<p> Internet-based technologies have been the downfall of incumbents across numerous industries. This has not been the case in higher education, though unaccredited organizations that offer free- and low-cost online courses have the potential to disrupt low- and mid-tier colleges and universities that lack strong branding or regional advantages. This qualitative content analysis examined 410 articles from the academic trade press to describe the qualities of three companies that offer free and inexpensive online courses, StraighterLine, Udacity, and Coursera, to better understand their potential to disrupt for-profit colleges and universities. The four descriptive themes that emerged were: (a) credentialing issues, (b) the unbundling of higher education, (c) the development of online learning, and (d) single-course providers. Although distinct, the themes are interrelated and the growth of single-course providers, the unbundling of higher education, and the continued development of online learning will be affected by how credentialing issues are addressed by the regional accreditors. Employers are increasingly accepting micro-credentials from unaccredited, single-course providers that have significantly lower costs and a focused mission. The slow process of accrediting alternative providers, which some have argued is to protect incumbents, may actually speed up disruption. </p><p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:13426656 |
| Date | 12 April 2019 |
| Creators | Scuderi, Ed |
| Publisher | University of Phoenix |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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