Hiring gatekeepers were interviewed to understand employer perceptions of online degrees. While some employers were becoming more accepting, most participants still viewed online degrees as less rigorous and preferable traditional degrees from prestigious universities. Participants expressed concern about the lack of collaboration and hands-on learning in online programs. However, they were more open to online master's degrees and programs that blended online and in-person learning. The study highlights ongoing barriers faced by online degree holders seeking employment.

1. The Value of an Online
Degree in Hiring
Gatekeepers‟ choice for
Employment
Renee Mandelbaum
S

2. Statistics
S Fall 2012: Over 6.1 million students were taking at least one
online course (Allen & Seaman 2011).
S 31% of all higher education students now take at least one
course online. (Allen & Seaman 2011).
S For the purposes of this report: online courses are those in
which at least 80% of the course content is delivered online
(Allen & Seaman 2011).
S Online Degrees--Advertisement

3. Statistics
S A study including data from 2,500 colleges and universities
revealed that 65% (of all reporting institutions) indicate online
learning is a critical part of long-term institutional strategy (Allen
& Seaman 2011).
S 63% of academic leaders rated the learning outcomes in online
education as the same or superior to those in face-to- face
(Allen & Seaman 2011).
S Among college graduates who have taken a class online 15%
have earned a degree entirely online (Pew Research Center,
2011).

4. Trends
S 19% of all undergraduates at for-profit institutions were
enrolled in an online degree granting program (U.S.
Department of Education, 2011).
S Presidents of both non-profit and for-profit post
secondary institutions predict a continued increase in the
number of courses offered online as well as student
enrollment

5. Who Are They?
S Online degree learner
S Noel-Levitz (2011) collected data from over 99,000 online
students from 108 institutions
S Majority of online learners were Caucasian females
S Enrolled fully online with a full-time class load
S Undergraduate level
S Half students were married

6. Employer Perceptions
S Research indicates that many employers remain reluctant to hire
individuals who received their degrees online (Adams and
DeFleur‟s 2006).
S Student of principal perception of an online degree in teacher
preparation was overwhelmingly negative (Huss, 2007).
S “While the reputation of a university for academic rigor is also
associated with acceptability, traditional classroom experiences
are perceived to offer something more. It may be suggested that
online programs, even those offered by institutions noted for
excellent academic standards, may always be regarded as
„missing‟ key elements” (Adams, 2008).

7. Employer Perceptions
Adams & DeFleur (2006)
S Acceptability of Online Degree Earned as a
Credential for Obtaining Employments
S Applicant A: degree was awarded by a college or university
where 100% of the applicant‟s courses were completed via
traditional classroom
S Applicant B: degree was awarded by a „„virtual university.‟‟
This university does not have a campus, classrooms, labs or
library, and 100% of the applicant‟s courses were taken
online over the Internet.
S Applicant C :degree was awarded by a college or university,
where 50% of the applicant‟s courses were taken online
over the Internet, and the other 50% were completed via
traditional classroom.

8. Study Continued
Adams & DeFleur (2006)
Traditional
Combination
Online Only
96%
Source of Degree 27%
4%
0 50 100
Figure 1: Percent who replied YES to: “I would be most likely to
recommend hiring the applicant.”

9. Study Continued
Adams & DeFleur (2006)

10. Employer Perceptions
S Society of Human Resource Management (2010) report some
employers are now starting to see online learning as a valid
educational solution.
S More than one-third of organizations stated that job candidates
who have obtained their degrees online were viewed as
favorably as job applicants with traditional degrees (i.e., brick-
and-mortar).
S 55% indicated that if two job applicant with same job
experience were applying for a job—degree would not make a
difference (online vs. traditional)
S Only 11% of organizations reported that applicants frequently
or always identify degree type (online vs. traditional)

11. Definition
S Hiring Gatekeeper
S “…anyone who stands between you and the person who
might want to hire you. Gatekeepers come in many
forms, including receptionists, HR recruiters, and resume
screeners” (Columbaro and Monagham, 2009).

12. Research Purpose &
Questions
S Study Purpose: to help online degree job candidates
understand the potential hiring barriers they may incur from
employers
S The following research questions were addressed in this study:
1. What are employers‟ current perceptions regarding online
education?
2. How do employer views compare for candidates who earned
their online degrees from online institutions and from
prestigious traditional institutions?
3. To what extent do employer views regarding online and
traditional degree earned from prestigious traditional
institutions differ?

13. Methodology & Research
Design
S Qualitative Design
S Semi-structured interview protocol
S One-on-one interviews
S Interview guide consisted of 17 research-based items
S Was assessed for content validity by educational
professionals
S Purposeful sampling methods
S Participants position
S Responsibility within company
S Final sample of four hiring gatekeepers agreed to participate

14. Methodology Continued
S Ethical Issues
S IRB
S Voluntary & Anonymous
S Researcher Reflexivity
S Personal experience online education
S Trustworthiness
S Transcription accuracy
S Peer Review

15. Methodology Continued
 Responses among participants were
assessed, analyzed, and coded to identify similarities and
differences.
 Able to generate common themes and sub-categories from
each data set.
 Used a compare and contrast method of data analysis.
S Theme
S Credentialism
S Legitimacy Theory

16. Study Participants
Participant Participant Participant Hiring Responsibilities
Company Type Position
John Media CEO Responsible for all hiring
decisions
Sarah Software Director Reviews all resumes and
Development makes company hiring
decisions
Jennifer TV Network Human Recruiting & hiring
Resources responsibilities
Paula Fortune 150 Human Supports 250 employees
Manufacturing Resources and responsible for
recruiting and hiring

