Georgia Southern University’s online graduate degree programs have been ranked among the highest in the country by U.S. News & World Report in its first “Top Online Education Program” rankings.

“Georgia Southern has long been recognized for its outstanding campus-based programs, but this ranking confirms that our online graduate programs in business, education, IT and nursing are among the best in the nation,” GSU President Brooks Keel said in a press release.

“These rankings were created in response to today’s high demand for education provided in a flexible manner,” according to U.S. News & World Report.

“Many of our online students are members of the military, business leaders, IT professionals, engineers, nurses, medical professionals and teachers who are looking to advance in their chosen career field.  Georgia Southern’s online programs allow them the flexibility they need to earn their degree while continuing to manage their career, family and other commitments,” Keel said in the release.

Online programs for the college of education and the school of nursing have been around for several years. New programs like an information technology masters, which has been available for a little over a year, will be added online.

These rankings apply to GSU’s online education programs only. The rankings are done in individual categories, so they do not reflect GSU’s overall quality, Vice President of Research and Dean of the College of Graduate Studies Charles Patterson said.

“The rankings are used exhaustively by prospective students,” Patterson said. “This generation is very tech savvy, so it improves our visibility to these prospective students.”

“Georgia Southern has invested in innovative online programs that not only provide students with access to a respected Georgia Southern degree, but provide them with the ability to earn it from anywhere in the world,” Keel said in the release.

The content of the programs is maintained and kept up-to-date by their respective departments, Patterson said.

“You have to give credit to the faculty, whose responsibility it is to bring in students,” he said. “The rankings are a reflection of the work that our outstanding faculty and staff have put into creating and expanding these programs.”

The online programs are expected to get bigger, Patterson said.

“Our graduate student population is over 2,700. And, seeing as we’re the largest comprehensive university, we’ll only see that grow, in the online portion especially,” he said.

The undergraduate online programs are also growing, though not as fast as the graduate programs, Deborah Champion said, program specialist for the Center for Online Learning.

According to attendance records, four percent of undergraduate students are engaged in solely online classes, compared to the 14 percent that are in solely face-to-face classes.