Although universities can rightly claim to have been involved in the lifelong learning space for some time... what I’ve been seeing recently seems different. It’s less localised, more central, and part of a core strategic direction and investment.

"This quarter doesn’t necessarily present anything new but reinforces some established trends. These include universities entering the online education market seriously for the first time, with most focused on postgraduate master’s degrees. Similarly, there is clearly still plenty of appetite for partnerships with private companies to support these aims... While those challenges might suggest a period of stasis, I see plenty of dynamism in the sector at the moment, driven by the existential nature of the challenge some universities face and the shifting sands of government priorities for higher education."

This data underscores how international online students form a significant part of the overall UK HE online education landscape. However, the trends and numbers do not quite match some of the more hyped-up language about the scale of the opportunity

Whether you believe that a fundamental revolution is under way in terms of smaller forms of provision taken across one’s lifetime, or that moving to this model is a future imperative for universities and the HE sector, the fact is there is definitely more appetite and interest in developing shorter forms of online provision.

This year has seen a more timely release of what is still backdated information on students in UK higher education. Early April saw the release of 2023–24 student data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), which, among other things, is a key data source for understanding online student and enrolment trends in UK HE.

This last quarter has seen a range of interesting developments, from announcements of new partnerships between OPMs and UK universities to significant changes within online education companies and more. What follows is a breakdown of the key developments in the first quarter of 2025.

With a growing number of universities entering or considering online education as part of their diversification strategy, now is a timely moment to reflect on the current state of the OPM market and the key players operating in UK higher education.

OPM partnerships share similarities with franchised provision, and a question I and others have had is the extent to which the evolving regulation and scrutiny on sub-contracted provision is also focused on OPM partnerships, and directly or indirectly, whether any new measures might impact these partnerships.

While it is certainly the case that many UK universities lack the capability and experience to enter and successfully operate in online student markets, it is also worth questioning the ability of all OPM companies to achieve significant online international student recruitment goals. As such, it is worth exploring the data and track records of OPMs in genuinely scaling up online international student recruitment.

This year has been something of a paradox for the VLE market in UK higher education. While there has been plenty to report on within the big four companies that dominate this market, there have been barely any major changes by universities regarding which virtual learning environment (VLE) they use.

In my experience, the international online student market is one where the scale of the opportunity somewhat clouds the realities. It is an area that many in UK higher education do not always fully understand.

Several universities ultimately failed to capitalise on the opportunities presented during that period, and as a result are left in weaker positions today. Decisions made during the MOOC era offer lessons that universities can learn from as they develop online learning in the 2020’s.

2024 has been another year of increasing focus on online learning from UK universities. This has been reflected in the increasing number of partnerships with online education companies and the growth of online degrees, sub-degree courses, and portfolios. All of this points towards intensifying competition for a market that does not show clear evidence of rapid or substantial short-term growth.

It’s been another eventful quarter in the world of online learning within UK higher education. The partnership and portfolio moves by UK universities, along with efforts from companies like THE and StudyPortals to plant a flag in online learning, reflect a growing interest that is taking various forms.

If we combine the financial challenges many universities in the sector are currently facing with the ambitions many have to develop online provision, then we face a challenge. Which is that if you want to grow an online learning portfolio, your number of online students, and compete with other providers, this entails investment—and not just investment, but smart investment.

However, there are other routes to consider that might in some way help mitigate the effects of financial challenges and also aid the development of online provision. One that I’m interested in seeing more universities explore is the sharing of online elective modules across institutions.

So far this year has not been awash with UK universities looking to switch VLEs, but I expect there to be more movement next year. The coming year and the decisions that some UK universities make around new VLE implementation will be the true test of different VLE company strategies. But it would not surprise me to see Brightspace being adopted by more UK universities and continuing the momentum experienced in recent years.

There has been positive news for UK higher education and its potential to reach the Indian higher education market. The establishment of branch campuses and moves to gain recognition for UK distance learning degrees are steps in the right direction. However, one lingering question remains: what realistic opportunity does online learning present for transnational student growth in India?

What is largely evident across Welsh universities is a general lack of an institutional strategy and cohesive, university-wide approaches to online learning. While there are many online degrees developed in an ad-hoc and fragmented manner within specific faculties, there is no clear indication that universities have coordinated, strategic, institution-level approaches to online education.

In the UK, Instructure is best known for Canvas, their virtual learning environment (VLE) product. As I’ve reported in my annual VLE market analysis, recent years have seen Instructure build significant momentum in the UK, with a growing market share as a steady stream of UK higher education institutions (HEIs) switch to Canvas. They have been the most, if not the only, successful player in this market recently, with Canvas being implemented across small, medium, and large HEIs.

This quarter has seen new partnerships between universities and companies, significant developments in online education and edtech companies, the release of important data on online enrolments, and a continued focus by UK higher education institutions (HEIs) on recruiting for online education-related roles