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22 CARTH E R /TH I N KSTOCK 22 dents, only $520 per month. That cost covers as many courses as stu- dents can complete in a term. "At UniversityNow, they're incorporating frequent online assessments to make sure students are graduating with the right kinds of learning outcomes," says Weise. "They're making sure students progress in the program based on mastery, not just based on time." Hartman likes Southern New Hampshire University, which has adopted a competency-based learn- ing model, as well as Arizona State University, which provides students with a thorough introduction to the nature of online learning on its website and makes no distinction between its online and traditional degree on graduates' diplomas. (See "Promoting Student Engagement" on page 26.) Hartman credits the leadership of the presidents of these col- leges—Paul LeBlanc at SNHU and Michael Crow at ASU—with build- ing such deeply entrenched online programs. "Show me a college doing online learning well, and I'll show you a college president who 'gets it,'" says Hartman. "When I consult with schools, I always start with the president and trust- ees. Based on my discussions with them, I'll know where they stand." Rethinking "Traditional" While some schools are seeing their online programs flourish, Hartman cautions that the model might not be for every institution. His firm recently has seen the number of older adult learners in the market begin to flatten, after a long period of growth. That means that busi- ness schools should be certain that demand is there before they make the leap into online degree programs. "There is no shortage of online MBAs today, and there are starting to be more providers than there are students looking for this option," says Hartman. "The key will be for each institution to find its niche that targets a specific audience, such as the pharmaceutical or healthcare industries." On the other hand, Hartman also sees growth in the number of traditional 18- to 22-year-old undergraduates who want to take online courses. Many of these students want the flexi- bility of online classes so they can work more hours and graduate earlier to offset the rising cost of tuition. Weise stresses that the brick-and- mortar classroom will always have its place in higher ed. But as students ask for more flexibility, affordability, convenience, and skill-based training, the four-year undergraduate degree format might become less relevant. Even the most elite institutions will need to take care not to overempha- size the demand for traditional and costly educational experiences. "If they do," she says, "they could be making more space for disruptive innovators to thrive." Ives advises other educators to pay close attention to developments in K–12 education, where teachers are starting to integrate online com- ponents. "Future growth in online education will be fueled at the K–12 level," says Ives. "These students will be well-versed in technology, and if they believe a university doesn't meet their expectations in that regard, they won't go there." Whether schools are elite private institutions or regional providers, the evolution of online education prom- ises to transform what they do and how they think about higher educa- tion. In fact, the industry may now be at a tipping point where the word "traditional" may well be dropped before the term "face-to-face." Stu- dents and faculty alike are increas- ingly viewing online and face-to-face delivery as two equally feasible—and now conventional—pathways to the same educational outcomes. In 2007–2008, 148 business schools responding to an AACSB International survey collectively offered 314 online programs at undergraduate and graduate levels. By 2012–2013, the number of programs had more than doubled, with 293 schools reporting 696 online offerings. Of these, 317 were MBA programs.* *Source: AACSB Business School Questionnaire