Oregon State University Ecampus is the online education unit of Oregon State University. In partnership with nearly 1,000 Oregon State faculty members, OSU Ecampus develops and delivers courses, degree programs and certificate programs online and at a distance to students worldwide. Ecampus courses and programs are delivered online or in a hybrid format that combines virtual learning with face-to-face instruction. In January 2020, the Ecampus bachelor's degree programs were ranked top 10 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for the sixth straight year.
History
One of Oregon State University's earliest forays into distance education was in the 1880s, with farmers institutes and lectures from the caboose of a train. In the following decades, it delivered pioneering programs in Portland, Oregon, and on the Oregon Coast. OSU's first complete distance degree program was offered in liberal studies via correspondence and video in the 1980s. In 1982, liberal studies courses were offered at Central Oregon Community College in Bend, Oregon, which paved the way for OSU’s first distance degree program in liberal studies. In 2002, OSU converted its Distance and Continuing Education program into OSU Ecampus – as the unit exists today – and began building full-fledged online degree programs. Ecampus is now under the leadership of Lisa L. Templeton, who assumed the role of executive director in November 2009. In 2017, she was appointed associate provost of the Division of Ecampus.
Academics
Oregon State Ecampus partners with nearly 1,000 OSU faculty members annually to develop and deliver programs and courses online. Ecampus delivers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, graduate and undergraduate certificates and more than 1,300 courses online. Students who pursue an education online with Oregon State earn the same diploma and transcript as OSU's on-campus students. OSU's online courses have the same learning objectives and student learning outcomes as the university's on-campus courses.
Oregon State courses online
Oregon State offers more than 1,300 classes online each year in over 110 academic subjects. Working with Ecampus instructional designers to build an online course, OSU faculty use animations, readings, videos, conferences and other interactive materials for students online. OSU employs a separate effort to measure quality of its existing online courses. Quality Matters, a Maryland-based nonprofit group, offers a means to evaluate and certify the design of online courses. Ecampus delivers complete chemistry course sequences and labs online, as well as course sequences in a variety of foreign languages.
Oregon State degrees online
Ecampus delivers more than 70 undergraduate and graduate programs online, with some hybrid programs that feature face-to-face components. Oregon State is regarded as a leader in delivering science, technology, engineering, and mathematics programs online to learners seeking careers in these high-demand fields.
People
Students
Ecampus serves students in all 50 states and more than 50 countries. OSU's distance learners include full- and part-time students, working and retired professionals, community college students, active-duty and retired military, high school students and lifelong learners. In the 2019-20 academic year, 26,405 students enrolled in at least one Ecampus course. A total of 7,467 OSU students enrolled exclusively in Ecampus online programs in fall term 2019.
Alumni
Each year hundreds of learners earn their OSU degrees after completing course work online through Ecampus. A record 1,181 distance students received their diplomas from OSU in June 2019.
Faculty
All OSU Ecampus courses are developed by Oregon State faculty members. Each year, OSU instructors share best practices in online teaching with features interactive discussions at the Ecampus Faculty Forum.
Awards and recognition
Oregon State Ecampus has earned numerous honors as a provider of online education in recent years. These distinctions are based on a variety of factors, including "academic quality, support for students, student satisfaction, market credibility and prestige." In 2020, U.S. News & World Report ranked Oregon State No. 5 nationally in its annual Best Online Bachelor's Programs list. The criteria for the rankings were student engagement; faculty credentials and training; expert opinion; and student services and technology.
