OEDb's Online College Rankings 2009: The Best Online Universities

Online higher education is growing, but a lack of transparency is preventing it from reaching its full potential. Even though online colleges are now receiving increased respect from top employers, diploma mills and the like limit the prestige of a legitimate online degree. We think more transparency is a good thing; a set of objective, quantitative rankings — however imperfect — should help shed some light on the relative attractiveness of the most popular accredited online colleges.

These rankings have been produced by OEDb, a database of accredited online education programs. In our rankings we included the most significant degree-granting undergraduate online colleges that operate nationally, as determined by our selection criteria. To our knowledge, our 2007 rankings were the first of their kind, and these 2009 rankings are meant to serve as an update.

For each college, we gathered data for eight different metrics — acceptance rate, financial aid, graduation rate, peer Web citations, retention rate, scholarly citations, student-faculty ratio, and years accredited. The overall ranking, shown below, ranks each college by its average ranking for each metric for which data was available.

Overall Results

This table simply shows the overall ranking of each college, with its average rank in the right-hand column reflecting the sum of all of its ranks divided by the number of metrics for which data was found for that particular college.

Overall RankCollegeAverage Rank
1Nova Southeastern University9.213
2Regent University11.663
3Champlain College13.290
4Upper Iowa University13.479
5LeTourneau University14.001
6Liberty University14.195
7Grand Canyon University15.502
8Dickinson State University17.269
9Western Governors University17.398
10Salem International University17.483
11Keiser University17.538
12Fisher College18.723
13National University19.136
14Walden University19.390
15Tiffin University21.573
16Westwood College21.597
17Post University21.701
18ITT Technical Institute21.894
19Colorado Technical University22.097
20Everglades University22.458
21Everest University22.930
22Kaplan University23.105
23Capella University23.390
24Rasmussen College23.582
25Devry University23.647
26Berkeley College23.777
27Granite State College24.141
28University of Phoenix25.577
29Peirce College26.289
30Herzing College26.456
31South University26.512
32City University26.560
33Florida National College26.648
34York Technical College26.668
35Western International University26.721
36Darton College26.792
37Franklin University27.356
38Northcentral University27.370
39Ashford University28.008
40Baker College28.124
41Bellevue University28.975
42National American University29.889
43Jones International University30.152
44American InterContinental University31.655

Overall Results with Metric Data

This table, ordered by the overall ranking of each college, shows each college's average rank and the data gathered for each of the eight metrics.

In the interest of conserving space, we have abbreviated the name of each college. Mouse over each abbreviation to view the full name of each college.

We have also abbreviated the names of all of the metrics in the table header. Key to metric acronymsAR: Acceptance Rate, FA: Financial Aid, GR: Graduation Rate, PW: Peer Web Citations, RR: Retention Rate, SC: Scholarly Citations, SF: Student-Faculty Ratio, YA: Years Accredited

RankCollegeAvg. RankARFAGRPWRRSCSFYA
1NSU9.21351%95%47%4,95060%11,80038
2RU11.66360%90%1,0704,1901025
3CC13.29059%94%84%52177%4731618
4UIU13.47962%96%36%39867%3341458
5LeTU14.00170%99%52%29678%3181939
6LU14.19596%98%51%56773%2,18029
7GCU15.50282%91%46%25269%3041341
8DSU17.26991%37%28765%2881960
9WGU17.39837%80%37%46778%1,1007
10SIU17.483100%39%4154%681346
11KU17.53854%100%55%3895%8917
12FC18.72359%100%20%16454%3211838
13NU19.13626%57%827100%221731
14WU19.3902,8502,5703319
15TU21.57373%92%34%34963%15124
16WC21.59799%100%48%7637%491340
17PU21.70143%99%36%3245%321536
18ITT21.89435%93%44%23938%1539
19CTU22.09745%76%10627328
20EU22.45856%100%50%363%2315
21Evst22.93070%83%36%21562%401739
22Kap23.105100%93%38%41075%8912
23Cap23.390100%5641,73012
24RU23.58293%53%13748%3424
25Devry23.64777%91%33%71447%5376
26BC23.77777%90%45%9651%1,03016
27GSC24.14181%14%1,04050%151028
28UP25.57739%4%99328%4,84030
29PC26.28965%36%8560%531738
30HC26.45687%88%56%4868%37154
31SU26.51262%98%25%8751%3123
32City26.56012%2561481830
33FNC26.64890%61%15100%102412
34YTC26.66889%11%7248%1341639
35WIU26.72188%25%867%1391025
36DC26.79287%15%13653%1092241
37FU27.35679%33%1,92033%433
38NCU27.370114155166
39AU28.00883%76%41%7645%1343759
40Baker28.12491%18%21141%8923923
41BU28.97570%18%35628%2462232
42NAU29.88972%15%62941%6423
43JIU30.15280%71%1804942310
44AICU31.655100%71%32%25329%22921

Overall Results with Metric Ranks

This table, ordered by the overall ranking of each college, shows each college's average rank and the rank or adjusted rank of that college for each of the eight metrics.

In the interest of conserving space, we have abbreviated the name of each college. Mouse over each abbreviation to view the full name of each college.

