Overview
IU Online continues to measure online students' expectations for, and perception of quality in, online programs. The Online Learner Expectations Survey (OLES) of all students enrolled in fully online undergraduate programs was administered for the second time in fall 2022. The survey instrument, developed by the IU Center for Evaluation, Policy, and Research (CEPR), was piloted in 2020, refined, and first administered by CEPR in fall 2021. The survey population includes students across all campuses but IU Bloomington. The first 200 respondents who supplied their name and email address received $10 Amazon gift cards. Surveying the entire sample allows for tracking demographics and trends over time. The study centered on two key research questions:
- What are students' expectations of online education courses?
- How do students define value and quality in online courses?
Survey items were organized into these areas:
- Employment status
- Level of experience with online learning (IU online and other providers)
- Reasons for taking courses with IU Online
- Factors contributing to satisfaction and dissatisfaction
- Communication within IU Online courses (with instructors and students)
- Overall satisfaction
The fall 2022 response rate among the 3,118 students contacted was 518 or 17 percent, slightly lower than the 2021 response rate of 19 percent.
Demographics
Age
Three-fifths of all respondents fell within two age ranges:
- 31 percent were 18-24
- 29 percent were 25-34/li>
- Lowest range, at 5 percent, was 55-65 plus/li>
Gender
74 percent of respondents were female.
Race
- White: 73 percent
- Black/African American: 13 percent
- Hispanic/Latino: 6 percent
- Asian: 3 percent
Employment & other circumstances
- Employed full time: 60 percent
- Employed part time: 18 percent
- Full-time student: 17 percent
- At-home parent: 7 percent
Campus enrollment
- Enrollment was highest at IU East at 49 percent
- IUPUI: 16 percent
- IUSE: 10 percent
- IUSB: 9 percent
- IUN and IUK: 8 percent each
Attraction and satisfaction
Students identified reasons for taking IU Online courses, including career advancement, convenience/flexibility, cost, educational advancement, personal interest, and IU reputation.
Top reasons:
- 62 percent: Convenience/flexibility was the most or second-most important reason.
- 55 percent: Career advancement was the most or second-most important reason.
Reasons for dissatisfaction with courses:
- 49 percent: Unclear course requirements¬ were the most or second-most important factor.
- 48 percent: Course workload was the most or second-most important factor.
Communication
The survey asked about mode and frequency of communication; satisfaction with communication overall; and communication between instructors and students, and between students and their peers.
Student-instructor communication: Mode
- 68 percent of students communicated with instructors weekly or daily via discussion boards.
- 39 percent communicated weekly or daily via Canvas
- 33 percent communicated weekly or daily via email.
Satisfaction levels
- 57 percent were very satisfied.
- 33 percent were somewhat satisfied.
- 11 percent were somewhat or very dissatisfied.
Satisfaction levels by age
- Age range most satisfied: 18-24
- Age range least satisfied: 55+
Student-student communication: Mode
- 86 percent communicated with peers weekly or daily via discussion boards.
- 17 percent communicated weekly or daily via Canvas.
- Least-used modes of communication were Zoom/Skype and phone.
Satisfaction levels
- 48 percent were very satisfied.
- 42 percent were somewhat satisfied.
- 11 percent were somewhat or very dissatisfied.
Satisfaction levels by age
- Age range most satisfied: 35-44
- Age range least satisfied: 55+
Satisfaction by campus
- Greatest satisfaction with instructor-student communication: IU Kokomo
- Greatest satisfaction with communication among students: IU Southeast
Overall satisfaction
Would students recommend their IU Online program to a friend or colleague?
Yes: 95 percent
Results were broken down by gender, ethnicity, and campus.
- Women were 6 percent more likely to recommend IU Online than men.
- Black/African American students were most likely to recommend at 100 percent, followed by Hispanic/Latino at 97 percent, then White at 95 percent.
- Students at IU Kokomo were most likely to recommend IU Online at 100 percent, followed by IU South Bend at 98 percent. Students at IUPUI were likely to recommend IU Online at 92 percent.
Going forward
CEPR recommends continued attention to sample data, analysis of differences among respondent groups, and identifying trends across years. The preferred time of distribution is early-to-mid semester, avoiding overlap with other surveys. Incentives for survey completion help boost response rates. CEPR seeks feedback from IUOOE on the current report and will continue to cross-tabulate to determine differences across demographic groups.
Download a pdf of the full survey report
