Research Findings Suggest that Schools Partnering with OPMs have Outperformed their Peers in Increasing Enrollment 

Boston, MA – April 9, 2018​ ​The National Research Center for College and University Admissions™ (NRCCUA®), an educational data science and research organization,​ ​today announced findings from Eduventures, NRCCUA’s research division. A new report provides a fresh view of Online Program Management (OPM) companies by examining their business models and service tiers in the context of a more mature and crowded online higher education market. This analysis includes companies that provide combinations of online program services, but may not identify themselves as an OPM. The fourth in a series of research studies, Eduventures has investigated the conventional OPM market since 2013.

The goal of this study is to provide a clearer understanding of the current state of the OPM marketplace and prospects for growth going forward. This will enable institutions seeking to initiate or expand online programming to make more informed decisions about whether to use an OPM provider or leverage internal capabilities. It will also help providers of online program management services to better appreciate their market position.

Research highlights in this report include the following:

• On average, schools that partner with OPMs have experienced a five-year online enrollment increase significantly above that of peers- 43% versus 15% at undergraduate level, and 34% versus 23% for graduate students.
• The marketplace of online service providers has become more diversified, specialized, and differentiated with annual revenue forecasted at $2.72 billion by 2020.
• Changing market dynamics and evolving business models warrant an updated definition of the OPM market.
• There are two dominant trends shaping OPM innovation cycles:The development of alternative financial models to the classic OPM revenue-share agreements.
• The development of unbundled service tiers as a contrast to the classic, end-to-end OPM provider model.

According to Howard Lurie, Principal Analyst at Eduventures and author of this study, “Our research has uncovered examples of OPM innovation in response to changing needs of colleges and universities. With evidence of longstanding and successful OPM relationships in many sectors of higher education, we anticipate the market to continue to grow and thrive.”

OPMs provides colleges and universities with services to develop, launch, and support online degree and certificate programs. Typically, these services include marketing and lead generation, enrollment management, student services, and course development and delivery.

• To learn more about Eduventures 2018 Market Forecast for OPM providers, members of the media can arrange an interview with the author of this research by contacting Ellen Slaby at eslaby@eduventures.com.