Factors Affecting Persistence of Women in Online Programs

This qualitative case study explored the phenomenon of undergraduate and graduate women learners'' persistence in online degree-completion programs at an open-enrollment college in the Northeast of the United States. Research questions asked why women learners persisted or failed to persist, how factors supporting or hindering persistence influenced learners, and whether barriers to persistence reached a crisis point at which learners interrupted their studies. Interviews with a purposeful sample of 20 participants revealed the complexity of variables affecting learners'' persistence to graduation. Findings suggested that multiple responsibilities, lack of interaction with faculty, technology, and coursework ranked highest as barriers to women''s persistence. Strong motivation to complete degrees, engagement in the learning community, and appreciation for the convenience of an online degree-completion option facilitated persistence.