Enrolling in an online college program can often be a more affordable and flexible alternative to an in-person degree, especially for students juggling a job or family responsibilities.
While online learning increased in popularity at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, many institutions – like some ranked in the 2024 U.S. News Best Online Programs – were ahead of the curve, having offered online degree options for years.
For the 2024 Best Online Programs rankings released today, U.S. News assessed 1,752 online bachelor's and master's degree programs and ranked 1,680 of them.
These rankings do not use standardized tests, instead relying on other factors such as faculty credentials and training, services and technologies available to students, student engagement and expert opinion on the academic quality of programs. Master's degree programs, in addition to these criteria, are also ranked based on assessment of student excellence via undergraduate GPAs, acceptance rates and work experience.
Blended learning programs – a combination of both face-to-face and distance education – are not included in the rankings. To be eligible, a program needs to be predominately online, without recurrent in-person attendance requirements for instruction.
Graduate programs are categorized based on the following areas of study: non-MBA business, criminal justice, information technology, education, engineering and nursing. Online MBA programs are ranked separately from other master's business degrees. U.S. News also ranks the Best Online Programs for Veterans.
Below are some of the top online degree programs in the 2024 rankings. Shifts in the rankings can be attributed to year-to-year changes in schools' data, and elimination of the proportion of graduates who borrowed as a ranking factor. The student indebtedness indicator is now exclusively based on the average debt among graduate borrowers. Learn more about the rankings' methodologies here.
Best Online Bachelor's Programs
The University at Buffalo—SUNY soared from a tie at No. 25 to top this year's list for bachelor's programs. Previously tied at No. 2, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University—Worldwide in Florida fell out of the top 10, taking the No. 13 spot along with George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and the University of Georgia.
Seven schools made the top 10 list for at least the second year in a row. Ohio State Online, North Carolina State University and UB are the newcomers to the top 10 this year.
There were significant gains in the rankings outside of the top 10, such as for the University of Kentucky, which moved up from a tie at No. 49 to a four-way tie at No. 16. Climbing from its previous position of a tie at No. 113, California State University—Chico now ties with three other schools for the No. 41 position.
Some colleges have strength in a specific major. For example, the University of Florida and the University of Massachusetts—Amherst were rated as the No. 1 and No. 2 schools, respectively, for the Best Online Bachelor's in Business Programs. Rounding out the top three in a tie were Arizona State University, Oregon State University and Pennsylvania State University—World Campus.
There is also a ranking for Best Online Bachelor's in Psychology Programs. Penn State World Campus and Oregon State emerged again in this ranking to take the top two spots, respectively, followed by the University of Florida at No. 3.
Best Online Programs for Veterans
To qualify, schools must appear in the top half of the Best Online Programs rankings; be certified for the GI Bill; and either be Yellow Ribbon Program participants or public institutions that charge in-state tuition that can be fully paid through the GI Bill for out-of-state applicants.
Additionally, a minimum of 25 veterans and active service members must be enrolled for a bachelor's program to qualify for the rankings, with 10 needed for a master's program.
The top two online bachelor's programs for veterans changed slightly from last year. The University of Florida is again at No. 1, with ASU now taking the No. 2 spot. CUNY School of Professional Studies in New York and the University of Arizona rank third and fourth, respectively. Embry-Riddle and the University of Central Florida tie at fifth place.
Best Online MBA Programs
Indiana University—Bloomington's Kelley School of Business and Carnegie Mellon University's Tepper School of Business in Pennsylvania took the top two spots, respectively, among online MBA programs. Previously tied for first, the University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill's Kenan-Flagler Business School fell to a tie for third, alongside the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business and the University of Washington's Michael G. Foster School of Business. For veterans, UW and IU topped the list at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.
There were no new entrants into the top 10 this year.
As for specialties, Carnegie Mellon ranked the highest for business analytics and IU ranked No. 1 for finance and marketing.
Best Online Master's in Business Programs
In addition to MBA programs, U.S. News also ranks the Best Online Master's in Business Programs, which include degrees in accounting, finance, insurance, marketing and management.
Climbing up from a tie at No. 2, Carnegie Mellon claimed the No. 1 spot while the remaining top 10 included several ties. There was a three-way tie for the sixth spot: Boston University, Rutgers University—New Brunswick and Newark and the University of Massachusetts—Amherst's Isenberg School of Management. The largest tie is at No. 9, with five schools claiming the position: Duke University's Fuqua School of Business in North Carolina, Florida International University, Kansas State University, the University of Texas—Dallas' Naveen Jindal School of Management and the University of Connecticut.
Some non-MBA online graduate business programs climbed significant spots in the rankings. Kansas State, for example, jumped from a tie at No. 43 to a shared No. 9. Breaking into the top 50 at No. 34 was Drexel University's LeBow College of Business in Pennsylvania, which previously tied at No. 52.
Best Online Master's in Education Programs
Clemson University's Moore School of Education in South Carolina once again claimed the No. 1 rank for online graduate education programs, this year without tying. Previously tied for the top spot, the University of Florida's College of Education moved down to No. 2 in a tie with the University of Virginia.
Tied for No. 109 in the prior year, Middle Georgia State University soared to a seven-way tie at No. 45. Another large jump in the rankings was Kent State University in Ohio, which jumped from a tie at No. 142 to a five-way tie at No. 58.
As for specialties, Michigan State University ranked No. 1 for educational administration and supervision, and curriculum and instruction, while the University of Kansas took the top spot for special education. UVA took the top spot for veterans.
Best Online Master's in Nursing Programs
The University of South Carolina ranked No. 1 among online nursing master's programs for the fourth consecutive year. Indiana University-Purdue University—Indianapolis rose eight spots to No. 2, followed by Saint Xavier University in Illinois at No. 3.
In addition to being tied at No. 4 overall, Duke swept first place in three specialty areas: nursing administration/leadership, nursing education and family nurse practitioner.
Best Online Master's in Engineering Programs
The University of California—Los Angeles' Henry Samueli School of Engineering claimed the top spot again in the rankings of online master's in engineering programs, while the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Grainger College of Engineering – which is also No. 1 for veterans – moved up two spots from No. 4. Purdue University—Main Campus in Indiana dropped by one, tying with Penn State World Campus to round out the top three.
Several schools in the Midwest ranked high in specialty areas. Purdue was No. 1 for industrial, management (tied with Johns Hopkins University in Maryland) and mechanical engineering while the University of Illinois—Urbana-Champaign topped the list for civil engineering.
Best Online Master's in Information Technology Programs
Columbia University, Johns Hopkins' G.W.C. Whiting School of Engineering in Maryland and Virginia Tech once again ranked in the top three among online graduate information technology programs. However, unlike last year, Columbia and Johns Hopkins tied for the No. 1 spot. Also in the top 20, Ferris State University in Michigan experienced one of the largest shifts in this category – from a tie at No. 41 to a four-way tie at No. 14.
Best Online Master's in Criminal Justice Programs
The online graduate criminology program at the University of California—Irvine was No. 1 for the fourth consecutive year. The University of New Haven in Connecticut moved up from a tie at No. 6 to claim the No. 2 spot, while there was a four-way tie at No. 3: Boston University, Sam Houston State University in Texas, Texas Christian University and the University of Massachusetts—Lowell.
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