Dive Brief:

• A study of Coursera’s massive open online course offerings finds slightly more than half of respondents took courses for career benefits and 28% signed up to further their education.
• According to edSurge, 87% of the “career builders” reported benefits — some even got raises, promotions, a new job, or started their own business — and 88% of “education seekers” reported benefits.
• The study reinforced findings that most MOOC learners are relatively well-educated, with many already holding bachelor’s or master’s degrees, but the results support the idea that some of those who benefit the most from the courses are lower on the socioeconomic ladder.

Dive Insight:

The report, published in the Harvard Business Review, was authored by researchers at Coursera, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Washington. It surveyed nearly 52,000 course completers. More than three-quarters of respondents had at least a bachelor’s degree. Overall, 72% of respondents reported career benefits and 61% reported education benefits. Those who specifically enrolled in courses for those benefits, of course, were more likely to get more out of them.