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U Penn to Offer Online Bachelor's Degree Program

  • By Sara Friedman
  • 09/19/18
man studying using his laptop

The University of Pennsylvania is expanding its online course offerings to become the first Ivy League college to offer a bachelor's degree program, starting in the fall of 2019. The new program, designed for working adults and non-traditional students, is under the School of Arts and Sciences' College of Liberal and Professional Studies (LPS).

The new bachelor of applied arts and sciences (BAAS) degree program combines general-education requirements with interdisciplinary concentrations and it connects a liberal arts education to professional and career outcomes.

"The goal of this new platform is to make an Arts and Sciences education more accessible, flexible and affordable for working adults," said Nora Lewis, Penn Arts and Sciences' vice dean of professional and general education. "Penn LPS Online redefines the notion of who can get an Ivy League education by making it accessible to anyone who demonstrates the ambition and potential to earn it, without sacrificing the quality of the education offered."

The BAAS degree requirements will be met almost entirely online with two limited on-campus experiences designed to be accessible to working professionals. The degree also builds upon 20 years of experimentation with online teaching by faculty at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts and Sciences.

In addition to the BAAS degree, Penn LPS Online is launching for-credit certificate programs in several subjects including leadership and communication, creative writing, applied positive psychology and data analytics.

More information about the online degree and certificate programs can be found here.

About the Author

Sara Friedman is a reporter/producer for Campus Technology, THE Journal and STEAM Universe covering education policy and a wide range of other public-sector IT topics.

Friedman is a graduate of Ithaca College, where she studied journalism, politics and international communications.

Friedman can be contacted at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @SaraEFriedman.

Click here for previous articles by Friedman.


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