22 College Survey: Half of Colleges Find edX and Coursera Lacking Rigor

Survey Results:

• 3 colleges accept MOOCs as advanced classes.

• 9 colleges review MOOCs during their holistic admissions process.

• 4 colleges see MOOCs only as supplemental.

• 6 colleges don’t accept MOOCs.

Coursera and edX ( i.e. MOOC ) are perfect for homeschoolers to explore subjects and dive into college-level courses.

You can study with top universities, earning grades and certification without breaking the bank.

This raises the question when applying to colleges:

College Bound Homeschooler

How the course should appear on  homeschool transcripts? Is it as the for AP?

The answer is: maybe. It depends on where you apply.

I reached out to 50 top university admissions offices to see how they view MOOCs. 22 responded with meaningful answers, beyond the usual auto-replies.

In this post, you'll learn why MOOCs may not always be considered "rigorous" and how to list them on your homeschool transcript. Plus, we'll explore affordable alternative rigorous courses you can take.

Let’s dive in!

Breakdown of 22 College Survey Results

3 colleges accept MOOCs as advanced classes

Univ. of Notre Dame, Carnegie Mellon Univ., MIT

University of Notre Dame

If a homeschooled student's curriculum consists of MOOCs, we will evaluate this as the rigor that was available to them and count it toward the required units during their high school career

This is encouraging news! However, these colleges are still exceptions.

9 colleges review MOOCs during the holistic admissions process

Univ. of Pennsylvania, Georgia Tech, Swarthmore College, Univ. of Chicago, Duke University, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Dartmouth College, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Washington University in St. Louis

Duke University

Duke welcomes applications from students who are educated in alternative ways such as homeschooling and online-schooling......there is some benefit to providing supplementary information to help us better understand the context, the rigor, and the students’ achievements in their chosen educational path.

Colleges with holistic admissions want homeschoolers to explain why they chose MOOCs over other options, like community college or AP. Homeschoolers submit a school report with their application. This report gives the needed context.

4 colleges see MOOCs only as supplemental

Smith college, Univ. of Wisconsin, Prude Univ., Univ. of Minnesota Twin Cities

Smith College

We certainly see students utilizing these resources but rather as supplemental to a core curriculum. If possible, it can also be helpful to see a student demonstrate experience in a traditional academic setting.

For these colleges, you can't use MOOCs for core subjects like English, Math, Science, or Social Studies.

6 colleges don’t accept MOOCs.

Univ. Florida Online, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Stanford, UC Santa Barbara, Univ. Michigan, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

University of Florida Online

From what I have seen, we do not accept credits from Coursera or edX, as these are not accredited institutions.

UC Santa Barbara

In my experience, completing MOOC or Coursera-type coursework is less helpful to an applicant than taking transferable college level courses at a California Community college

These colleges view transferable courses as more valuable and suggest that homeschoolers opt for community college classes instead.

The reason colleges don’t accept coursera & edx certificates

Let’s take a look at what some colleges say:

 University of Michigan-Dearborn

Unfortunately, we do not accept edX or Coursera courses at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.

Rutgers Undergraduate

We would not accept MOOCs as the same rigor since it is not accepted for transfer credit.

In general, MOOCs like edX and Coursera are not widely accepted as substitutes for official college coursework because MOOCs can’t really cover two main things:

1. Credit Transfer

2. Prerequisite Fulfillment as a rigorous course

You might be curious why that is. Let’s explore further.

Coursera Courses Aren’t the Same as AP Classes or Community College Credits

AP courses and community college classes follow strict curriculums. Because of this, AP scores and community college credits can transfer to many universities.

MOOCs are more flexible with course material and grading. However, the credits usually don’t transfer to universities unless the course specifically offers college credit.

Many competitive colleges see AP and community college classes as 'rigorous.' They expect homeschoolers to use these for core subjects like English, Math, and more to demonstrate that their coursework is challenging.

University of Wisconsin–Madison

When it comes to MOOCs, we generally do not consider them to be quite as rigorous as AP, IB, or dual enrollment courses

Colleges with holistic admissions may consider alternatives for students who don’t have access to AP or community college courses.

Georgia Tech

We use a holistic review in order to give our applicants the best opportunity to present a complete picture of their qualifications. This should help students who don't have access to AP courses or college courses to still show that they challenge themselves to take rigorous courses.

Note:  A few MOOCs courses now offer college credits. universities might view them differently in the future.

You should still add Coursera courses to the transcript

Absolutely! Lots of homeschoolers include MOOCs on their transcripts and get into top universities. Just list the course title, the provider (like Coursera), and the university or institution behind it.

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

We do review MOOCs or courses taken from Coursera. If the student is admitted they would need to send in official transcripts for the courses.

The tricky part?

You don’t know how to determine whether to classify them as college-level or AP courses since colleges have varying views.

If a college recognizes the courses as rigorous, you can list them as college-level to potentially boost your GPA.

Otherwise, it's best to label them as Honors level if they aren't considered official college courses.

Then, is it really worth the time and effort to go through MOOC courses and get a certificate?

The certifications enhance college applications

Yes!  Certifications can absolutely boost your application. Think of them as proof that you’ve gone above and beyond in your learning

Purdue University

MOOCs can certainly serve as a boost for a student's application because it demonstrates intellectual curiosity (a critical factor for students applying to our most competitive programs), but it will not demonstrate rigor in a student's coursework

Just be careful. Choose MOOC courses that fit your passion and curiosity. Even if you pass a few extra AP exams, a 0.1 GPA difference won’t matter much in admissions. The same goes for MOOCs—taking random courses won’t strengthen your application.

Free Alternatives to Coursera and edX’s

Outliner.org offer great alternative. It’s online community college. They offer free dual enrollment courses for high school students nationwide.

If you’re in Indiana, the Fast Start program is another affordable option to show rigor and help with the admission.

For students outside the U.S. who don’t have access to AP or community colleges, MIT offers a free alternative. It’s just three steps to earn a free certificate through Schoolhouse.world: 

1. Learn course on Khan Academy

2. Get free tutoring through Schoolhouse

3. Get certified in the course through Schoolhouse

I hear you—it’s frustrating to think that even if you follow MIT’s advice and complete the course, getting into MIT, with a 4% acceptance rate, is still tough. You’re right, but it’s good to know there’s at least a pathway!

How about Udemy?

Udemy is another popular online platform. I use it a lot because the courses focus on up-to-date skills.

But it's a bit different from MOOCs. Udemy courses are less formal and not connected to universities.

They're great for learning new skills, but colleges don't recognize them like edX or Coursera. Homeschoolers can still use Udemy as part of their home-brewed curriculum as supplement.