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Enrollment in Distance Education, by Sector, Fall 2016

Almanac 2018
August 19, 2018

A fifth of graduate students at four-year public institutions and nearly a quarter of graduate students at four-year private nonprofit institutions studied exclusively through distance education. At four-year for-profit institutions, nearly 84 percent of graduate students did. Undergraduates were far less likely to study through distance education only, though nearly two-thirds of undergraduates at four-year for-profit institutions did.

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A fifth of graduate students at four-year public institutions and nearly a quarter of graduate students at four-year private nonprofit institutions studied exclusively through distance education. At four-year for-profit institutions, nearly 84 percent of graduate students did. Undergraduates were far less likely to study through distance education only, though nearly two-thirds of undergraduates at four-year for-profit institutions did.


Return to the Almanac home page, or go to the Profession, Students, Finance, or States section. To purchase a copy of the Almanac in print or as a downloadable interactive PDF, visit the Chronicle Store. Help guide us to give you the data you need by taking our 10-minute online Almanac survey.


SectorLevelNot enrolledPercentEnrolled in
some but
not all
PercentEnrolled
exclusively
PercentAll studentsPercent
4-year public institutions undergraduate 5,170,379 71.0% 1,569,845 21.5% 545,646 7.5% 7,285,870 100.0%
4-year public institutions graduate 1,001,308 69.4% 149,000 10.3% 291,578 20.2% 1,441,886 100.0%
4-year public institutions total 6,171,687 70.7% 1,718,845 19.7% 837,224 9.6% 8,727,756 100.0%
4-year private nonprofit institutions undergraduate 2,106,874 76.3% 249,918 9.0% 405,420 14.7% 2,762,212 100.0%
4-year private nonprofit institutions graduate 843,786 66.7% 115,589 9.1% 305,653 24.2% 1,265,028 100.0%
4-year private nonprofit institutions total 2,950,660 73.3% 365,507 9.1% 711,073 17.7% 4,027,240 100.0%
4-year for-profit institutions undergraduate 155,286 21.7% 93,883 13.1% 467,576 65.2% 716,745 100.0%
4-year for-profit institutions graduate 32,181 12.1% 11,363 4.3% 221,344 83.6% 264,888 100.0%
4-year for-profit institutions total 187,467 19.1% 105,246 10.7% 688,920 70.2% 981,633 100.0%
2-year public institutions undergraduate 4,021,449 68.8% 1,111,790 19.0% 708,283 12.1% 5,841,522 100.0%
2-year private nonprofit institutions undergraduate 30,088 59.5% 2,924 5.8% 17,545 34.7% 50,557 100.0%
2-year for-profit institutions undergraduate 171,168 86.2% 17,874 9.0% 9,570 4.8% 198,612 100.0%
All institutions undergraduate 11,655,244 69.1% 3,046,234 18.1% 2,154,040 12.8% 16,855,518 100.0%
All institutions graduate 1,877,275 63.2% 275,952 9.3% 818,575 27.5% 2,971,802 100.0%
All institutions total 13,532,519 68.3% 3,322,186 16.8% 2,972,615 15.0% 19,827,320 100.0%

Note: Data cover 4,367 degree-granting four-year and two-year institutions in the United States that are eligible to participate in the Title IV federal student-aid program. Distance education refers to the use of one or more technologies to instruct students who are separated by distance from the instructor, and to support interaction between students and the instructor. The technologies may include the internet, closed-circuit television, and audio conferencing. Questions or comments on the Almanac should be sent to the Almanac editor.

Source: Chronicle analysis of U.S. Department of Education data

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A version of this article appeared in the August 24, 2018, issue.
Read other items in this Students: Almanac 2018 package.
We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
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