Business schools spent six years watching MBA enrollment slide,but it’s climbing again. Much of the rebound is coming from affordable, flexible programs at regional universities, a growing number of them built online with the education technology company Risepoint.
Why is the online MBA growing again?
After falling about 2.3% a year from 2018 to 2024, MBA enrollment is projected to grow at a 3.2% annual rate through 2030, according to an analysis from consulting firm Validated Insights. Demand has moved online with it. The number of online MBA programs climbed from 555 in 2018 to 732 in 2023, and over the same span the share of prospective students who prefer a fully online format doubled, from 22% to 44%.
The degree still pays, and that’s what keeps working professionals enrolling. Between October 2023 and October 2024, job postings that call for an MBA rose 35.6%, even as total U.S. job postings fell 10.8%. The students filling these programs skew older and employed, weighing tuition against a raise rather than a first job.
Competitively priced programs are set to lead the online market
The online field is crowded, and business-school deans are betting on price and reputation over prestige alone. In the same research, 61% said competitively priced MBAs from strong brands will lead the online market.
That description fits regional universities: established institutions with real standing in their states, tuition set for working budgets, and a mandate to serve the professionals in their region. They serve the working manager who wants a credible degree, a manageable price, and a schedule that fits around a job, and they price the program for that student. A regional university has spent decades building its name with local employers, and that is the reputation that actually matters to a graduate who plans to work an hour from campus, not two time zones away.
Radford and Southeastern Oklahoma State show the model
Radford University, in Virginia, launched an online MBA with a concentration in Innovation, with classes beginning in Spring 2026. The program is built for working professionals who want to keep earning while they study.
“The MBA in Innovation will empower graduates to tackle complex challenges, inspire creative thinking and foster innovation,” said Donna McCloskey, dean of the Davis College of Business and Economics, in a statement on the program’s launch. While the MBA is supported by Risepoint, the academics are the university’s own. The concentration targets managers who need to lead change while staying in their jobs, and the fully online format lets them study at their own pace. It’s the kind of specialized, career-relevant MBA a working professional can put to use right away.
Southeastern Oklahoma State University shows where that can lead. After moving programs online with support from Risepoint starting in 2016, SOSU grew its online graduate enrollment from about 200 students to nearly 3,000 within a decade, across roughly 75 online programs. Several of those master’s programs had been at risk of closing for low enrollment. Today they anchor the university’s reach across the Durant and greater Dallas region, and most of the graduates stay and work nearby. SOSU built its name serving community professionals across southeastern Oklahoma, and online delivery extended that reach without changing who it serves.
More than 90% of the people in Risepoint-supported programs are working adults, and an online MBA from a regional university lets them add the credential without stepping out of a career or relocating for school. That’s the exact profile the market is now rewarding: affordable, flexible, and backed by a name that means something to the employers nearby. For a working professional deciding where to spend two years and several thousand dollars, that combination is hard to beat.
