Online: Trending Now

Unique biweekly insights and news review
from Ray Schroeder, Senior Fellow at UPCEA

Online Learning, From the Margins to the Center

Online learning has evolved over the past 25 years from a niche position on the margins of higher ed to the leading driver of growth in enrollment and innovation.

Research collaboration, information sharing and informal instruction has roots deep in the development of the internet and analogous networking such as the PLATO system prior to even the World Wide Web. After the internet began to spread, significant numbers of for-credit classes emerged in the mid-1990s, not long after the development of the first graphical web browser, Mosaic, in 1992.

It is fascinating to go back in time to 1997 to see how Archie Comics depicted online learning in 2021, a quarter century into the future. Annie Reneau annotates and reprints the comic strip titled “Betty at High School 2021 AD.” A remarkably accurate vision of what online learning has become is revealed.

Yet, for a number of years, the delivery of courses and degrees online grew rather slowly. For some years after its inception, online enrollments were not tracked formally by the National Center for Educational Statistics. Distance learning was considered the poor stepchild of the traditional campus-based experience. However, with slow, steady growth, by 2014 the NCES reported that more than five million students out of a total of more than 21 million in college were enrolled in at least one online class. That amounted to some 25 percent of all students.

By 2020, overall college enrollment had dropped to fewer than 19 million with some 14 million taking at least some online courses. That amounted to nearly 75 percent of all students. Of course, these figures were greatly impacted by the pandemic. The first case of COVID-19 was reported in the U.S. on Jan. 20, 2020. Yet, even before the arrival of the pandemic in the U.S., in the fall of 2019, seven million of the 19 million college students (37 percent) were taking at least one online class.

So, while overall enrollment at U.S. colleges and universities dropped by some two million students from 2012 to 2019, the number of students taking online classes had grown from five million to seven million. Even prior to the move to remote learning in the pandemic, online learning had established itself as an effective mode of delivery in higher education in the U.S.

Often forgotten in considering overall enrollment in credible online learning programs is the rise of the MOOCs. In 2012, the founding of major MOOC providers Coursera and edX brought many prestigious universities online to create a worldwide reach at an affordable price through the economies of scale. Class Central reports at the end of last year, there were 220 million MOOC learners worldwide enrolled in classes developed by 950 universities, including 70 MOOC-based degree programs. Too often, these are considered separately from the enrollments centered at the campuses. Yet, they are offering classes, granting degrees and drawing on the pool of potential learners within the U.S. as well as internationally.

Online learning has grown from a marginal niche of higher ed to the largest provider of postsecondary learning in the world. We are now on the cusp of yet another technological evolution in the delivery of online learning. The advent of the metaverse in higher education is closer than many casual observers may think. By 2025, we will begin to see significant numbers of offerings using avatars and immersive technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality and extended reality engaging learners at a distance.

This move will further propel online learning to the forefront of postsecondary education. It is the natural progression of the technology and networking infrastructure to support the pedagogy of engaged, personalized and immersive learning. Using the higher bandwidth and lower latency of 5G wireless and 10G cable, prospective students will be able to access stunning simulations and infinitely repeatable and adaptable learning modules to most successfully attain the skills and knowledge they seek for careers and personal fulfillment.

It is an exciting time to observe and participate in the acceleration of innovation in higher education. However, in order to be successful, institutions must embrace the technologies today to begin to deploy sandbox environments for their faculty and designers to prepare for the future that awaits just a couple of years ahead. Do you have developmental immersion laboratories for your faculty and staff to prepare for 2025? Who at your university is advocating for the integration of VR, AR and XR into online delivery? Are you already collaborating with industry and business in developing the most effective and relevant technology-enhanced online programs that will meet their needs? Those who lead in these ventures will set the standards and gain the recruiting advantage in higher education.

 

This article was originally published in Inside Higher Education’s Transforming Teaching & Learning blog.

A man (Ray Schroeder) is dressed in a suit with a blue tie and wearing glasses.

