Examining Student Perspectives of the College Experience: The Impact of On-Line Learning

ABSTRACTOn-line programs have proven to be an increasingly popular approach among higher education institutions in delivering courses to its students. It allows colleges and universities to greatly increase the potential student population and to serve them at a reduced cost. However, many students are beginning to question whether the on-line approach actually provides them with the "college experience." Our study examined what students actually mean when they use the term "college experience" and how on-line programs impact this experience. Results suggest that a number of academic, career-development, extra-curricular, social, and personal growth factors are potentially impacted by on-line programs. Consequences for key stakeholder groups are discussed.Keywords: College experience. Online instructionIntroductionOn-line colleges and on-line programs within more traditional universities are becoming increasingly prevalent (Rudestam & Schoenholtz-Read, 2010). From an administrative perspective, on-line instruction can be used to reach a larger pool of students and can be delivered without many of the costs associated with maintaining building space and energy costs (Piskurich, 2006). And, as universities continue to experience declining budgets, the cost savings attributable to on-line learning is an attractive alternative. In fact, on-line programs are increasingly becoming a more integral part of the strategic plans of universities (Allen & Seaman, 2010) and, for some, even present an additional revenue stream from students fees associated with on-line instruction (Pofeldt, 2011).While there have been concerns voiced about on-line learning in general (Heubeck, 2008), one major worry is that on-line programs may not allow students to fully gain the "college experience." Thus, the purpose of this paper is to identify the factors that today's students perceive to be a necessary part of the college experience and to examine how on-line colleges and programs potentially impact these factors. If, indeed, the overall college experience is being diminished by the pervasiveness of on-line learning, there are potential consequences for various stakeholders such as students, college administrators, and organizational recruiters. These are discussed later in the paper.The Growth of On-Line EducationStudents and instructors being separated during the learning process is not a novel idea. In fact, approaches such as, "education through mail" have been practiced for over a century (Negrut et al., 2010). However, with the inception of the World-Wide Web in 1990 (Leder et al., 2000), this idea of distance learning moved to an entirely new level. A variety of on-line platforms, tools, and applications were developed that allowed instructors to easily move many elements of the curriculum to an on-line environment. This on-line approach has been hailed by some as the future of education (Lohr, 2010). Indeed, these on-line formats can be delivered to a much larger and diverse pool of students at a much lower average cost (Bach, Haynes, & Smith, 2007).Initially, many traditional universities began offering limited courses in a "hybrid" format. That is, part of the class was delivered using various technologies and part of the class was conducted in a face-to-face classroom setting. Then, as access to technology improved and became more accessible and affordable for individuals, these universities began increasing their on-line course offerings and even offered some degrees completely on-line. At the same time, a number of forprofit, on-line universities such as the University of Phoenix, Capella University, and Waiden University emerged to meet the growing demand for on-line learning. Indeed, interest in on-line learning among a number of stakeholders has continued to grow. In a 2011 study published by the U.S. Department of Education, results show that 20 percent of all undergraduates took at least one distance education course and that 4 percent actually completed their entire program on-line (Aud et al. …