17. Perceptions of Online Degrees
Participant Perception
less intensive education
John less collaboration with students and potentially not an opportunity to
have one-on-one interaction with their professors…
I think Phoenix (laughter).
Jennifer If I see online (on a resume)…50/50 I am okay with it, but I know if I
pass it on to a hiring manager they‟d be like “no”.
One of the first things that pops into my head is the University of
Phoenix.
Sarah We would not hire a person with a 100 percent online
undergraduate degree.
I think of it as second tier…
Paula It (online degree) is easy to get.
It (online degree) is not as challenging

18. Participant Responses
S John: The perception I have of the online education—what I
don’t know and what I would love to know is the courses that
are taught online…are they identical in the curriculum to what
is on campus? Meaning, chapter by chapter, verse by verse –
are the students going over that or is it in a bridge version that
they’re getting that way. That to me probably would change my
perception of online education…I would feel more comfortable
with even myself achieving a degree in that regard.
S Sarah: With an online degree you can sit in your pajamas, go to
class and not really have a lot of the group interaction and
teamwork interaction that you would have in your real job
place. Having that experience (traditional) rather than actually
going and participating in groups and being a part of the
college experience is something that is really negative in our
minds. (It) would definitely be a huge factor and we probably
wouldn’t interview them.

19. Participant Responses
S Paula: People at our company that went through traditional
classroom base learning, they struggled, they studied
hard…everyone had that stress, everyone felt it…they’re proud of
themselves for overcoming it. Now, people that have taken online
classes, I would probably say, that most of them felt that the class
was easier. Speaking from experience I felt I didn’t have to read or
study as much (in her online course).
S Sarah: I think that named schools it’s a little different in the fact
that you already have an established program that you know
already works. You can see the results of the people that graduate
with this degree inter of percentage of career placement. If a
traditional school was to say let’s do an online program that has
the same curriculum that we know work(s) and that follows that
same core, then I think that’s ok. I think the difference is those
online places don’t have established core curriculum. It’s not
reputable or nationally recognized…

20. Participant Responses
S John: It matters as it’s a factor in every decision I make. In
fact, I recently had made a hire from someone who graduated
from an Ivy League school and actually looking into those
credentials swayed me into making a decision sooner…
because you sort of knew that they (job applicant) were pre-
vetted before as far as intelligence goes.
S Jennifer: If you are at a top school, you automatically pass [the
initial screening process
S Paula: I actually have encountered resumes from the University
of Phoenix...It’s actually a struggle with international students
that we’re finding. We have actually caught some individuals
that have degree from schools that aren’t accredited, yet
they’re saying they’re accredited and we’ve had to terminate
some individuals because they’ve lied on their resume.

21. Participant Responses
S John: : I’ll be very honest. I’m not sure who I’ve hired that’s had
online degrees. I could say from my recollection, I don’t believe
I have hired anybody or seen a résumé that has an online
degree‖.
S Jennifer: I haven’t had many people, write on their
resume, they graduated online or not ... even if they did, I think
those (Big Ten Schools) are probably easier to pass
along, then like Phoenix.
S Paula: We [the company] place a lot of emphasis on a school
an individual goes to…more importantly we place a higher
emphasis on the advanced degree…If a candidate has a
Bachelor’s Degree from a smaller school…maybe a degree
that isn’t relevant for the position (but) they have an MBA from
a top 25 program, then we would still consider the candidate.

22. Participant Responses
S Jennifer: I am assuming I feel a little different…If you are
getting your master's, and it is distance learning, I mean, yes, it
would matter what school you went to…but we are assuming
you are a little bit older, you have families, it is not as easy to
get to class, so I think it is a little bit more cushion in that sense.
S Paula: Some people choose programs where 20 percent will be
online and 80 percent would be classroom, we’re completely
fine with that. We understand that in today’s economic
environment you can be successful doing some online
learning, but we do think that the majority of the learning
happens in a collaborative classroom.

23. Participant Responses
S Paula: A lot of MBA schools I recruited (at), the students are
proactively approaching companies and saying, ―How can we help
you (the company)? Can we take out a consulting project for you?
Can five of our students work on a huge initiative for you? I
haven’t personally seen any online program come to us and try to
do some type of partnership/corporation student program…but
that’s what I’d really like to see…if the students (from online
program) were successful helping our company…we would be
much more likely to partner with them and potentially consider
them for employment.
S Jennifer: I think recruiters or HR representatives will have to take
them (online degree applicants) into consideration…It is hard now
because it is not as acceptable when there is a bias, but I am
gonna say within five years, it will change…

24. Conclusions
S David, Sarah, and Paula articulated views consistent with
the findings of Adams and DeFleur’s (2007)
S applicant with a traditional degree was preferred in two
different hiring scenarios.
S The concern participants indicated regarding the actual
rigor and educational value that is obtained when
achieving an online degree was echoed by Huss (2007).
S employer perception of an online degree in teacher
preparation was overwhelmingly negative.

25. Implications
S Students are spending thousands annually to enhance or
promote their career path
S Expect solid return on investment (i.e. job or promotion)
S Protect oneself from poor financial decision
S Role of Academy to educate hiring gatekeepers
S Future Research
S Post-graduate career success as compared with traditional
degree

26. How does this relate to you?
S More and more online PhD programs in fields such as
instructional technology/higher education are being offered.
S What does the future hold for students graduating with online
degrees?
S What strategies do you suggest students considering an online
or a blended program use to be better prepared for jobs?
S What is your perspective?

27. Emerging Technologies Online
Education
S https://www.coursera.org/

28. Contact & Sources
For conference paper, presentation & list of
sources
Please visit:
reneemandelbaum.com