Key questions for university leaders to consider before launching online short courses
There has been significant media commentary about the need for individuals to upskill and reskill regularly through short courses. Given rapid advancements in technology which is changing the nature of work, this has only become more critical. Many universities have launched or are considering launching online short courses to serve this growing education need, and to increase and diversify revenues. For example, recent launches by prominent universities include Melbourne Business School Online and London Business School Online (one of the top business schools globally).
Through conversations within OES’ global education network, we understand that while demand for online short courses is growing, many online short course providers are finding it challenging to achieve significant scale and financial sustainability. We believe there are several key factors driving this and have distilled this down into four key questions for university leaders to consider, before launching an online short course portfolio. Universities that have considered these four key questions have the potentials to be more successful in the growing but challenging online short course segment.
Key question 1: Does the university have the brand strength and unique expertise to effectively compete with some of the world’s strongest brands in relevant short courses?
The competition in the online short course market is global and includes the world’s strongest brands across HE and industry. For example, prominent providers include Harvard Business School (HBS) Online (part of the world’s #1 university) which in 2023 had almost 42,000 online short course students, and Google (one of the world’s largest companies in 2024 by market capitalisation) with their Career Certificates on Coursera (noting some Google Certificates have enrolled ~700,000 students). These providers have extremely strong brands, charge relatively competitive fees, and have minimal to no entry requirements.
Implication: University leaders will need to be confident that online short courses launched can effectively compete with products from some of the world’s strongest brands that are also priced competitively and have minimal to no entry requirements. Universities will need to identify innovative ways to differentiate, for example through focusing on specific course areas (where advantageous), or providing a more engaging / high touch online learning experience.
Key question 2: How can the university compete with very cheap to free options in the global online short course market?
For the online short course market, barriers to entry is low, especially in comparison to the formal degree market. As a result, there has been a proliferation of online short courses, by a variety of providers and across all price points (including free). For example, Coursera has a library of ~7,000 online short courses mainly by prominent global universities, and charges ~US$60 a month (with free options). Udemy has a library of more than 11,000 online short courses predominantly by individual experts, with prices starting from ~US$15 per course.
OES has a deep understanding of key online student cohorts globally, and we have observed increased price sensitivity, including a focus on return on investment (ROI) for educational products in general. This is likely in response to rising cost of living pressures and will make it even more challenging for universities to compete with cheaper or free online short courses that meet the key needs of these students.
Implication: University leaders will need to design online short courses that provide students with a strong ROI, based on the key needs of target students. For example, universities could create stackable short courses that provide a pathway into formal degrees with strong career outcomes or design online short courses using best practice pedagogical principles to maximise student completion of the course.
Key question 3: How can the university recruit online short course students at scale, in a financially sustainable manner?
Student marketing and acquisition costs are generally very significant for online education providers, and this can be a particular challenge for online short course providers keen to achieve global scale. Some providers with formidable global brands attempt to promote their course portfolio through their website and mainly through digital marketing. HBS Online for example adopts this model, but even though they arguably have the strongest university brand globally, HBS reported in 2023 that they were facing margin pressures due to “heightened competition” driving “higher student acquisition costs”. Others have adopted alternative models, such as using a global platform with a large existing member base. Google for example, promotes their Certificates through Coursera, a global (mainly MOOC) platform with over 140 million existing users.
Implication 3: Universities will need to carefully consider and plan their marketing and acquisition strategy, particularly if the aspiration is to achieve global scale. This includes considering possible innovative distribution models such as partnering with an established global short course platform or large professional associations.
Key question 4: How can the university facilitate financing of online short courses, given there is generally no Government support (e.g. subsidies and loans)?
Students in many developed countries have access to Government subsidies and loans for formal degrees. However, these Government subsidies and loans generally do not apply to short courses, and students end up having to pay the full price out of pocket (often with their credit cards). There are however some exceptions, which can create a unique windows of opportunity for relevant providers. The Singaporean Government for example, has SkillsFuture initiatives which provides funding support for a variety of courses, including short courses, and this may benefit select local short course providers.
Implication 4: Universities can explore innovative avenues to help students finance their online short courses. For example, some bootcamp providers such as General Assembly (through partnerships), provide students with a variety of payment plans such as instalment plans or income contingent repayments (where instalments only commence once students earn above a threshold). In addition, universities should monitor and act quickly when unique and relevant funding pools for short courses emerge (noting many Governments globally have an increasing focus on upskilling and reskilling, which is promising for short course funding).
A key takeaway is that the online short course market is competitive and challenging, so universities keen to enter this market segment need to carefully consider and strategically respond to the four key questions above to be successful. OES has deep market knowledge on online courses and online student cohorts globally, and we are excited to work with university leaders interested in online short courses to explore, brainstorm and address these critical questions.
