Online Education in India: Exponential growth occurring in this regard

Online Education has proven to be a boon for many students and working professionals. The flexibility to learn at anytime and from anywhere has led to the adoption of online education platforms by numerous people. And with the ongoing trend, Google and KPMG India have predicted an elevated growth of eight times in the online education market over the next 5 years. With a current market of USD 247 million, the online education would have a phenomenal rise of about USD 1.96 billion by 2021. That will ultimately lead to an increased number of the paid user base for online education from the current 1.57 million to almost 9.5 million in the next coming years.
Why is Online Education becoming popular?
The e-learning is becoming a much sought-after learning platform for candidates. Some of the major reasons being the following:

  • The flexibility of time: The online learning is best suited for working professionals with time constraints, thus making it manageable for them to pursue a course online without affecting their work schedule.
  • Affordable: Online courses at the UG or PG level are low-cost and easily achievable as compared to the training programs offered by colleges and universities.
  • Zero commute: Whether students or employed professionals, the e-learning has eliminated the long and tiring travel and thus saving them time and energy.
  • Quality Education: The online learning breaks the barriers for those in remote parts of India where quality offline education isn’t still available.
  • Study material: The study material in the form of videos and documents is freely available online in downloadable formats.
  • Widespread internet usage: With the availability of internet at good bandwidth, the number of internet users is increasing every day.
  • Initiatives by the government: The government’s initiatives like Digital India, e-Basta, and SWAYAM strive to strengthen the infrastructure for better internet usage to pursue online education.

The potential of online education can be categorized into 5 major groups:-

  • Primary and Secondary Supplement Education: For the students of primary and secondary classes in school, the e-learning supplements to the school learning.
  • Test Prep through online education: Enables a thorough preparation by mock tests and assessment for the students to perform better in the competitive exams.
  • Online Certifications: Many online courses and certifications designed for the candidates to enhance their skill set and add more value to their resumes.
  • Higher Education: The e-learning is an attainable alternative in the online form to higher education courses offered by the universities.
  • Language courses: Enables learning of different languages or non-academic subjects.

Future Prospects of Online Education
With the growing population of students and professionals pursuing online education, the e-learning trend is bound to deepen its roots in the education system. Bypassing the traditional classroom teaching, the online learners in India will grow in large numbers.
There are varied online courses provided by Sikkim Manipal Distance Education and the most favored certifications like Big Data and Business Analytics, Culinary courses, Cyber Forensics and other specializations.
Moreover, the candidates will learn to focus on the career skills rather than just gaining a proof of education. Ed-tech firms such providing quality online training through virtual classrooms and teaching will evolve.

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