Examining Distance Education Coursetaking and Time-to-Completion among Community College Students

Abstract

The discrepancy in the empirical literature surrounding distance education (DE) coursetaking among community college students has led to the online paradox, where short-term or more proximal academic outcomes associated with DE coursetaking are negative, but the long-term or distal academic outcomes are positive. Importantly, no previous study has yet examined the relationship between DE enrollment and the time it takes community college students to complete their degree programs or succeed in transferring to a four-year school. This gap in the research literature is unfortunate, as understanding the relationship between DE and time-to-completion may shed light on mechanisms underlying the online paradox. Consequently, the current study looks at the relationship between DE coursetaking and time-to-completion among first-time community college students. The study uses large, nationally representative data and propensity score matching (PSM) to mitigate the impact of self-selection into DE courses. Results indicate that students who completed at least one DE course during their first year of study finished their BA degrees, on average, two to three months sooner than similar students who did not take a DE course. Policy implications for DE and community college leadership are discussed.