MTC would be made up of about 75% on-campus and 25% online courses,” said Barrie Kirk, MTC’s Provost. “Based on data about the virus and student feedback, we decided that a major shift in course delivery options was necessary.”

The new virtual offerings will make up 45% of fall courses, with another 16% being delivered online, 33% being delivered on-campus, and 6% in the hybrid format.

“To be honest … this has definitely been even better than being in person because of all the flexibility,” said nursing student Clarissa Salas who took new virtual courses during the shift this past Spring semester. “I was super scared…but I would definitely do it again, and I think that’s my number one preference now.”

MTC faculty are presenting live virtual class demonstrations on Wednesday, July 29 and Thursday, July 30. The virtual class demos are free and will show what the new virtual learning experience looks and feels like. MTC invites those considering college to sign up for one or more of the MTC Virtual Class Demos.

“At MTC, we like to say, ‘You can get anywhere from here.’ That is true for all of our learning formats. We have worked hard to make sure we are providing more course delivery options than ever before. The goal is to accommodate the desires of every student wishing to start or continue their educational pursuits,” said MTC President Dr. Ronald L. Rhames.