The popularity of online learning continues to grow: a record enrollment of students for online courses around the world was recorded in 2020, and since then universities have been actively launching new online programs.

In this regard, new players are emerging in the online learning market: universities, schools and other distance learning courses. It is expected that the scale of market changes and the growth of the industry will become a huge challenge for many institutions in the competitive struggle in the education market.

Competition is getting tougher, big players are joining together, investments are coming in, and quality standards are rising. From 2011 to 2021, the number of listeners of massive open online courses increased from 300 thousand to 220 million people, and the number of students of hybrid and distance learning programs at public universities increased by 36% from 2012 to 2019.

Therefore, we have prepared five key points that online schools should work on in order to continue to develop and meet the requirements of students in the era of online education.

Поэтому, мы подготовили пять ключевых моментов, которые должны проработать онлайн-школы, чтобы продолжать развиваться и соответствовать требованиям студентов в эпоху онлайн-образования.

Educational institutions, as a rule, are focused first on gaining knowledge, and only then on building a career. But students, especially those who are going to study online, pay attention to how much their degree will be in demand in an ever-changing labor market. Universities that produce talented professionals must adapt to these changes – that is, revise their training programs in order to better prepare their students for a dynamic work environment.

That's what you should pay attention to first:

Even in online universities, programs are developed based on outdated material, which often does not take into account the current needs of employers and industries. This approach not only leads to a discrepancy in the qualifications of graduates, but also rarely allows them to find a job immediately after graduation.

Thus, the new programs of the University of Mexico, based on identifying changes in labor market trends and evaluating competitors' programs, provided 34% of all new students in the period from 2016 to 2019. Their development was carried out within the framework of a flexible team of specialists, which made it possible to create new programs in less than three months.

A McKinsey study found that lack of practice is one of the main educational problems for 30% of students. Many students who study only online are too old to wait for graduation to apply their practical skills at work.

The solution is composite programs that will allow students to complete internships simultaneously or sequentially. This will not only increase interest in studying and allow students to immediately apply their knowledge, but also give them work experience even before graduation.

Online learning needs a serviceable platform – easy to use and able to withstand large influx of users. In addition, for a more complete and interesting education, additional tools will not hurt, for example:

The main thing is not to overload the learning space: it should be concise and set up for the learning process. Some universities even allow students to customize their profiles and home pages themselves – to choose which blocks of information will be shown to them and which will not.

As a rule, students begin their career path by choosing a specialty in the first year or two after graduation, and try to find a job in a related field shortly before graduation. So, students know where to enroll, but not about what to do after graduation.

How to prepare students for graduation and going out? Here are some tips:

In order to help students identify their interests and choose a suitable specialty, some universities conduct questionnaires and career guidance tests. This allows you to identify the aptitudes, skills and experience of students, and set them an educational and career direction based on this.

For example, Dickinson College and Boston College include the study of students' strengths and interests in summer orientation sessions, so that students think about their future specialty and career even before classes begin. With this information, educational institutions help them make individual study plans in the early stages of the program.

It allows companies to accurately assess the skills of an applicant and is often a decisive factor in hiring. Therefore, by helping a student with his main career document, educational institutions can adapt their programs to the requirements of most companies and provide not only academic knowledge, but also practical skills necessary to start a career.

Online schools and universities can also provide their students with access to a network of companies that are actively looking for new specialists. This gives students the opportunity to find a job or internship in their field before graduation.

According to the Udacity study, 69% of young people believe that employers should invest in the future of their employees and provide them with professional training. However, only a few universities put cooperation with companies at the forefront.

Now, when companies lack qualified personnel and future students are looking for career opportunities, it's time to think about how online schools and universities can establish effective B2B partnerships*.

An online school can be a "corporate academy" and improve the skills of employees. For example, she can develop individual plans for each employee and track the overall progress of the company.

In addition, schools and universities can offer individual student support tailored to a specific partner. This gives you the opportunity not only to develop existing employees, but also to attract new ones.

Many online learning platforms offer a wide range of certifications and educational programs, aiming to demonstrate the overall value of their education to potential partners, instead of focusing on the skills needed for a particular industry or position. Study these positions and identify the specific skills the employee needs.

In today's competitive environment, it is important, first of all, to create your own bright and memorable brand. And don't forget about marketing – potential students should constantly learn about you. Here are some simple marketing tips in modern realities:

That's it. Follow trends, be fast and involve your entire organization in changes. We believe that by observing these five points, you will give your students the conditions they need, put your business on the path of rapid development and achieve the best results in the new year.