- The average age of students\ntaking an online education was 34 years.<\/strong><\/li>
- 84% <\/strong>of all employees in the best performing organizations receive online\ntraining.<\/li>
- New Employees are 42%<\/strong>\nmore likely to stay when receiving the training they need.<\/li>
- 37%<\/strong> of all online students study exclusively online.<\/li>
- 60% <\/strong>of all online students\u2019 study in synchronous programs.<\/li>
- Caucasian students make up\n62% <\/strong>of all online students.<\/li>
- 42%<\/strong> of all schools increased their budget for their online courses.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n
Online Schooling is Growing Quickly<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Distance education is becoming an amazing alternative to getting a physical college degree. The industry of online learning has shown immense growth in the past five years. This is down to the fact a lot of recruiters are viewing online degrees with the same amount of respect as a physical degree. This brings students the confidence they need to opt-in for a distance learning program. In this section, we will look at some of the facts that demonstrate the relevance of online education in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/hub.pfind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/e-training.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n1. The online learning industry\nis expected to be worth $325 billion in 2025: <\/strong>Not\nonly is online learning a very good option for students, it is also a highly\nlucrative industry for education institutes to want to explore. This industry\nis currently (2019) worth approximately $96 billion and is expected to rise\nrapidly to worth nearly $325 billion. \nThis is a CAGR of nearly 22.53%, which is as high as most well-established\nindustries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Forbes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. 77% of all corporations use\nonline training now: <\/strong>Time is one of the most\nimportant things to manage for a big corporation. Training is one of the other.\nEmployee training is the way for the company to make sure its employees\ncontinue to acquire valuable skills. However, training is a time-consuming\nactivity. So, a lot of corporations are utilizing online education to train their\nemployees. As many as 77% of all the major corporations are utilizing online\ntraining options instead of sending their employees to the physical location.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Topyx)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. Corporate online learning\nincreased 900% from 2001 to 2017: <\/strong>The large shift\nfrom physical training to online is shown in the rapid increase in the number\nof students enrolled in corporate training courses. This number climbed\nsteadily over the years to see a stunning 900% increase since online education\nstarted to be adopted into the corporate culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Best Colleges)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. 98% of all small businesses\u2019\nwill be using online learning to train their employees by 2020: <\/strong>Small businesses are more in need of updating their employees\u2019\nskills than corporations. Often a small business\u2019s success can be defined by\nits members\u2019 skill levels. Hence they are turning towards online courses for\nthis essential training. Distance learning allows for the rapid and effective\ntraining of all their members, without wasting much time. Hence it comes as no\nsurprise that 98% of all small business\u2019 will use online training to train\ntheir employees in 2020. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Small Business Trends)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5. Students exclusively studying\nonline represent 15.4% of the all college-going population: <\/strong>The growing adoption of online learning is also mirrored in the\nnumber of student option for online education. Of the total number of college\nstudents, at least 15.4% were studying completely online. This is up from 14.7%\nin 2016. The pattern of growth is expected to increase in the coming years as\nwell. This is because of the rising cost of education and international\ninterest in some of the best courses. Both these factors will lead a lot more\nstudents to opt-in for exclusive online courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Inside Higher Ed)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
6. The number of students taking\nat least one online course has grown to 33.1%: <\/strong>As\nthe number of exclusive online students has grown steadily, so has the number\nof students taking an online supplement to their course. The figure in 2016 was\n31.1% of the total number of students in college degrees and climbed 2% to\n33.1% in 2018. These students usually take these courses to learn skills that\ntheir degrees can\u2019t impart upon them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Inside Higher Ed)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
7. Game-based learning market reached\n$2.6 billion in 2016: <\/strong>It has long been known\nlearning via a game is among the best way of gaining knowledge. This research\nhas directly led to the creation and growth of the gaming-based learning market.\nThis market has also permeated into the online education industry. As with\nonline education, gaming-related education has also seen rapid growth. It grew\nfrom merely $300 million in 2006, to being worth nearly $2.6 billion by the end\nof 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Association for Talent Development)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
