The Hoosier State is the sixteenth most populous in the US. Founded in 1816, it was then located on the far reaches of the country's Northwest Territory, where Native Americans had been living since as early as 8000 BC. Europeans arrived in the late 17th century, establishing major trading outposts. That frontier ethic lasted long after Indiana ceased to be on the edge of the American wilderness: throughout its modern history, the state has maintained a blue-collar, largely rural, Midwestern identity, excelling in industry, agriculture, high-skilled manufacturing (Indiana's labor face is among the most well-trained in the country), and, of course, basketball. Still, Indiana has not stubbornly clung to history against present demands. It capital city, Indianapolis, has become on the major urban hubs of the Midwest, second only to Chicago in population and home to three Fortune 500 Companies, the NCAA, and major biotech, life sciences, and healthcare businesses. It's also home to some of the country's preeminent public, private, and community colleges, many of which offer online degree opportunities.
In-state tuition is often applied to public schools offering online programs. Many online programs require some face-to-face time, or more numerous support services at their brick and mortar locations. Intensive study experiences–often on the weekends or in several week long bouts–enable many online students to accelerate their time until graduation. And students looking at online education can drastically expand their educational options if they also look to hybrid degrees (degrees where degrees can be taken partially, or mostly online). Finally, one of the most common stipulations in scholarships is that students be from a certain state or region, often more funds are available to students seeking degrees in-state.
Nine Indiana public schools offer online degrees, including four Indiana University campuses (Bloomington, East, IUPUI, and IUPFW), Purdue University Northwest, Vincennes University, Indiana State, Ball State, and Southern Indiana. IUPUI is the largest of these. Forty degrees are available online — 2 associates, 14 bachelors, 22 masters, 2 doctoral — in a wide range of disciplines: Business, Labor Studies, Communication, Education, Nursing, Music, Public Affairs, and more. Just behind IUPUI, Indiana State offers 34 online degrees, including 15 bachelors, 16 masters, and 3 doctoral tracks. (Highlights include an RN to BSN, BS in Construction Management, MS in Sports Management, MSN, and several MEd concentrations.) Indiana Bloomington and Ball State offer 39 and 24 online degrees, respectively, with 38 masters between them; and Vincennes University and Indiana East offer 19 and 11. (Vincennes offers 18 associate tracks.)
Eight private schools in Indiana offer online degrees: Indiana Wesleyan University, Valparaiso, Anderson, Ottawa University-Jeffersonville, Indiana Institute of Technology, Grace College and Seminary, Bethel College, and Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. Indiana Wesleyan offers 42 online degrees, making it the largest provider in the state, including 8 associates, 12 bachelors, 19 masters, and 3 doctoral tracks; its largest offerings are in Business, Accounting, Health Sciences / Healthcare, Biblical Studies / Ministry, Education, and Nursing. Ottawa Jeffersonville has 29 degrees available online, 17 bachelors and 12 masters, largely in Business and Education concentrations. IIT, with 22 online track, comes in third (4 associates, 10 bachelors, 8 masters), followed SMWC with 15 and Grace College and Seminary. Outside of IWU, only Valparaiso offers an online doctoral track, which is a Post Master's Doctorate of Nursing Practice.
Featured Online Schools
Potential Resident
For a variety of reasons, a student may look to move to the state of their online college program whether specifically required by the program or not – be it for a job, location desirability, school benefits, etc. Different states have different policies, however, and some of them can be rather demanding. Fortunately, Indiana's are relatively straightforward and can be reviewed in detail here. In sum, to be an Indiana resident, the student must have a permanent primary residence in the state and must have lived in the state for at least 12 consecutive months before the first day of scheduled classes. (Dependent students under 21 may list their parent or guardians residence.) If a student does not meet or cannot prove these criteria, a number of other factors can be considered, including: driver's license, state automobile registry, tax returns, place of work, voter registration, et al. Click on the above link for further details and exceptions.
Indiana public higher education costs are slightly lower than the national average, $9,120 per four-year university compared to $9,142 in 2015-2016. That's just a 1% increase over 2014-2015, compared to a 3% national average, and 4% increase over a five-year period, compared to the whopping 13% national average. In sum: Indiana residents should count their blessings, particularly when some states' public universities charge in excess of $15,000 for in-state tuition, and some costs have risen over 25% over the last five years. When we consider the quality of public education — the Indiana University state system is a top 25 US News system — those numbers look even better. Further, if history is any indicator, those numbers should stay relatively low and stable: since 2004, public in-state tuition has only risen over $100 year-over-year a few times. In some cases, it's dropped.
The main provider of distance education Indianapolis also happens to be the second-largest provider in the Indiana. IUPUI offers 40 online degrees, including two pre-professional associates, 14 bachelors, 22 masters (the most in the state), and 2 doctoral tracks. IUPUI's associates are unique: an AS in Labor Studies and AS in Histotechnology. Bachelor opportunities range from Business, to Health Sciences / Management, to Mathematics and Communication. Master's degrees include MS tracks in Music Technology and Music Therapy, an MSN, an MPA, an MPA, an MSR (Recreational Therapy and Park And Public Lands Management), and several MEd concentrations. Finally, there's also an EdD in Instructional Systems Technology and PhD in Nursing Science. Within an hour of the city, Bloomington, Indiana East, Anderson, Ball State, Indiana State, and St. Mary-of-the-Woods all offer online degrees, as well; the largest of these being Bloomington and Indiana State with 39 and 34 online tracks, respectively. (Also of note: St. Mary-of-the-Woods offers the second-most online bachelors in Indiana, with 14.)
