2 THE UNDERGRADS: 2U, a publicly traded company that helps universities develop online courses, has launched its first online undergraduate degree program.
To date, the Lanham, Md.-based company is best known for running online graduate programs for colleges and universities, and recently has added short courses and coding bootcamps to its offerings.
For its first foray into undergraduate studies, the company has partnered with the University of London and the London School of Economics and Political Science, which is an existing customer, for a bachelor of science degree in data science and business analytics. The 36-month program is developed by faculty from the London School of Economics and Political Science, but students who finish get a University of London degree.
Like its graduate program arrangements, 2U will take a cut of student tuition for this undergraduate program, which will cost about $21,000 for U.K. students and $25,000 for international students. Education Dive reported that this is a 10-year contract between the company and the schools.
This announcement comes a week after the company saw its stock tumble after its earnings call, where it told investors it expected slower enrollment growth and revised its guidance for losses to be double than what the company previously projected. That news shook investors, many of whom downgraded the company.
In an analyst note, BMO Capital Markets’ managing director and senior analyst Jeffrey Silber noted that “this is a positive announcement for the company, as it shows continued demand for its partnerships—something of which we still have no doubt despite last week's announcement of slowing top-line growth.”
