January 31, 2012

CORVALLIS, Ore. - The Ecampus distance education program at Oregon State University today was ranked ninth in the nation by SuperScholar.org for the quality and strength of its program.

The ranking was made in a survey of "Best Online Colleges and Universities in 2012," and builds on similar recognition made last year to the program, when a different national organization also recognized it as one of the top 25 nationally.

"Ecampus plays an integral role in providing access to a high-quality OSU education through our comprehensive online degree programs," said executive director Lisa Templeton. "We prove year after year that we meet the educational needs of adult learners no matter where they live, thanks in large part to the outstanding OSU faculty members teaching our courses."

The survey was based on academic quality, support for students, student satisfaction, market credibility and prestige. OSU Ecampus has a broad offering of nearly 30 undergraduate and graduate degrees and programs, 18 minors, 700 courses in 70 subjects, and innovations such as online chemistry lab courses.

"Online and distance education classes continue to grow in popularity and credibility," officials from SuperScholar.org wrote in their analysis. "More schools are putting classes and degree programs online every year and employers are more willing than ever to hire graduates of high quality, regionally accredited online degree programs."

OSU Ecampus, in particular, was cited for its ability to give distance students the exact degree awarded to traditional graduates, and its strengths in such fields as agricultural, human, environmental sciences and various liberal arts programs. Detail on its programs is available online at http://ecampus.oregonstate.edu

Other Pacific Northwest institutions were also recognized as national leaders in distance education. Included in the rankings were Washington State University, fourth; and Portland State University, 22nd.

The complete rankings from this organization are available online at http://bit.ly/sZxoRU

Source: 

Lisa Templeton, 541-737-1279

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