Distance Learning & Online University/College Rankings

Rankings for online colleges and college courses are rare, but growing. Unfortunately, many of the rankings don’t state their methodologies, and without these statistics we cannot, in all good spirit, send you to those listings. To date, the only listings we’ve discovered with methodologies are listed below.

OEDb Rankings 2007

Methodology: OEDb began ranking online colleges this year. Their only criteria for each listed school was that it was accredited. The rankings, however, demanded more statistics, as each school was rated by its listing in the College Opportunities Online Locator (COOL), which was commissioned by the US Department of Education to help prospective students compare higher education opportunities; the college had to offer more than one undergraduate degree-granting program online; and, the college, if campus-based, must offer at least 50 percent of its undergraduate degree-granting programs online. For each metric, they ranked the colleges from 1 to 21, where 1 is the highest, or best, rank.

OEDb Rankings 2008

Methodology: OEDb’s 2008 rankings were meant to serve as an update to their initial 2007, only with more colleges added to the mix. OEDb mined through multiple sources to find the initial list of colleges. The colleges were culled from these sources from December 12, 2007 – January 10, 2008: DETC (Distance Education and Training Council); eLearners.com; Peterson’s Distance Learning and Online Degree Programs Search; and, US News & World Report’s E-Learning Guide’s top 20 largest and top 20 oldest degree-granting online programs. The same metrics and methodology were retained for the listings this year.

Top Ranked Online Colleges

Graduate The following online colleges and universities rank highly based on user interest data we’ve gathered. The schools offer accredited degree programs at the associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s level in a variety of fields.

Associate's Degrees Bachelor's Degrees Master's Degrees	Kaplan University — Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's Degrees. With both campus- and online-based programs, Kaplan University offers a quick path to your degree, making it the perfect continuing education school for working adults looking to improve their careers.
ABA in Business ABA in Health Administration ACJ in Law Enforcement	Ivy Bridge College — Associate's Degrees. Ivy Bridge College offers online associate's degree programs in accounting, business, computer technology, healthcare administration, criminal justice and general studies. The programs provide the flexibility and convenience of online learning while offering unparalleled mentoring and student support. For students interested in pursuing a bachelor's degree, Ivy Bridge provides streamlined admission to some of the best four-year colleges in the U.S.
Associate's Degrees Bachelor's Degrees Master's Degrees Doctoral Degrees	University of Phoenix — Associate's, Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral Degrees. The world-class courses and faculty at the University of Phoenix are focused on helping you balance your education goals with your current personal or professional commitments.
Bachelor's Degrees Master's Degrees Doctoral Degrees	Walden University — Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral Degrees. Walden University is geared toward educating working professionals in an online class delivery format that is designed to be both flexible and affordable. This schools offers one of the world's largest collection of master and doctorate degrees online.
Associate's Degrees Bachelor's Degrees Master's Degrees	Ashford University — Associate's, Bachelor's, and Master's Degrees. Founded in 1918, Ashford University is affordable and convenient, as you can balance your current job with online coursework and finish your degree in as few as 12 months.
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