The Indiana Institute of Technology and IUPUFW offer online degrees in metropolitan Fort Wayne. IIT is the largest and top-10 state provider in the state, with 22 available degrees, including 4 associates, 10 bachelors, and 8 masters. In addition to pre-professional tracks in Business, Criminal Justice, and Health IT, IIT's undergraduate and graduate tracks include specialized degrees in Healthcare, Education, and Business, with MBA concentrations in Accounting, Healthcare Management, Human Resources, General Management, and Marketing. IUPUFW has 5 online bachelors in Nursing (RN to BSN), Information Systems, Women's Studies, and more. Its master's is an MSN in Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner. Just an hour away, Indiana Wesleyan offers 42 online degrees (the most in the state) in Marion, and Grace College and Seminary offers 4 bachelors and 7 masters. To the northwest, Bethel and Valparaiso combine for 7 available tracks.
Southern Indiana University offers 7 online degrees in Evansville, including 3 bachelors in Health Services, Radiologic Technology, and Nursing (RN to BSN); an MSN, MHA, and MBA; and Doctoral of Nursing Practice. An hour away, Vincennes University offers the most associate tracks in the state: 18 preprofessional degrees in Accounting, Business Management, Business Studies, Supply Chain Logistic Management, Law Enforcement, Pharmacy Technician, Health Information Management, Behavioral Sciences, Psychology, and more. Its sole bachelor's degree is in Homeland Security And Public Safety. The next closest option is at Ottawa University in Jeffersonville, which offers 17 bachelors and 12 masters in a wide range of fields: 7 Accounting concentrations, 9 undergraduate Business concentrations, 5 MBA concentrations, and 4 MEd concentrations, among others.
Kansas City
Population: 475,378 Cost of Living: 87% Top Industries: Federal Government, Manufacturing, Agriculture Local Online Degrees: 2
St. Louis
Population: 315,685 Cost of Living: 90.1% Top Industries: Healthcare, Manufactuing, Food Services Local Online Degrees: 7
Springfield
Population: 159,498 Cost of Living: 83.8% Top Industries: Healthcare, Manufactuing Local Online Degrees: 4
Independence
Population: 116,830 Cost of Living: 86.5% Top Industries: Healthcare, Government Local Online Degrees: 0
Columbia
Population: 119,108 Cost of Living: 87.6% Top Industries: Education, Healthcare, Insurance Local Online Degrees: 5
Lee's Summit
Population: 91,364 Cost of Living: 87.7% Top Industries: Government, Education Local Online Degrees: 2
O'fallon
Population: 79,329 Cost of Living: 89.8% Top Industries: Manufacturing Local Online Degrees: 7
The Best Online Colleges in Indiana
Monitoring the accreditation of a university you are interested in attending is incredibly important. Accreditation ensures your credits can transfer that you can receive Federal financial aid, and most importantly that certain standards of educational quality are during your schooling. The highest accreditation standard for most programs in the United States is provided by regional accreditation agencies. The regional accrediting agency for Indiana is the Higher Learning Commission, one of six regional accrediting agencies responsible for accrediting schools in Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
Making sure that a University you're hoping to attend is regionally accredited — or accredited by a real and respected accrediting agency — is one of the most important choices you can make in ensuring the quality of your education.
Three Steps for Securing Financial Aid
Submit your FAFSA.
Check to see if additional forms are needed at your university of choice.
Search and apply for private scholarships.
Through the previous three steps most students find themselves offered some sort of federal grant, work study, private grant, scholarship, or stipend.
Great Indiana Higher Education Resources
The Indiana Department of Education is a helpful introductory resource.
Check out the Indiana Commission for Higher Education for news, events, reports, and financial aid.
For more information on distance learning opportunities, visit the Indiana College Network.
Learn More Indiana's College Success Coalition partners with local organizations to increase access and opportunities.
The Lilly Foundation offers full-tuition scholarships to four-year Indiana colleges and is among the largest aid opportunities in the state.
Northern Indiana financial aid information — for Starke, Fulton, and Miami Counties — can be found here.
South Indiana residents should review the 70+ available scholarships available to their community here.
Residents of Central Indiana — including high school seniors, current college students, and students out of college — are eligible for aid ranging from $1,000 to several thousand dollars.
Residents of Muncie or Delaware Counties should visit their Community Foundation Scholarships page, where more than 40 aid opportunities are available.
Hendricks County residents have access to more than 50 scholarship funds.
Click here for financial aid opportunities for Harrison County, including grants, endowments, and scholarships.
Pulaski County residents have received over $282,000 in unrestricted resources to date. Check here for grants, scholarships, funds, and donor information.
The Tipton County Foundation site offers news updates, meeting times, and TCF scholarship application materials.
Henry County's financial aid foundation offers donor services, grants, scholarships, and professional advising.
The Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI) sitehas information on 31 private schools, including reports, scholarship, and more news.
Veterans should visit the IDVA for higher education benefits.
The Midwestern Higher Education Compact provides a number of resources to Indiana students.
The I-STEM Resource Network is designed to expand education efforts in the sciences, technology, engineering, and math disciples across the state (sponsored by Purdue).
