The Center for Online and Distance Education (CODE) celebrates National Distance Learning Week, November 8 – 12, 2021.  Distance and online education has moved from the margins to the mainstream of higher education with an increasing number of colleges and universities offering online courses and programs.  

According to data published in the 2019 Distance Education Almanac, distance education remains a strong and viable option for many students seeking to complete a postsecondary education credential:

  • In 2019, there were 3,483,061 students taking all of their courses at a distance, a growth of 849,546 students (32.3%) from 2012.  Nationally, 14.4% of students take exclusively distance courses.
  • The number of undergraduate distance enrollments at all institutions increased by 1,512,816(33.2%) between Fall 2012 and Fall 2019, while the number of graduate distance enrollments grew by 451,373 (52.1%) during this same period.
  • A total of 3,483,061 students were taking all of their courses at a distance in the fall of 2019. This represents 17.5% of the enrolled students in the country. The number of exclusively distance students who reside in the same state as their institution was 1,325,721 in 2012 and grew to 1,991,005 by 2019.

For information on online education opportunities at SC State University, visit the SC State Online website or follow us on Twitter: @scsuonline.