Online learning continues to have staying power after the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, more than half of all learners take at least one distance learning class during college, and more than one-quarter are enrolled exclusively online.
Last week, Risepoint released the 14th edition of their “Voice of the Online Learner” survey, which investigates the makeup and motivations of the postsecondary online learner population.
Key Findings
Online learners, by the numbers:
- The average age of the 3,500 survey respondents was 37 years old. 87% said they are working (75% full time, 12% part time) and more than half of respondents (53%) have at least one child under the age of 18. 42% of undergraduate online learners surveyed are first in their family to attend college.
Learners find value in online programs:
- Amidst a broader debate about the value and the cost of higher education, 94% of online learners surveyed are pursuing education for career-related outcomes. Even so, respondents list affordability as their top decision factor when selecting a program and 90% of these learners see online as being comparable or better value than an on-campus degree, a perspective echoed by employers in a 2024 NACE survey.
Location matters:
- While online options can open the doors for learners to attend any institution, online learners continue to choose institutions close to their home. Half of current online students surveyed (62% of undergraduate students and 48% of graduate students) live within 100 miles of their institution, while 73% of online learners live and/or work in the same state as their school. This data is similar to that produced by NC-SARA, which found that about 58% of exclusively online learners stay in state for their education, including 83% of learners at public institutions.
Generative AI is here to stay—and learners have questions:
- Two-thirds of online learners surveyed thought that understanding Generative AI (Gen AI) is important for workplace success in the future, but 69% of learners report that their university has not yet integrated Gen AI into the curriculum. This comes following a Handshake survey of Gen Z learners which found that a majority of learners are worried about how Gen AI will impact their careers, and nearly 80% of students who currently use Gen AI reported they were self taught.
Why it Matters
Analysis of the postsecondary market often focuses on the “traditional” college demographic of 18- to 24-year-olds. Reports like Risepoint’s Voice of the Online Learner provide insights into the non-traditional students, or “new majority learners,” who often have different wants and needs from a postsecondary educational experience.
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