We have also abbreviated the names of all of the metrics in the table header. Key to metric acronymsAR: Acceptance Rate, FA: Financial Aid, GR: Graduation Rate, PW: Peer Web Citations, RR: Retention Rate, SC: Scholarly Citations, SF: Student-Faculty Ratio, YA: Years Accredited

RankCollegeAvg. RankARFAGRPWRRSCSFYA
1NSU9.2137.8811.7512.94118.9210.0011
2RU11.66316.4822.500.0040.0031.0023
3CC13.29013.0412.831.00126.971216.4832
4UIU13.47918.2010.6823.691512.941311.323
5LeTU14.00121.646.388.17184.581530.248
6LU14.19537.128.539.36109.3650.0020
7GCU15.50231.9618.2014.142210.56166.165
8DSU17.2690.0018.2021.311914.141730.241
9WGU17.3982.7232.1821.31134.5870.0041
10SIU17.4830.001.0018.924021.31316.164
11KU17.5389.601.005.78413.39290.0033
12FC18.72313.041.0035.642721.311426.8011
13NU19.1360.0042.933.3971.004121.6417
14WU19.3900.000.000.0020.00440.5631
15TU21.57325.0817.1328.471715.33230.0025
16WC21.59738.841.0011.753638.03346.167
17PU21.7014.446.3823.694232.063813.0414
18ITT21.8941.0013.9016.532336.83220.0040
19CTU22.0976.1634.330.00310.00180.0021
20EU22.45811.321.0010.564415.33400.0035
21Evst22.93023.3630.0323.692417.723521.648
22Kap23.10540.5613.9020.11148.17290.0036
23Cap23.39040.560.000.00110.0060.0036
24RU23.5820.0016.056.972828.47370.0025
25Devry23.64726.8018.2029.67830.86100.0042
26BC23.77728.5222.5015.333226.0880.0034
27GSC24.1410.0031.1041.61527.28421.0021
28UP25.5770.0041.8544.00641.6120.0018
29PC26.2890.0040.7823.693518.923321.6411
30HC26.45635.4027.884.583911.753613.0444
31SU26.51219.928.5333.253324.89390.0027
32City26.5600.0044.000.00200.002426.8018
33FNC26.6480.0022.502.19431.004338.8436
34YTC26.6680.0025.7342.813829.672616.488
35WIU26.7210.0026.8033.253444.00251.0023
36DC26.7920.0028.9539.222923.692833.685
37FU27.3560.0033.2529.67339.22440.0015
38NCU27.3700.000.000.00300.002116.4842
39AU28.00833.6834.3317.723632.062642.282
40Baker28.1240.0018.2038.032535.64944.0027
41BU28.9750.0039.7036.831641.611933.6816
42NAU29.8890.0036.4840.42934.44320.0027
43JIU30.15230.2437.550.00260.001137.1239
44AICU31.65540.5637.5532.062140.42200.0030

Ranking Metrics

You may wish to view the rankings for each individual metric.

Learn More About This Study

For further information regarding these rankings, you are encouraged to consult the in-depth documentation of our methodology; you may also wish to read about who we are and why we conducted this study.

Contact Us

If you have any questions, comments, or feedback regarding these rankings, please feel free to contact us.


Top Online Colleges

More Info from Saint Leo University Click Here
Saint Leo University - Associate’s & Bachelor’s Degrees. Saint Leo University is a premiere destination for students in obtaining their college degree online. Saint Leo University offers a dynamic curriculum to every student and are taught by the very best professors in their field of study.
Ashford University Online Click Here
Ashford University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. Ashford University offers a wide range of programs for students to advance their careers or change fields. Ashford is a leader in online learning and provides flexible and interactive learning opportunities for its students.
American InterContinental University Click Here
American InterContinental University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. American InterContinental University offers complete support throughout a student's educational career. All instructors have real-world experience and are also trained educators. They can offer insights that others cannot because they have worked in these fields.
More Info from Kaplan University Online Click Here
Kaplan University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. Kaplan University is one of the biggest names in online education. Students and job seekers who want to continue their education flexibly and efficiently will benefit from the vast range of programs and degrees offered at Kaplan.
DeVry University Click Here
DeVry University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. DeVry University offers students a variety of different degree choices so they can reach their career goals. An accredited college, DeVry University makes getting a college degree online obtainable for every student.
Liberty University Click Here
Liberty University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. Liberty offers campus, online, or blended degree programs for students all around the world. Liberty provides a flexible and welcoming experience for students who want to continue their education in a Christian environment.
More Info from South University Click Here
South University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. At South University, students are offered the same quality education online as they are at traditional college campuses. They are an accredited college, which is highly valued by employers all around the world.
More Info from Everest University Click Here
Everest University - Associate’s, Bachelor’s, & Master’s Degrees. Everest University is an accredited school prepares its students to become global thinkers and conscientious leaders. A degree from Everest provides a rigorous education offered in the context of its outstanding academic tradition.
More Info from Westwood College Click Here
Westwood College - Associate’s & Bachelor’s Degrees. Westwood College offers several online degrees, with many focusing in the Computers and Technology field. Students could earn anything from a Web Design degree to a degree in Game Production. The college is dedicated in providing students with the education they need to surpass their competition.

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About OEDb

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Featured Online Colleges

Kaplan University Online
Choose from over 70 programs, online or at one of over 75 campuses.

American InterContinental University Online
Complete your degree faster than typically possible, at home!

South University
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