Abstract:

In 2017, higher education institutions offering distance education are being buffeted by trends and developments from several disparate corners of the industry: competing institutions (including for-profit providers), students, technology providers, and content providers. From the vantage point of the institution’s distance education department, the choices are stark: Do you continue to offer a proprietary, home-grown distance education offering, or do you outsource the distance education function? If you outsource, do you outsource to a content provider who has a platform, or do you outsource to a turn-key, third party provider? In order to address these questions, one must have a firm grasp of the objectives and the strategies of their institution.

In this paper, the authors examine a case study of a mid-sized (enrollment = 20,000) institution in the Southwest of the United States. The case examines:
- The goals and objectives of the institution,
- The strategy to date of the Distance Education Department,
- Trends in student demands for distance education offerings,
- Trends and developments among relevant competitors
o Overall enrollment trends
o Growth rates of students taking online courses
o Pricing trends
- Trends in the outsourcing of the distance education function.

Finally, the paper examines the relevant strategic questions that should drive the distance education strategy, and proposes a “provisional” strategy for the specific institution in the case. Thus, reader is provider a current, real-world example of distance education strategy, as well as an assessment of the challenges faced in the development of that strategy.

Keywords:

Distance education, strategy, trends.