Program Review

Program Reviews

Administration of Online Programs

The Administration of Online Programs scorecard focuses on the quality of fully-online programs, addressing institutional support, technology infrastructure, guidelines for course development, and support for students and instructors.

Administration of Blended Learning Programs

The Administration of Blended Learning scorecard focuses on the quality of blended or hybrid programs, addressing institutional support, technology infrastructure, guidelines for course development, and support for students and instructors.

Administration Online Student Support

The Administration of Online Student Support scorecard focuses on the online student experience before, during, and after their time at an institution, addressing admissions, financial aid, orientation, support services, and job placement.

The Quality Scorecards are available to download for free as PDFs, while program-level Quality Scorecard Handbooks are available for purchase.

Review Types

Basic Review 

The Basic review service is for institutions that are on a limited budget or have the resources to complete all of the internal components of the review process. Institutions are fully responsible for self-scoring and submitting artifacts and documentation for reviewers.

Standard Review 

The Standard review service is for institutions that have the capacity to complete much of the internal components of the review process but may need assistance with project management, evidence-gathering, and submission of artifacts. Institutions would be mostly responsible, with the assistance of OLC, for self-scoring and submitting documentation.

Premier Review 

The Premier review service is for institutions that may lack the time or personnel to complete the internal components of the review process but have the means to outsource that labor and effort. Institutions would be responsible for very little during the review process related to self-scoring and submitting artifacts and documentation for reviewers.

Review Process

All institutions participate in the same review process no matter which review type is selected. The primary difference between services is the level of support, assistance, and guidance provided to the institution by OLC during the process.

Complete Self Review

All institutions undergoing an official OLC review engage in an initial self-review. This consists of learning about the Quality Scorecard and how to fulfill each section, rating the institution against each objective on a 0-3 point scale, collecting evidence artifacts to support each rating, as well as writing narratives for each rating that will be submitted to the OLC external reviewers.

For Navigator clients, OLC will gather all evidence, write all narratives, and score all objectives, while Compass clients will receive specialized guidance and assistance in these areas.

Receive Peer Review

OLC external reviewers will then conduct the peer review process which consists of reviewing the scores provided by the institution for each objective, validating that each score has a corresponding piece of evidence, and aligning the narratives with the evidence and scores to ensure that each objective has been met.

The peer review team will provide their initial ratings to the institution identifying areas where scores may not match the initial evidence provided and giving the institution the opportunity to submit additional evidence.

Receive Final Report

After receiving any additional evidence, narratives, and updated scoring from the institution, the OLC external review team will draft a final report outlining its findings and recommendations.

OLC Quality Scorecard Endorsement

Institutions that score highly enough on any Quality Scorecard on their final report will be eligible to receive an official OLC Quality Scorecard Endorsement for their program.

For more information about how your institution can distinguish itself with an OLC Quality Scorecard Review and Endorsement, please contact sales@onlinelearning-c.org