Students' voice regarding important characteristics of online and face-to-face higher education

The proportion of Higher Education students studying online has increased exponentially in the last decade, however not much is known about this cohort and what they want from their university experience.  Furthermore, most universities are attempting to enhance the online resources provided to their on-campus students; however, there is a lack of clarity regarding what aspects of online study on-campus students may value. Do on-campus students value the same aspects of learning as their online counterparts, or do universities need to develop different resources for the various cohorts? In the current study, 525 first year psychology students studying across three study modes (on-campus, online via Open Universities Australia and online via a private provider affiliated with a university) responded to an online questionnaire assessing characteristics associated with both online and face-to-face teaching, and asking what students value in teaching academics. The results are discussed in terms of how universities can best improve their online offerings and how they may incorporate desired ‘offline’ experiences into an online environment.