USC ranks No. 9 in online doctoral programs



The Rossier School of Education offers two online doctoral programs, the doctor of education in educational leadership and the doctorate of education in organizational change and leadership.
(Daily Trojan file photo)

USC ranks No. 9 among the best colleges for online doctoral programs, according to an SR Education Group report released earlier this month. 

The SR Education Group ranked 24 other institutions of higher education, including Johns Hopkins and New York universities. 

The group researched 1,943 online colleges to determine the nation’s best online schools, according to a press release. To be eligible for ranking, schools must have at least two online doctoral programs in a minimum of two subject fields and have an annual research expenditure greater than $0, according to the SR Education Group. Its website states that factors such as the number of full-time faculty members and student-to-faculty ratio played a role in the rankings.

USC offers three online doctoral programs between the Rossier School of Education and the School of Social Work: the doctor of education in educational leadership, doctor of social work and doctor of education in organizational change and leadership

“[We wanted to] increase access to our programs, to create programs other people around the country wouldn’t otherwise come to and then to also sort of expand our influence to become more known as a national leader,” said Robert Filback, professor of clinical education for the Organizational Change and Leadership online program. 

Filback said online doctoral students have access to all the resources that on-campus USC students have, including career centers and libraries. Rossier students use 2SC, an online learning platform similar to Blackboard, to turn in assignments and receive materials, and use video conferencing service Zoom to participate in live sessions. 

OCL student Natalie Nagthall said participating in the online program doesn’t necessarily take away from her experience as a doctoral student because she can still interact with other students and professors. 

“You felt like you were in an actual classroom, and you still develop relationships with your classmates just as you would if you were actually in a physical classroom,” she said. “I haven’t felt like I missed out on anything with the way this program has been designed, so that’s great.” 

Nagthall said she chose USC over other online doctoral programs at competing universities because of its reputation and structured schedule. While traditional online programs allow students to complete assignments based on their own progress and time, she said, USC’s online courses are taught at least once a week at a specific time. 

“I really liked how the program was set up to be a synchronous online program as opposed to a regular online program where you kind of check in whenever you can,” she said. “Because of my particular work schedule, it was really important that I find a program that was reputable, but was also a very synchronous program.”

Janice Andrade, another OCL student, explained that she decided to apply to and ultimately attend USC because it offered her a high-quality education without requiring her to always be in one location. 

“I chose the OCL online program because my husband and I were planning on moving,” she said. “I wanted to find a program where it allows me to be able to move if I needed to and still be able to make it to class. But also, I like the convenience of being in my own home and my office.” 

Since USC started offering online graduate degrees in 2009, Filback said the University has become a leader in highly-interactive programs. 

“[These programs] are equally demanding and rigorous — same curricula, the same faculty as our on-campus programs, and so we’ve been able to build on that experience,” he said.

Correction: The headline of this story was updated to correctly reflect that USC doctoral, not Ph.D., programs are offered online. The Daily Trojan regrets this error.