Admission methods are different: online education is an entrance examination organized by the school itself, and correspondence is usually admitted through the adult college entrance examination;

The main body of running a school is different: there are only 68 qualified online education schools in China, and almost all adult education colleges or continuing education colleges such as junior colleges and higher vocational colleges can recruit correspondence students;

Graduation certificate numbers are different: the sixth electronic registration number of online education diploma is usually 7, and the correspondence diploma is 5;

The content of the certificate is different: usually, the certificate will indicate: online education, correspondence.

Teaching organizations are different: correspondence usually organizes short-term face-to-face lectures (7- 10 days per semester, which is determined by the school's own arrangements), while online education does not focus on face-to-face lectures.

Distance education, also known as online education in some documents issued by the Ministry of Education, is a kind of adult education qualifications. It refers to the teaching mode using TV, Internet and other media, which breaks through the boundaries of time and space and is different from the traditional teaching mode of staying in school. Students who use this teaching mode are usually amateurs. Because you don't need to go to a specific place to attend classes, you can attend classes anytime and anywhere. Students can also learn from each other through various channels, such as TV broadcast, internet, special counseling hotline, class research club and face-to-face teaching (correspondence). It is a new concept after modern information technology is applied to education, that is, education by using network technology and environment. Enrollment targets are not limited by age and previous academic qualifications, which provides opportunities for people who have entered the society to improve their academic qualifications.

Correspondence is a learning form of adult college entrance examination (adult college entrance examination is a type of adult education), and other concentrated learning forms of adult college entrance examination include amateur learning (evening university) and full-time learning (note: after 2008, ordinary colleges and universities have completed full-time diplomas, leaving only a few). Passed the national adult college entrance examination and was admitted to colleges and universities, and issued admission notices. Belonging to the national education series, the state recognizes academic qualifications, participates in the national unified adult college entrance examination and enrollment examination, and all provinces and regions organize enrollment in a unified manner.