Higher Education, OPMs, and Online Degrees

US higher education has about 3,900–4,000 degree-granting institutions, and they buy differently from school districts or employers. Each institution is its own buyer, but peers and consortia shape choices. Systems are replaced once a decade or less. Revenue is tuition-driven and sensitive to enrolment, and many private colleges already discount their sticker price by more than half for first-year students. Federal student aid touches almost everything, so any vendor involved in recruiting, enrolment or aid administration can fall under Department of Education rules. That is why the online programme manager ended up in the regulatory spotlight.