OER Degree and Certificate Pathways

An OER-based Degree is a degree program in which both:

  • At least one section of all required courses have replaced the commercial textbooks and other resources with OER as the only required materials listed in the syllabus, and
  • At least one section of a sufficient number of elective and general education courses have replaced the commercial textbooks and other resources with OER as the only required materials listed in the syllabus.

By meeting these two criteria, OER-based Degrees create powerful impacts on campus:

  • They provide students with a pathway through their degree program in which they are never asked to purchase a textbook or other commercial resource, dramatically reducing their cost to graduate.
  • Research indicates that students whose faculty assign OER in place of commercial materials perform as well or better on key student success metrics (like completion and C or better) as their peers whose faculty assign commercial materials. When OER adoption is accompanied by course redesign efforts, impacts on student success metrics can be dramatic.
  • The broad permissions provided by OER increase faculty freedom by opening a range of new pedagogical possibilities.
  • Finally, decreases in drops (and their accompanying tuition refunds) and increases in enrollment intensity can positively impact institutional finances. OER-based Degrees truly benefit all education stakeholders.


Open Educational Resources and Degrees, Lumen, CC-BY 4.0 International License.


For More Information

  • OER Degrees: Lumen