Online program manager
Provider of products and services for online courses at educational institutions / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Online learning offers freedom to progress at your own pace and the convenience to learn when and where it suits you. A student does not have to be on campus for an 45 minute lecture and can study when it suits them. The flexibility that comes with online education seems particularly well suited for life-long learning.[1] While this flexibility and freedom has, over the past 15 years, supported teaching and learning for many students. Some are arguing that platforms challenge academic freedom and intellectual property (IP) rights[2]where knowledge assetization prevails and public knowledge is privatized.[3] Online enrollments have grown substantially, especially after the global shutdown. Convenience and flexibility is not the only explanation for this rapid growth. Universities, facing budget shortfalls, have turned to Online Program Managers, commonly known as OPMs to recruit these students and build online programs.[4] OPMs provide bundled products and services to private and public educational institutions in exchange for a revenue sharing arrangement. Universities have come to rely on these services to recruit new students, design, develop, run online programs and more.[5]
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OPMs are often funded by private equity or venture capital as a for-profit enterprises. A revenue-sharing contract[6] has allowed universities to enter into the online education business and gain market share without the need to build their own platform.[7] Such predatory partnerships incentivise aggressive student recruitment (and revenue collection)[8] while outsourcers core edtech capability in an instution.[9] Until recently, they have also been less subject to government scrutiny.[10]
In the face of scrutiny from educational institutions and regulators and competition in the sector, edtech market analyst Phil Hill said in 2023 that the OPM business model was now "on life support."[11]