2023 Best Online Programs Ranking Includes MN Schools: U.S. News

MINNESOTA — Several bachelor’s and master’s programs at accredited universities in Minnesota are ranked among the 2023 Best Online Programs released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

The rankings are designed for people who want to complete their bachelor’s and master’s degrees, but need the flexibility to complete the coursework online. U.S. News is the only media organization that ranks online degrees at the program rather than school level.

U.S. News ranked programs in eight disciplines. Programs in Minnesota that made the grade are:

Bachelor’s Degree
Concordia University - St. Paul (Rank 161)

Master’s Programs
MBA

College of St. Scholastica (Rank 210)
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (Rank 215)
St. Mary's University of Minnesota (Rank 218)
Concordia University-St. Paul (Rank 278)

Business, Non-MBA
St. Mary's University of Minnesota (Rank 124)
Concordia University-St. Paul (Rank 172)

Computer Information Technology
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (Rank 91)

Criminal Justice/Criminology
Concordia University-St. Paul (Rank 48)

Education
College of St. Scholastica (Rank 74)
Concordia University-St. Paul (Rank 124)
St. Cloud State University (Rank 169)
Martin Luther College (Rank 293)

Engineering
St. Cloud State University (Rank 85)
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (Rank 107)

U.S. News evaluated some 1,832 programs — the highest in the history of the rankings — to arrive at the 2023 list. Of those, 1,730 were ranked.

Online learning increased in popularity at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. News noted, but many of the institutions whose programs are ranked were ahead of the curve and had offered online programs for years.

Most of those evaluated offer degree completion programs that give students who have completed some of the requirements the flexibility to complete their degrees, according to Eric Brooks, the lead data analyst at U.S. News.

“The methodology is developed with those students in mind, setting these rankings apart from those that are focused on recent high school graduates pursuing higher education for the first time,” Brooks said in a news release.

While the methodologies are different for each discipline, they all incorporate metrics specific to online learning.

The online bachelor’s level ranking does 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 student excellence. Blended learning programs — a combination of both face-to-face and distance instruction — are not included in the rankings.