8. Blackboard is the most used\nonline learning platform, with 37% of total enrollments in 2017:<\/strong> Blackboard is the most famous online education tool. It is used by\nalmost every major university to host their online sources. As many as 28% of\nthe top 150 universities use this platform to deliver online education courses.\nAs of 2017, its popularity was mirrored in the number of students who were\nadopting Blackboard as their choice of online learning tools. Nearly 37% of all\nonline education enrollments were one this platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: ELiterate)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
9. Four out of five students say that\nonline learning tools help in improving their academic performance: <\/strong>As discussed, a large number of students have an online component to\ntheir courses. These components aid in a variety of ways, from providing extra\nresources providing a pseudo practical demonstration of theoretical concepts. A\nlot of universities, for example, provide their students with an online\nrepository of compilers\/courses to aid in their coding education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: McGrawHill University)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
10. 80% of all school\nadministrators say that there an increase in demand for online courses over the\nyears: <\/strong>The growing popularity of online courses has\nnot gone unnoticed by the school administrators. These are the individuals at\nany school\/university who decide the number and format of courses that their\neducational institution will offer. As many as four out five of these\nadministrators stated that the demand for online courses is increasing. 19% of\nthe surveyed administrators stated that the demand is staying the same. That\u2019s\n99% of them agreeing on the importance of online courses!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Best Colleges)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
11. In 2019, none of the top 150\nuniversities in the world decreased their online education budget!: <\/strong>Education budgets are always fluctuating. A lot of universities\noften cut budgets to various departments if they\u2019re deemed wasteful, since\neducation grants are tough to come by in today\u2019s world, unfortunately. One of\nthe very few areas of education that hasn\u2019t seen a budget cut at all is the\nonline learning courses that universities offer. Due to their significantly\nlowers production costs, the number of students that is can possibly bring in,\nand the high margins of profit for the university, online courses are rarely\nhit with budget cuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Best Colleges)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reasons for Choosing Online Learning<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
There are multiple reasons for\npeople to opt for online education. Their reasons can range from flexibility in\nschedule to a need for an affordable option for learning valuable skills. These\nreasons can make so that online courses can be even better traditional brick\nand mortar institutes. In this section, we will look at some of the reasons\nthat people might want to take online courses. We will also look at some cons\nof online education to help people make the right choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
12. 47% of the students choosing\nto study online do so because of existing commitments: <\/strong>Life has many commitments like family and work. These commitments\nmake it difficult for an individual to pursue learning in a physical location.\nHowever, this should not stop anyone from learning new skills and gaining\nknowledge. This is exactly what 47% of the students studying an online course\nstate as the main reason for them opting in for the course. These individuals\nwanted to pursue higher learning but could not do so in a university due to a\nvariety of reasons. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Best Colleges)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
13. 23% of the students were\nconcerned about the quality of education being provided: <\/strong>When an individual opts for any form of education, they aspire to be\nable to apply it to their professional life. This is also a concern with online\ncourses, more so than their physical counterparts. Owing to the fact that the\nonline learning industry is relatively new, it faces a lot more criticism for the\napparent lower quality of education that it provides. However, as we will see\nfurther down in this list, this concern quickly vanishes for the students who\npartake in these courses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Best Colleges)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
14. 85% of students who have\nattended both online and physical classes preferred online classes: <\/strong>One apprehension that students have about online learning is missing\nout on the \u2018college experience.\u2019 They should rest easy knowing that 85% of the\nstudents who attended both an online and a physical course either liked it the\nsame or actually preferred the online course. They cited convenience and\nexpedience as the major factors for the same. These courses, by virtue of being\naccessible at the student\u2019s discretion, can be completed faster and from the\ncomfort of the student\u2019s couch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Forbes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
15. More than 69% of all chief\nacademic officers believe that online learning is a critical part of long term\nlearning: <\/strong>The adage \u2018You can never be too old to\nlearn\u2019 comes to mind. A majority of the chief academic officers believe that\nonline courses are an important part of long term learning. To succeed, one\nneeds to be updating oneself with new skills and knowledge constantly. Online\nlearning makes it very easy to acquire skills on at one\u2019s own convenience,\nwhich can then be immediately applied to further one\u2019s goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Forbes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
