Blended, partially online, hybrid. It goes by several names, but the concept of higher education delivered partially online and partially on-campus is catching on around the globe, with great reason.

Usually offered at the graduate level, blended program delivery affords working professionals the flexibility to earn a credential while working full time — without sacrificing an on-campus experience.

One textbook definition of blended learning (from Teaching in Blended Learning Environments, by Norman Vaughan, Randy Garrison and Martha Cleveland-Innes) is the "organic integration of thoughtfully selected and complementary face-to-face and online approaches and technologies."

Canada's Royal Roads University's blended model typically consists of one to three (depending on the program length) intensive on-campus weeks of study interspersed between months of individual and cohort-based based distance study at a pace that allows students to work and maintain work-life balance.

Royal Roads University doesn't limit blended delivery to graduate programs. The blended undergraduate experience appeals to those looking for intensive on-campus experiences, but the ability to return to their lives in between. Royal Roads University Bachelor of Arts programs in Interdisciplinary Studies, Justice Studies, Professional Communication, as well as their Bachelor of Commerce, attract working students looking for short, intensive on-campus experiences (on the university's stunning Vancouver Island setting, complete with a castle that you'll recognize from the X-Men and Deadpool films).

Master of Business Administration graduate Domenico Iannidinardo says, "knowing my cohort from our time on campus made the online work efficient and authentic," and MA in Human Security and Peacebuilding graduate Wanja Munaita says the vibrant and diverse cohort and campus experience component of her blended program "exceeded anything I had imagined."

For those already working and rooted in their communities, blended learning is a highly appealing higher education option. And with increasingly sophisticated digital tools and resources, the online experience is just as rewarding as the time spent on campus.