Building Community in an Online Doctoral Program

Abstract

Despite an increasing number of individuals completing doctoral degrees from earlier years, approximately 50% of students who begin a program never complete their degree. Attrition rates for students enrolled in online doctoral programs are higher than students who attend courses in a face-to-face setting. Research has identified that the lack of social integration is one of the key components associated with high student attrition rates in doctoral programs. Creating and maintaining positive student-faculty and student-student relationships are essential factors in doctoral persistence. As the popularity and demand for online doctoral programs increases, student retention and completion rates decrease. The literature suggests that the physical disconnect experienced by students, as well as the challenges of building relationships with faculty and peers, are contributing factors to the high rates of attrition in online doctoral programs. To that end, this study sought to determine how an institution can build relationship and community in a fully online doctoral program.