16. It must be noted that in some\ncases, online courses can be similar, or even greater, in cost than a physical\ndegree: <\/strong>One of the major reasons why people opt to\ngo for an online course is the financial aspect of attending college. College\ndegrees can be very expensive, and hence online degrees are seen as an\naffordable option. However, depending on the college that you choose the course\nin and the availability of that course, you might find the online course to be\nmore expensive than its physical counterpart. This is because some colleges\noffer their super-specialty courses online as well. These courses can be very\nrare to find, especially under a reputable university. Therefore, they are\npriced to match their physical counterparts closely. They can exceed the costs\ndue to physical courses being part of an overall series of courses, while the\nonline course may be taken in isolation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Forbes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
17. Online learning is more\nenvironment friendly: <\/strong>Since creating and delivering\nan online course is done purely remotely, without utilizing the large number of\nresources that their physical counterparts would need, online courses are very\nenvironment friendly. Consider the amount of resources needed for a physical\nchemistry lesson, powering burners, the electricity, the harmful chemicals,\neven the toxic fumes being released into the atmosphere. All of these can be\nprevented by using an online course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Harvard Business Review)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
18. Companies with comprehensive\nonline training programs have 218% higher revenue per employee than companies\nwithout: <\/strong>As\nseen earlier, a lot of corporations across the world are using online learning\ntools to enhance the skills of its employees. These corporations were rewarded\nwith a tangible result that was commensurate of their investment into training.\nThese corporations saw an increase of as much as 218% in revenue per employee\nupon the utilization of online learning tools. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: American Society for Training and Development)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
19. Online courses tend to be\nsignificantly shorter than physical courses: <\/strong>A huge\nbenefit of online learning is the time one has to invest in it. Since online\ncourses can usually be accessed at one\u2019s leisure, they can be completed much\nquicker. A learner can cover a 40-hour long course in just four days if they\nchoose to. This is highly advantageous to learners who have a significant time\ncrunch to do the course within. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Inside Higher Ed)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
20. Retention rates can be\nboosted by 25% to 60% using online courses, which is almost seven times more\nthan their physical counterparts: <\/strong>Retention rate\nfor education is defined as the number of students that continue to study in\nthe university after their first semester. This is a handy tool in determining\nhow good a particular university might be. The retention rates for courses that\nprovide an online component to them often boost retention rates by as much as\n25% to 60%. Adding or changing physical components only increases the retention\nrate by 8% to 10%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Sources: Forbes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
21. Online Courses give the\nstudents access to courses from all around the world without needing to\nrelocate: <\/strong>One of the biggest issues with physical\ndegrees is the fact that you have to be physically present for it. Hence, for\nthe most part, people don’t get to access the courses they want if they are in\na location that is not accessible by them. They are limited to the courses in\ntheir locale. This problem is completely eliminated when it comes to online\ncourses. They can be accessed from anywhere that has an internet connection. It\nis perfect for people who can\u2019t move to another location for any number of\nreasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: College Choice) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
22. Artificial Intelligence is\nbeing used to personalize online education for students: <\/strong>Artificial Intelligence has been taking over the world recently. Not\nin a terminator way, of course, but in a very literal sense. Every single\nindustry is being rapidly transformed due to Artificial Intelligence. This\nincludes the online education industry as well. Blackboard, the most popular\nonline learning tool, is starting to apply Artificial Intelligence to improve\nthe experience for its students. AI learns the way the student studies and the\nareas it struggles with. Then it gives the student extra tests and courses for\nthe same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Medium)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
23. Augmented and Virtual Reality\nis being used extensively to enhance online education: <\/strong>Online courses are different from physical courses in a litany of\nways. Obviously the major difference between the two is the method of delivery.\nOnline courses use the student\u2019s computer to educate them in a variety of ways.\nOne of the emerging ways of education is to incorporate artificial or virtual\nreality into education. If the student possesses a virtual reality headset,\nthey can go into the environment they are studying for very easily. Some online\ncourses that have an AR\/VR component are a flight theory course using virtual\ncockpits to impart training, physical chemistry courses using virtual labs,\nmechanical engineering courses with AR hud to help in understanding concepts,\netc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: E-Learning Industry)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Demographics<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
