Participation in online college education has been rapidly on the rise for the past several years. It skyrocketed over the past few years, starting with sudden demand for remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a consequence, colleges are increasingly eager to better and understand and serve this growing and rapidly-evolving student population. We sought to better understand the students that choose online higher education, so we went to the source – students themselves. This report provides clarity on the online student of today, with a focus on socioeconomic status, engagement with technology, media usage, and key motives for enrolling online.
Participation in online college education has been rapidly on the rise for the past several years. It skyrocketed over the past few years, starting with sudden demand for remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a consequence, colleges are increasingly eager to better and understand and serve this growing and rapidly-evolving student population.
We sought to better understand the students that choose online higher education, so we went to the source – students themselves. This report provides clarity on the online student of today, with a focus on socioeconomic status, engagement with technology, media usage, and key motives for enrolling online.