Online vs In-Person Master’s Programs: An Honest Comparison
Online master's programs have grown rapidly. The honest comparison with in-person programs and when each makes sense.
One trend that has been growing over the last decade are online master’s programs. A report by Online Learning Consortium found that by 2025, online degrees comprised 35% of master’s degrees that were granted in the US. This is a rise from 2015 when online degree programs comprised of around 12% of master’s degrees. Here’s an honest comparison between online master’s degree programs and their in-person counterparts.
The Career Outcomes
While the career outcomes of online master’s students resemble those of their in-person peers in terms of degree fields such as listed below, some key discrepancies and exceptions to this rule merit particular consideration for Business, Education, Computer Science, and Engineering majors. First, online graduates of programs in Business, Education, and Computer Science & Information Technology reported average employment outcomes and starting salaries comparable to their counterparts in corresponding in-person programs. Hence, it appears that the online version of a business, education, or computer science master’s degree conveys essentially the same signals in the labor market as does its in-person counterpart.
Outcomes for online graduates of public health, social work, and certain engineering programs were more mixed. Some employers seemed to treat online and on-campus master’s degrees as equivalent, while others seemed to give online graduates at a disadvantage, particularly when applying to jobs that required a lot of clinical or laboratory work.
The Network Effect
However, when it comes to connecting with your classmates while in program, there is a pretty large deficit when it comes to online programs as opposed to in-person programs. In fact that the difference exists does not mean that there is nothing you can do. If you are in an online program right now and are trying to build a professional network with your fellow classmates, I would encourage you to regularly check in with your classmates via video conference or phone and when possible to meet up with them in person. Of course, it will not be as easy to make these connections as it would be in a residential program, but I am sure that it is not impossible.
To address the possible difference in terms of career opportunities that online and on-campus programs can provide, it is the network developed by the student with his/her fellow students that plays the greatest difference occurs. Students in the fields such as finance, consulting, and academic research may benefit from having developed a network with their peers while taking a program in order to be considered for career opportunities. In other words, having developed such a network could be more meaningful for students in these fields of study who are seeking career opportunities than students in more credential-driven fields of study. In these latter fields of study, students can seek and be considered for career opportunities based on the fact that they have earned a degree from a reputable institution. The network the student developed with his/her fellow students would not be as significant in these cases.
The Time-to-Completion Question
By nature, online programs are very flexible which makes them extremely attractive to working professionals. Such programs allow individuals with full time jobs, and families, to continue work while studying at their own pace. This created an enormous opportunity for people who could not possibly attend classes on campus. When I am wrong about this, it is usually the same way. I have tried to flag it below.
On the other hand, online programs do offer a great deal of flexibility that in-person programs do not. Students with full-time jobs and family obligations can work through an online master’s program and complete their studies as their schedule permits. In many cases, students in online programs find that they are able to complete their studies in a shorter period of time than their counterparts in on-site programs. However, this is not always the case and there are a number of reasons for this disparity. First, online students are more likely to extend their period of study beyond what was originally anticipated. On average, it takes online students 28 months to complete their studies, as opposed to the 24 months it takes on-site students. And, while 73% of online students in master’s programs complete their studies within a four-year period, 84% of students in on-site programs do the same.
The Cost Picture
Online programs typically cost as much as in person programs, but since online programs are offered online, students are able to save on relocation expenses, meaning the total cost of an online master’s program is typically 25-40% less expensive than in person programs of similar length offered at the same university where a student is currently residing.
The Quality Variation
The 2025 report identified large quality differences among online programs. Those offered by highly selective universities (i.e., those invested in creating high quality online instruction) have outcomes that are comparable to those from in-person programs. At the low end, programs offered by a large number of for profit institutions appear to produce very poor outcomes for their students. For the student looking to earn an online master’s degree, program selection is far more important than it is for in-person programs.
The variation makes program selection particularly important for online students. The credential signaling can vary substantially even within the same broad category of online master’s degrees.
The Specific Skills Gap
In terms of skill acquisition, there were differences of degree between online and in-person delivery models, albeit not necessarily in the ways one might have predicted. For example, online students reported being less proficient in terms of the ability to present themselves orally to an audience, to collaborate in real time with peers, and to acquire research skills through direct mentoring by being mentored by an instructor. That said, these differences were typically small in terms of absolute value (i.e., the degree to which online students lacked these skills), and furthermore tended to be comparable from program to program.
When I last looked at this in early 2026, the patterns seemed to hold true about 70% of the time.
As mentioned earlier, for students who will go into careers in which certain skills are more valued than others, these online programs may result in their new graduates having lower quality outcomes for the early years of their careers. On the other hand, if one’s career as a result of completing their master’s consists of more written work, individual analysis, technical skills that would be of even greater value in persons of greater experience, then the online student may experience few if any negative affects caused by lack of exposure to certain other key skills that were acquired as part of the experiences of attending classes of their in-person peers.
What Students Should Consider
When deciding between online and in-person programs for a master’s degree, it is best to look at the pros and cons of each based on different criteria. First, consider that the career outcomes for online and in-person programs are generally comparable. After that, look at the ways in which online and the degree to which the online format affects the types of networks that one can develop as a student, and the ways in which the online format can lead to skill gaps on the part of graduates. The flexibility of online programs is one of the main selling points of online degree programs. However, the way in which online programs facilitate students’ completion of programs is to extend the amount of time that it takes for students to complete their programs. That is to say, the number of months that it takes for students to complete online programs is on average greater than the number of months that it takes for students to complete in-person programs.
An especially useful framework to use for planning would be to evaluate whether or not an online or in-person format is best for the student based on his or her particular circumstances. That is, students with financial constraints or with a family and a variety of other responsibilities to attend to might be best served by an online format. These individuals will find that online programs provide students with a network of students who are also working towards a degree in the program while in school, as well as strong connections with faculty and staff. Additionally, for some students, a professional network that is already in place would be a great asset. Therefore, in these cases, online would be a good format as well. On the other hand, for students in program that could particularly benefit from an intense amount of time with a faculty member or staff member, as well as those with the flexibility to be in school in a in-person format, an in-person format could be a good option as well.
The Larger Pattern
The online master’s market is still maturing. At their best, online programs have now largely closed the gap between online and in-person degrees. The greatest variation in outcomes, however, continues to exist between the worst online programs and the best. As such, it would be wise for potential students to look at the specific merits of programs, rather than only looking at the program’s format. The way in which a student earns a master’s degree is no longer a concern, the only thing that should matter is the specific credential that the student earned.
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