It is a common misconception that online\nstudents are looking to complete their education while working a job. However,\nthis is very far away from the truth. Studies about online education\ndemonstrate that students from a very wide demographic. This includes corporate\ntrainees, students seeking degrees, postgraduate students looking to improve\ntheir skills, etc. In this section, we will look at some facts related to the\ndemographics of online students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
24. 23.5% of students\nstudying an online course were between the ages of 15-23: <\/strong>Students in the high school and college-age group don’t often opt\nfor online courses. This age group is the one with the least representation in\nthe online education community. This can be majorly put down to the fact that\nmost of these students want to experience high school and college life, among\ntheir peers, and not in isolation. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Online Learning Consortium)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
25. 36.5% of\nstudents studying an online course were between the ages of 24-29: <\/strong>The post-graduate aged students see much more representation in the\ncommunity, with as many as one in three people opt to go for online courses to\nsupplement their ungraduated degrees. People in this age group are typically\nlooking to expand upon the skills they acquired from their undergraduate\ndegrees in order to further their careers. A large percentage of the people in\nthis age group have a job while working on their online courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Online Learning Consortium)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
26. 41% of students\nstudying an online course were more than 30 years of age: <\/strong>Most online students come from the age group of over 30 years old.\nThese are mainly corporate training courses. However, there are also people who\nare looking to complete their previous education. These students almost\ninvariably have jobs and are simply looking to update the skills that have\nbrought them to the current stage of their careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Online Learning Consortium)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
27. One-third of all online\nstudents\u2019 study business-related courses: <\/strong>Students\ntake a huge variety of courses online. These courses vary from engineering to\nmanagement. One of the most studied areas of study for students is business. In\na study of the most popular online studying tools, it was determined that the\nmost studied courses were related to business management. As many as 33% of all\nthe enrolled students study business. This is due to a large number of\ncorporations that use online training resources to update the skills of its\nemployees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Best Colleges)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
28. 53% of all the students\nenrolled in an online course were female:<\/strong> Another\nsurprising fact about the demographics of online students is that there is a higher\nnumber of female students than males. It comes as a surprise due to the\nprevalence of corporate training in the industry, and the disparity among\ngenders when it comes to employees of large corporations. As many as 53% of all\nonline students were females at an average age of 33 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Training Magazine)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
29. 29% of all online students\nreport an income of $85,000 to $150,000: <\/strong>It isn\u2019t\njust broke college students are taking online courses. A significant chunk of the\nstudents taking online courses have a job. These students come from all walks\nof life, including the wealthy and the not as prosperous. 29% of all the\nstudents with an income, reported earning $85,000 to $150,000 per annum. A\nmajority of the students, are however, from the middle-class income level,\nearning in the range of $25,000 to $84,000. As many as 53% of all students\nbelong in this income bracket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
53%\n25k to 84k<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Walden University)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
30. For undergraduate students\nenrolled in online courses, 36.2% of them report some form of employment while\ntaking classes: <\/strong>Unlike what most people believe, a\nmajority of the students taking online degrees are not working at a job while\ndoing the same. They treat it like regular college classes. Even when it comes\nto graduate students, the percentage of the students in the same situation\nreported having a job is 43.7%. These students prefer to dedicate all their\ntime to their course to complete it as quickly as possible and then apply for a\njob with their new skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Source: Harvard Business Review)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Data Sources & References<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
- Forbes<\/a><\/li>
- Topyx<\/a><\/li>
- Best Colleges<\/a><\/li>
- Small Business Trends<\/a><\/li>
- Inside Higher Ed<\/a><\/li>
- Inside Higher Ed<\/a><\/li>
- Association for Talent Development<\/a><\/li>
- ELiterate<\/a><\/li>
- McGrawHill University<\/a><\/li>
- Best Colleges<\/a><\/li>
- Best Colleges<\/a><\/li>
- Best Colleges<\/a><\/li>
- Best Colleges<\/a><\/li>
- Forbes<\/a><\/li>
- Forbes<\/a><\/li>
- Forbes<\/a><\/li>
- Harvard Business Review<\/a><\/li>
- American Society for Training and Development<\/a><\/li>
- Inside Higher Ed<\/a><\/li>
- Forbes<\/a><\/li>
- College Choice<\/a><\/li>
- Medium<\/a><\/li>
- E-Learning Industry<\/a><\/li>
- Online Learning Consortium<\/a><\/li>
- Online Learning Consortium<\/a><\/li>
- Online Learning Consortium<\/a><\/li>
- Best Colleges<\/a><\/li>
- Training Magazine<\/a><\/li>
- Walden University<\/a><\/li>
- Harvard Business Review<\/a><\/li><\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
- Topyx<\/a><\/li>
- 84% <\/strong>of all employees in the best performing organizations receive online\ntraining.<\/li>