YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – With the number of traditional college-age people dwindling nationwide, Youngstown State University is adding eight new online degrees.
“So we took a look at market share and what the demand is in the market,” said Jennifer Pintar, YSU provost and vice president of academic affairs. But the state of Ohio is also focused on individuals who have some college credit but didn’t earn a degree, she said, and that played a role in the decision as well.
“And so we looked at programs that are really tied to immediate job opportunities,” she said.
Starting in fall 2025, nine programs will be available online: seven bachelor’s degrees, a master’s degree in respiratory care and a certificate in polysomnography, or sleep study.
The bachelor’s degrees:
- Communication studies.
- Applied science in public health.
- Business administration, accounting.
- Business administration.
- Business administration, business analytics and economics.
- Business administration, management.
- Computer science cybersecurity.
Communication studies is moving out of the Williamson College of Business Administration and into the Beeghly College of Liberal Arts, Social Sciences & Education where it better aligns, the provost said.
Enrollment for the new programs opens in April.
“Those are all programs that we see a direct excitement for in the market,” she said. “The certificate in polysomnography is going to be a great addition because our hospitals in the region need that, and they also need that master’s in respiratory care. And all of these we can deliver fully online.”
The new online options are in addition to the online bachelor’s degree programs that started in the spring 2025 semester, which include psychology, sociology, criminal justice, computer science, graphic design, allied health, general studies and respiratory care.
“It’s going to take some time to ramp up,” Pintar said of interest.
But numbers weren’t high when YSU first introduced its online Master of Business Administration degree either.
“And now it’s unbelievable enrollment,” she said.
The decision to add the online offerings is market driven, Pintar explained.
“What we’re seeing is that students are trending more and more to online if they’re not a typical demographic,” she said.
Someone who entered the job market immediately after high school and later decides they want to pursue a bachelor’s degree, they don’t want to sit in a classroom or in a dorm with 18-year-old students, the provost pointed out.
“Online is a great choice for them,” she said. “It allows that flexibility for their schedule, and with the some college, no degree [students], we have a lot of people ready to help them with our transfer credits.”
Those YSU personnel will conduct a prior learning assessment for those students to try and maximize the number of credit hours that will transfer toward a degree.
“And so if you look at the demographic cliff, and if we’re going to maintain or increase our enrollment, then we need to start looking at other avenues like this, because it’s not going to be from the 18-year-olds, right?” Pintar explained. “That number is going down.”
The demographic cliff refers to the decline in the number of college age individuals in the U.S. stemming from lower birth rates that started about 2007. It’s expected to hit this fall.
The new offerings line up with what YSU President Bill Johnson has said about the need to “cast a wider net” to attract and retain students. When he first took office in January 2024, Johnson said YSU was accelerating its online presence as one way to appeal to more potential students.
“That’s going to be one of my primary focus areas,” he said at that time.
It’s possible more online programs will be added.
“We are listening to our faculty, and they get excited about putting some of these online,” Pintar said. “We do not want to become a fully online school, obviously, but there are some degrees that lend themselves to that.”
She has a meeting next week with members of a department who want to put a new master’s program online.
“And so it’s really faculty directed,” Pintar said. “When they come up with ideas of what they think will work, we listen.”
She acknowledged the concern among some that by offering online programs, the university is cannibalizing itself, taking away from those on campus.
“And the answer to that is that it’s been well documented that 33% of Ohioans go out of the state to get an online education,” she said. “And so we want to capture the Ohioans that have already determined that online education is what’s best for them, and we want to make sure that they stay in Ohio, particularly at YSU.”
Students who want to come to campus are different than those who want an online education, Pintar said. They learn differently. The two groups have different life situations that lend to either online or on-campus learning.
She likened it to car dealerships that sell different types of cars. Some customers want a vehicle that sits six people, and others are looking for a vehicle for two.
“This is just making sure that we have what our students need and want,” Pintar said.