The Dutch Open University accepted its first students in September 1984 after a two-year preparation period. Like its British counterpart, the Dutch Open University offers free access and has no requirements as far as previous education is concerned. Its principal aims are to (1) provide higher education for adults either as a second chance (for those who were unable to avail themselves of higher education when they were young) or as a second route (for those who have chosen to combine a paying job or household work with study) and (2) stimulate innovation in higher education from the standpoints of programming, content, and methodology. Although it is an autonomous institution, the Dutch Open University relies on cooperation with other institutions for about 50 percent of its course development. Despite the many problems that the Dutch Open University encountered since its inception, it appears to have earned itself a permanent position within the higher education system. In little more than two years it has enrolled more than 35,000 adults in more than 70,000 courses. More than 70 percent of the Dutch population has heard of the Dutch Open University and has a fairly accurate idea of the services that it offers. The Dutch Open University prides itself on its methodological and technical innovations in the area of distance education, and has made important innovations in the processes of selecting instructional media (by using a team approach), developing and presenting written materials, determining the most appropriate role for computers in distance education, and focusing on the teacher's role as a tutor and stimulator of the learning process rather than as a carrier of information. The Dutch Open University has managed to offer its students a diversified range of program options and has emphasized modularization and differentiation. (MN)