The Cal State University system has partnered with Pearson eCollege to launch the Cal State Online program in spring 2013.
CSU Online will allow anyone to earn a CSU degree by enrolling in online program offerings from the 23 campuses. CSU Online uses a cloud-based learning management system, which distributes data from one hard drive to anyone in the world.
This format makes a CSU-caliber education far more attainable, CSU Spokesman Erik Fallis said.
“It can be used by career professionals or maybe someone who has been deployed by the military,” Fallis said. “It’s really for anyone type-bound or anyone who cannot attend a CSU campus. Even though our campuses are regionally distributed, there is not necessarily one in everyone’s backyard.”
Launching such a program is something that the CSU has discussed for a while, according to Fallis. For the past few years the CSU has been investigating how to expand California’s workforce by providing more accessible education.
To create the program, the CSU had to find an appropriate integrated education technology provider. Fallis said Pearson eCollege was selected from a field of potential partners in a competitive bid process.
“We felt Pearson was a good fit based on what they could provide and the quality that they could give students,” Fallis said.
Pearson eCollege is used in several courses at Cal State Long Beach, but not all students would describe their experiences with the program as positive.
“I had to use [Pearson eCollege] for a class, and it was always really slow because you have to use Internet Explorer,” senior accounting major Edwin Barrios said.
But Kayla Christensen, a junior Spanish major, said using Pearson eCollege for one of her classes was very helpful.
“I thought it was a good program,” Christensen said. “I thought it was really easy to use.”
Although CSU Online is currently working with campuses on pilot programs scheduled to begin next spring, the program is far from a finished product, according to Fallis.
How much the courses will cost and the specific type of degrees to be awarded remain among the details yet to be determined.
“Many of the details are still being worked out,” Fallis said. “A lot of the program is still in development.”