{"id":51142,"date":"2026-06-29T14:57:21","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T18:57:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/provost\/academic-administration-accreditation-and-assessment\/?page_id=51142"},"modified":"2026-06-29T14:58:23","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T18:58:23","slug":"regular-and-substantive-interaction","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/provost\/academic-administration-accreditation-and-assessment\/verification-of-compliance\/regular-and-substantive-interaction\/","title":{"rendered":"Regular and Substantive Interaction"},"content":{"rendered":"

What is Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI)?<\/h2>\n

RSI, or\u00a0Regular and Substantive Interaction, <\/em>is part of the definition of distance education from the US Department of Education and is the difference between online courses (distance education) and correspondence courses. A critical aspect of this issue is that students can use Federal Financial Aid (Title IV) for distance education courses that include \u201cregular and substantive interaction\u201d but cannot for correspondence courses.<\/p>\n

What is the final definition of distance education in\u00a0<\/strong>34 CFR 600.2<\/strong><\/a>?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Education that uses one or more of the\u00a0technologies\u00a0<\/strong>listed\u00a0in paragraphs (2)(i) through (2)(iv) of this definition to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor or instructors, and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor or instructors, either synchronously or asynchronously.<\/li>\n
  2. The\u00a0technologies\u00a0<\/strong>that may be used to offer distance education include:\n
      \n
    1. The\u00a0internet;<\/li>\n
    2. One-way and two-way transmissions through open broadcast, closed circuit, cable,\u00a0microwave,\u00a0broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite, or wireless communications\u00a0devices;<\/li>\n
    3. Audio conferencing; or<\/li>\n
    4. Other media used in a course in conjunction with any of the technologies listed in\u00a0paragraphs (1)(i) through (1)(iii) of this definition.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
        \n
      1. For purposes of this definition, an\u00a0instructor\u00a0<\/strong>is\u00a0an individual responsible for delivering course content and who meets the qualifications for instruction established by the institution\u2019s accrediting agency.<\/li>\n
      2. For purposes of this definition,\u00a0substantive interaction\u00a0<\/strong>is engaging students in teaching, learning, and assessment, consistent with the content under discussion,\u00a0and also\u00a0includes at least two of the following:\n
          \n
        1. Providing direct\u00a0instruction;<\/li>\n
        2. Assessing or providing feedback on a student\u2019s\u00a0coursework;<\/li>\n
        3. Providing information or responding to questions about the content of a course or\u00a0competency;<\/li>\n
        4. Facilitating a group discussion regarding the content of a course or competency; or,<\/li>\n
        5. Other instructional activities approved by the\u00a0institution\u2019s\u00a0or program\u2019s accrediting\u00a0agency.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
            \n
          1. An institution ensures\u00a0regular interaction between<\/strong>\u00a0a student and an instructor or instructors, prior to the student\u2019s completion of a course or competency:\n
              \n
            1. Providing the opportunity for substantive interactions with the student on a predictable and scheduled basis commensurate with the length of time and the amount of content\u00a0in the course or competency; and<\/li>\n
            2. Monitoring the student\u2019s academic engagement and success and ensuring that an instructor\u00a0is responsible for promptly and proactively engaging in substantive\u00a0interaction with the student when needed,\u00a0on the basis of\u00a0such monitoring, or upon\u00a0request by the student.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              What is Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI)? RSI, or\u00a0Regular and Substantive Interaction, is part of the definition of distance education from the US Department of Education and is the difference…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":96,"featured_media":0,"parent":4716,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-51142","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nRegular and Substantive Interaction - Academic Affairs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/provost\/academic-administration-accreditation-and-assessment\/verification-of-compliance\/regular-and-substantive-interaction\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Regular and Substantive Interaction - Academic Affairs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What is Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI)? 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