Budgets are now tighter and the need for income generation greater, coinciding with increased appetite to develop new, shorter forms of online provision. Universities need to go into this with their eyes open and set themselves up for success.

Over the years, I have analysed online programme management (OPM) companies and their partnerships with UK universities, tracking the dynamics of this evolving market. It is a contested and sometimes opaque space, meaning the debate around these companies and their partnerships with universities often lacks nuance and has, at times, been shaped by misinformation from within higher education itself.

If the sector wants to take a more nuanced view of these partnerships, it must move beyond the moral asymmetry and the tendency to cast private providers as convenient villains.

Not all companies, and not all partnerships, demonstrate a strong, prioritised focus on international online student recruitment, and the student numbers reflect this.

Those who are tempted to view the online international student market as a massive opportunity solely based on the large and appealing numbers often presented, really need to consider how pricing affects the total addressable market.

Perhaps the overarching lesson is the need to avoid short-termism. It was this mindset that drove an in-out cycle of engagement with online learning during the 2010s, failing to yield the kind of long-term benefits that could have left some universities in a much stronger position for the remainder of the 2020s.

2024 has been another year of increasing focus on online learning from UK universities. This has been reflected in the increasing number of partnerships with online education companies and the growth of online degrees, sub-degree courses, and portfolios.

This may be where, through online elective modules, collaboration might be worth exploring. This would entail reciprocal arrangements that involve two or more universities effectively offering online elective modules for each other's degree programmes.

Universities will need to become far more effective and strategic to develop an online education proposition for India that is appealing, accessible, and offers a high-quality experience.

What is largely evident across Welsh universities is a general lack of an institutional strategy and cohesive, university-wide approaches to online learning.

Reputation, brand, and prestige continue to offer a significant advantage to this group of universities. However, collectively, these institutions have yet to fully capitalise on the advantages they hold in online distance education.

There may come a time when it is not a lack of money that precipitates a slide into decline, but a lack of understanding your audience and changing what you do as a result.

One of the great benefits of digital technologies and the internet is the global reach they provide. However, the emergence of digital services taxes means that tax implications are not solely determined by UK tax rules.

The development of online provision is ultimately a good investment for universities, but not for short-term financial returns.

Adults will also need opportunities to develop skills and knowledge to meet current and future needs… more accessible alternatives to traditional university-based education will be needed if aims around the workforce are to be met.

Over the years, online distance learning has become less and less the exclusive domain of a small number of universities…we are entering a new chapter, one that might over time lead to a changing of the landscape.

It has been fascinating to observe 2U’s growing footprint in UK higher education against the backdrop of very transparent and widely publicised financial turmoil.

No one out there is saying what we really need is to add some more years to degree courses and make them longer. All the movement has been toward shorter courses and programmes.

What is evident in the UK context is that THE have not consulted with the growing number of senior online education professionals and leaders when developing this ranking.

My first reflection on this piece is that the discussion actually revolves around blended learning or some form of digitally facilitated learning, rather than fully online distance courses that lack any in-person component.