Students’ Content Preferences for Taking Online Courses

A survey was conducted to determine university students‟ course taking preferences in different content areas. Courses that were included in this study were taken from the undergraduate catalog of a university in a large and diverse metropolitan area. More than 35,000 students are currently enrolled in this university that serves students from all over the world, including the Caribbean and Latin American countries. One hundred and thirteen students participated in this study. A convenience sampling method was used to select the study participants. The study did find significant differences between males and females in terms of online course taking preferences. There were also significant differences in course taking preferences, online or face to face, between those who have previously completed one or more courses online and those who have not completed any courses online. The implications of the findings of this study for offering online courses are discussed. Suggestions for conducting future studies are also offered