The U.S. News Short List, separate from our overall rankings, is a regular series that magnifies individual data points in hopes of providing students and parents a way to find which undergraduate or graduate programs excel or have room to grow in specific areas. Be sure to explore The Short List: College, The Short List: Grad School and The Short List: Online Programs to find data that matter to you in your college or graduate school search.
For adult students, online education has become a common option, enabling them to work full time while pursuing a degree.
Although a 2016 study by Aslanian Market Research and the Learning House found that the average age of online graduate students has dropped slightly in recent years, experts say many online MBA programs still attract an older crowd than full-time, on-campus programs. Often, experts say, online students aim to change careers or advance in their current role.
[Discover how online degrees can help adults switch careers.]
Those seeking an online program where students have more work experience under their belts, for example, might consider St. Mary’s College of California, where students who started the program between July 2015 and June 2016 were an average of 41 years old, U.S. News data show.
Among the 189 ranked online MBA programs that submitted these data to U.S. News in an annual survey, the overall average age of new entrants during that time period was 33. But among the 14 schools with the highest averages, that figure was somewhat higher, at 38.
Following St. Mary’s were George Washington University in the District of Columbia, the Rochester Institute of Technology Saunders College of Business in New York and Ottawa University–Online in Kansas, all with an average age of 40 for new entrants. The remaining schools on the list saw average ages of either 38 or 39.
[Learn five tips for applying to online MBA programs.]
On the opposite end of the spectrum were programs at Emporia State University in Kansas, University of Texas–Tyler and the Cleveland State University Monte Ahuja College of Business, where new entrants during the 2015-2016 school year were 27 on average.
Below is a list of the 14 online MBA programs, including ties, with the highest average age of new entrants from July 2015 to June 2016. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria required by U.S. News to be ranked, were not considered for this report.
| School (name) (state) | Average age of new entrants (2015-2016) | U.S. News rank |
| St. Mary’s College of California | 41 | 131 |
| George Washington University (DC) | 40 | 29 (tie) |
| Rochester Institute of Technology (Saunders) (NY) | 40 | 33 (tie) |
| Ottawa University–Online (KS) | 40 | 140 (tie) |
| Texas Southern University (Jones) | 39 | 86 (tie) |
| Green Mountain College (VT) | 39 | 160 (tie) |
| American InterContinental University (IL) | 39 | RNP* |
| University of Massachusetts–Amherst (Isenberg) | 38 | 12 (tie) |
| University of Massachusetts–Lowell | 38 | 47 (tie) |
| Portland State University (OR) | 38 | 65 (tie) |
| Kansas State University | 38 | 71 |
| Colorado Technical University | 38 | 160 (tie) |
| Oregon Health and Science University | 38 | 160 (tie) |
| Lamar University (TX) | 38 | 168 (tie) |
* RNP denotes an institution that is ranked in the bottom one-fourth of its rankings category. U.S. News calculates a rank for the school but has decided not to publish it.
School officials can access historical data and rankings, including of peer institutions, via U.S. News Academic Insights.
U.S. News surveyed more than 250 colleges and universities for our 2017 Best Online MBA Programs rankings. Schools self-reported myriad data regarding their academic programs and the makeup of their student body, among other areas, making U.S. News’ data the most accurate and detailed collection of college facts and figures of its kind. While U.S. News uses much of this survey data to rank schools for our annual Best Colleges rankings, the data can also be useful when examined on a smaller scale. U.S. News will now produce lists of data, separate from the overall rankings, meant to provide students and parents a means to find which schools excel, or have room to grow, in specific areas that are important to them. While the data come from the schools themselves, these lists are not related to, and have no influence over, U.S. News’ rankings of Best Colleges, Best Graduate Schools or Best Online Programs. The enrollment data above are correct as of Feb. 7, 2017.
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14 Online MBA Programs With the Oldest Students originally appeared on usnews.com
