How do we find our market share in the online higher education landscape?

How do we match our assets at our higher education institutions with current markets, to ensure success and business sustainability?

In this user-friendly, action-oriented guide, we recommend a process for conducting a market analysis for online courses and programs and matching this analysis with institutional assets. This guide will help education leaders identify potential internal and external barriers to entering the market, including policy, culture, market size, and finances.

The chapters in this guide identify nine critical institutional assets or attributes that we recommend be considered in any market match analysis for online higher education programs. The assets and attributes include people, courses/programs, technology, hidden assets, learners, the market, identity/brand, institutional priorities, and potential portfolios. These assets and attributes were derived from interviews with leaders in online higher education from all over the world, as part of a design challenge at the Online Learning Consortium’s 2020 Global Institute for Engaging Leadership in Online Learning.

The chapters also contain several key questions that will guide you through your own market matching analysis. Example responses to the questions come from three regions of the world (India, Egypt, and the United States) to show how the guide can apply in diverse contexts. A downloadable worksheet is provided in the last chapter to make utilizing this guide even more practical.

Good luck on your market matching journey!

About the Authors

Hoda Mostafa, M.D. is a professor of practice and the Director of the Center for Learning and Teaching at The ⁠American University in Cairo⁠. hodamostafa@aucegypt.edu

Priya Mary Mathew, Ph.D. is the Associate Director of Academic Strategy for Global University Systems in India. priya.711@gmail.com

TJ Bliss, Ph.D. is the Chief Academic Officer for the State Board of Education in Idaho, USA. tj.bliss@osbe.idaho.gov