Survey: Alumni, parents have more favorable view of MOOCs than students

The study also found that 47 percent of parents said they were “personally interested in participating in a MOOC.” Only 37 percent of the students surveyed were in agreement.

Overall, the viewpoints of MOOCs came from a somewhat limited pool of respondents. That’s because the study found that the majority of those surveyed were not even familiar with the concept of MOOCs. 82 percent of all respondents we’re aware of online courses, but only 23 percent of them were aware of MOOCs.

Employers seemed to have the most familiarity, with 33 percent saying they were familiar with the concept, followed by students with 30 percent. Parents were the least familiar of the bunch, with only 23 percent of respondents saying they were aware of MOOCs.

“The data suggests that colleges and universities should not ignore the appeal of MOOCs in making education more accessible and affordable,” said Greg Schneiders, founder of PrimeGroup, which worked with Brodeur Partners on the study. “At the same time, they must make clear that the traditional college experience is not going away.”