ACHE 2014

Note: This session is meant to be a follow up to a presentation of the full data from the Online College Students 2014 study that is being separately submitted for consideration.

What are the motivations, decision making patterns, and priorities of today’s online student? How do institutions meet those objectives? In this session, key data surfaced in the Online College Students 2014 national study (sponsored by The Learning House and Aslanian Market Research) will be discussed by practitioners responsible for both the marketing processes and the student support processes that make their online programs a success. Online College Students 2014 is an annual survey of 1,500 students enrolled in fully online degree or certificate programs. This session seeks to elaborate on key points of the survey from the institutional perspective, and is a follow up to a separate session in which the full array of findings will be presented.

Among the findings that will be discussed in detail are:
-More than half of today’s online learners have enrolled in online study prior to their current program. They have experience and know what they want.
-More than 80 percent of undergraduate online learners enroll with previously earned credit. They want to have that credit accepted.
-More than 40 percent of online learners use prior learning assessment or portfolio/experiential assessment. They want to have their life experiences counted.
-There is a vast difference in the socio-economic status of online undergraduate and graduate students. They need to be handled differently.

In this session, Scott Jeffe will moderate a discussion between Heather Chakiris, from Penn State World Campus, and Stacy Snow, from University of Missouri (Mizzou Online), about how the national data patterns play out at their institutions.

Online Programming
Post-traditional Students
Student / Client Support Services
Marketing / Social Marketing

Program Directors
Program Staff
Deans & Senior Administrators
Student Services Providers
Other