The purposes of this study are: (1) to investigate the learning styles, characteristics and needs of distance education students at Universiti Sains Malaysia, (2) to investigate the students' perceptions as well as the faculty's perceptions of higher education and education in general, and (3) to investigate differences and similarities between the bumiputra, i.e., the indigenous people of Malay and tribal types, and the non-bumiputra students on the student profile variables and learning preferences in relation to their academic performance, and (4) to provide recommendations for the design of instruction.

The data were collected from library research, questionnaires, and the Canfield Learning Styles Inventory. Included were development of the Malaysian education system and the administrative development of distance education in general.

All 35 instructors, 160 students in the remedial science program and 668 students in the degree program levels I and II enrolled in distance education were used in the study. A total of 24 instructors and 629 students responded.

The major findings of the study were: (1) The majority of the distance education students are teachers, males, between the ages of 26 to 30 years, have one child aged between one and two years, earn M$501.00 to M$750.00 per month, live well spread out from the tutorial centers, in areas that are serviced by roads, electricity, piped water and the postal system, hardly watch television or listen to the radio, have difficulties in their studies, have financial problems pertaining to their fee payment and residential course expenditure, very keen to succeed and make use of the opportunity to earn a degree. (2) The distance education students have varied learning preferences. However, students in certain programs tend to have higher preferences in certain styles of learning which have positive or negative effects on their academic performance. (3) Compared to the non-bumiputra students, the bumiputra students study less, earn less and have lower entry qualifications, which subsequently have significant effects on their academic performance. (4) Both students and instructors prefer professional, technical, science, computer and engineering courses for their children with little or no inclination towards the arts and social sciences. (Author's abstract)