Student Enrollment in Online Courses and Graduation Rates at Public Two-Year and Four-Year Institutions

• In Event: Enhancing Postsecondary Student Career and Outcomes

Abstract

With the advancement of information and computing technology, online education has been increasingly common in the scene of postsecondary education. Given that the demographics, prior academic preparation, and individual needs of students attending public two-year and four-year institutions can be very different, the relationship between the online courses participation and degree completion may play out differently between two-year and four-year public institutions. Using data from the IPEDS, we found that more undergraduates enrolled in some distance education courses were positively related to the graduation rates within 150% of normal time at two-year institutions. Additionally, the difference in graduation rates between two-year and four-year institutions narrows as the share of undergraduates enroll in some/all distance education courses increases.

Authors

• Xinye Hu, Florida State University

• Pei Hu, Temple University

• Shouping Hu, Florida State University