Ray Schroeder is Professor Emeritus, Associate Vice Chancellor for Online Learning at the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) and Senior Fellow at UPCEA. Each year, Ray publishes and presents nationally on emerging topics in online and technology-enhanced learning. Ray’s social media publications daily reach more than 12,000 professionals. He is the inaugural recipient of the A. Frank Mayadas Online Leadership Award, recipient of the University of Illinois Distinguished Service Award, the United States Distance Learning Association Hall of Fame Award, and the American Journal of Distance Education/University of Wisconsin Wedemeyer Excellence in Distance Education Award 2016.

Other UPCEA Updates + Blogs

UPCEA Virtual Forum Recap: Expanding Institutional Capacity for Employer Engagement in Credential Innovation

September 17, 2025 marked UPCEA’s first-ever Virtual Forum on Employer Engagement and Credential Innovation. The event, curated by Amy Heitzman, Ph.D., UPCEA’s Deputy CEO and Chief Learning Officer, brought together senior leaders in professional, continuing, and online education to examine how institutions can strengthen partnerships with employers and scale credentialing strategies that align with workforce…

Read More

UPCEA Publishes “The Future Is Now: Essential Conversations for Building Tomorrow’s University Today” to Guide Higher Education Leaders into a New Era

Advocacy piece serves as a guide for institutional leaders to navigate challenging times WASHINGTON, D.C., ISSUED OCTOBER 6, 2025…UPCEA, the online and professional education association, today announces the release of its latest advocacy piece, “The Future Is Now: Essential Conversations for Building Tomorrow’s University Today.”  Designed to raise awareness of critical questions every campus leader…

Read More

Trump Administration Gives Harvard 20 Days to Turn Over Admissions Data | Policy Matters (September 2025)

Major Updates Trump Administration Gives Harvard 20 Days to Turn Over Admissions Data The U.S. Department of Education has given Harvard University 20 days to turn over detailed admissions data in connection with an ongoing federal review of selective admissions practices. While focused on one institution, this move signals heightened scrutiny across higher education. Administrators…

Read More

Preparing Four-Year Institutions for Workforce Pell

Institutions must begin preparing now for 2026 implementation.  On July 4, 2025, Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), a sweeping legislative package that reshapes federal student aid and accountability policy. Among many consequential provisions for higher education is the creation of Workforce Pell, which will extend Pell Grant eligibility to some short-term,…

Read More

How AI Is Rewriting the Playbook for Enrollment Management

Introduction Enrollment managers face a paradox: students demand personalized service, yet resources are shrinking. While AI is exciting, it is also an expensive endeavor for enrollment management divisions already stretched by staffing and resource challenges. Traditional methods—manual file reviews, siloed systems, and lagging indicators—simply can’t keep up. The solution lies in determining how to leverage…

Read More

Honoring the Life and Legacy of Dr. James P. Pappas

UPCEA joins colleagues, friends, and the broader higher education community in mourning the passing of Dr. James P. Pappas, who dedicated his career to advancing the reach, relevance, and impact of online, professional and continuing education. Dr. Pappas, a former President of UPCEA, was the 1999 Walton S. Bittner Service Citation Award recipient and 2006…

Read More

Whether you need benchmarking studies, or market research for a new program, UPCEA Consulting is the right choice.

We know you. We know the challenges you face and we have the solutions you need. We speak your language and have been serving leaders like you for more than 100 years. UPCEA consultants are current or former continuing and online higher education professionals who are experts in the industry—put our expertise to work for you.


UPCEA is dedicated to advancing quality online learning at the institutional level. UPCEA is uniquely focused on excellence at the highest levels – leadership, administration, strategy – applying a macro lens to the online teaching and learning enterprise. Its engaged members include the stewards of online learning at most of the leading universities in the nation.

We offers a variety of custom research options through a variable pricing model.


Click here to learn more.

The Nation's Top Universities Choose UPCEA Consulting

Informed decisions. Ideas that work. The data you need. Trusted by the top universities in the nation.