Outsourcing Online Higher Ed: A Guide for Accreditors

Since the advent of online education, some colleges and universities have looked to third-party companies for help developing, marketing, and providing their online degree and certificate programs. But in recent years, those companies have expanded to run more and more of their clients' online programs. An industry has developed around online program management. This industry now encompasses companies (OPMs) that provide single services--like instructional design assistance or video production--as well as full-service providers. These full-service OPMs have taken on a more expansive role, essentially creating white-label courses that are rebranded as if they were designed by universities. For this report, New America and The Century Foundation collaborated to analyze the current practices of accreditors regarding OPMs. This analysis concludes with recommendations for both accreditors and policymakers. For their part, accreditors need to review relationships more closely between educational institutions and OPMs. Accreditors should examine OPMs' past performance, consider their marketing materials and growth targets, and scrutinize the proposed governance structure for new programs involving OPMs. Policymakers can complement these changes with stronger prohibitions on incentive schemes that encourage OPMs to recruit as many students as possible; by insisting on greater transparency of OPM contracts; and by mandating reviews of accrediting agencies. Only by implementing significant changes can both institutions and students be protected.