Athletes Find Quick, Easy College Credits Online

A screenshot of Western Oklahoma State College’s online course enrollment page.

A small community college in Oklahoma is one of the schools offering quick online courses – some as short as 10 days – that some athletes are turning to when they need credits to stay eligible.

Western Oklahoma State College president Phil Birdine has defended the courses, in a letter posted on the school’s homepage.

“Every academic course is vetted through an established institutional process incorporating national ‘best practices’ for course rigor and academic standards,” Birdine wrote.

But the organization that accredits the school is now looking into the courses, as a result of an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

The Chronicle of Higher Education: Need 3 Quick Credits to Play Ball? Call Western Oklahoma

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Guest:

Brad Wolverton, senior writer for The Chronicle of Higher Education.

We welcome comments from all of our listeners. Post below. Please stay on topic and be civil. Comments may be moderated by us, but you are solely responsible for the content of your comments.

Daviddenny

Are these English and Journalism majors criticizing someone else’s educational rigor? Don’t worry, when they are done with sports they will become commontators, like you.
Robert

Student athletes can be worth millions to a university. Let’s drop the pretense of amateurism and pay them up front what they’re worth.