Augusta University launches AU Online with three new graduate programs

Augusta University has officially launched its newest expansion — Augusta University Online.

"The purpose for AU Online is clear: to bring that high quality education that Augusta University has to offer to learners across Georgia and beyond," said Marc Austin, dean of AU Online in his remarks at the launch of the program. "And I'm pleased to report that we're really off to a great start, well exceeding our enrollment goal, but also demonstrating the power of Augusta University to attract the best and the brightest."

The new program is launching with three graduate degrees: a Master of Education in instruction, a Master of Public Health, and a Master of Science in information security management. It is a step towards the university's goal of 16,000 students by 2030, said AU President Brooks Keel, but it is also more than that.

"The landscape of higher education has changed tremendously since I first entered the field almost forty years ago," Keel said. "...It's going to keep changing, in order for us to keep up with the change, we've had to be innovative in the way that we adapted, while still remaining true to the values and the core mission that's made this university so successful."

Keel said that all three programs were already established, so AU could put "tried and true" courses online.

"It opens up for opportunities for students to consider Augusta University who may not, not only have they not considered us, but they may not have heard of us before," he said.

Early this year, Augusta University launched its first two online graduate degrees in a partnership with the Cyber Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon that would allow service members to count credits from officer training schools towards completion of degrees in security related topics. Having these programs could bring in service members across the country, Keel said.

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The value of a university degree is determined by the reputation of a university in the current moment, Keel said, not its reputation at graduation; and this program will continue to increase the reputation and value of an AU diploma.

The program was put together in about a year, Austin said, a remarkably quick process to set up such a program.

The ceremony also included the unveiling of a gonfalon, an academic banner representing the new AU Online program.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Augusta University launches AU Online with three graduate programs