More Students Taking Classes Online | Video

Jessica Roose | 4/17/2012

With all the technology at our fingertips, it`s no surprise that more college students are completing courses online than in the classroom. Representatives from the North Dakota University System told members of the legislature Tuesday how that change is affecting universities.

Each year more and more college students nationwide are logging into a virtual classroom as opposed to the traditional university learning experience. But the rate of growth in North Dakota isn`t as big as the rest of the country.

"There`s not that many. But nationally, there`s a huge demand and this may be a really fantastic opportunity to do something really neat. As some of the best educators in the country, to do something really fantastic," said Aimee Copas, Academic Affairs Associate with the North Dakota University System.

Copas said the growing demand for online course work is in part due to more students of all ages working to pay for their education.

"So that blended environment of being able to do some residential along with some of those different delivery methods like online makes their lives manageable, makes it so they can succeed and get their degree."

She told legislators that it`s important to embrace this change in how people are educated because trends show that students who move to our state for school tend to stick around and work in the state after graduation.

"Forty-seven point one percent from Minnesota stay here. Montana 46.5, other out of state 36.2, even foreign students, 32.9 stay here. We do a good job, so it makes sense that if there`s a demand out there, and we`re good at getting them to come here, we need to let them come."

The issue of how an out of state student is defined was also a topic of discussion, since many students live just over the border in Minnesota and attend universities like NDSU and UND.

"So Minnesota students coming here pay the Minnesota rate. North Dakota students going to Minnesota pay the Minnesota rate, the higher of the two state rates," said Laura Glatt, Vice Chancellor for Administrative Affairs.

The exception to the agreement is in Minot where the North Dakota Board of Higher Education voted to allow out of state students to pay the same rate as those in state.

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