News

January 9, 2018

U.S. News & World Report Ranks University at Albany School of Education among U.S. Top-10 in Online Education

With today’s release of U.S. News & World Report’s 2018 rankings, the University at Albany retains its position among America’s elite in providing online graduate study in the field education.

The publication’s “2018 Best Online Education Programs” lists UAlbany’s School of Education in a tie for 8th among 292 institutions offering online master’s degree programs in education — the School’s second straight ranking in the top-10. Clemson University in South Carolina was ranked No. 1. UAlbany, the highest-ranked New York State school, tied with Penn State University and the universities of Georgia and UMass Lowell.

“High quality on-line programs help us reach students we would not,” said UAlbany Provost James Stellar. “Especially in this critical area of education, I am pleased to see UAlbany once again recognized as a leader.”

“School of Education faculty were pioneers in the field of online learning from the 1990s,” said School of Education Dean Robert Bangert-Drowns, himself one of those early pioneers. “We’ve always been committed, not just to convenient access to education, but to academic excellence and rewarding interpersonal experiences online.”

In assessing 292 institutions for their online graduation education programs, U.S. News weighted each school’s excellence in five categories:

  • Student engagement (35 percent)
  • Student services and technology (20 percent)
  • Admissions selectivity (15 percent
  • Faculty credentials and training (15 percent)
  • Peer reputation (15 percent)

The School of Education offered 132 online courses last year. Peter Shea, UAlbany’s associate provost for online learning, noted that online courses, programs and enrollments across the University have grown steadily for the past five years, including a 26 percent expansion in the past two years, to more than 11,000 students in 2016-17. There are now 17 online academic credentials with another 12 in development.

“UAlbany benefitted from decades of planning, implementation, and refinement in the School of Education programs, and this provided a strong foundation for growth in online education across the University,” said Shea. “The campus extended a significant investment in online learning and now offers several hundred online courses each year.”

Shea said the School of Education also gains advantage from UAlbany’s membership in OpenSUNY Plus, an online education collaboration across the State University of New York system committed to quality assurance in online coursework.

“Through our association with OpenSUNY Plus, we have ensured that UAlbany meets and exceeds standards of quality for online learning including support for instructional design, student support, 24/7 helpdesk, appropriate pedagogy, and faculty development efforts to ensure courses are maintained and updated,” said Shea.