The Unbounded

University:
Unlocking Opportunities
Through Online Learning

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 1

 P.3

Introduction

P.4 P.25 P.32

Student Outcomes: Blended Learning: Lifelong Learning:

Bridging the Delivering on Student Education at All Ages
Employability Gap Expectations
Table of Contents
P.5 Introduction P.26 Introduction P.33 Introduction
P.24 Conclusion P.27 Complementing Core Curriculum P.35 Supporting Faculty to Support
P.28 Top Content Domains by Regions Students

P.29 Top Skills, Courses, and P.36 Conclusion

Professional Certificates for
Students
P.30 Top Guided Projects by Major
P.31 Conclusion

P.37

Methodology

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 2

Introduction
During the past year, the pandemic has COVID-19 has increased focus on digital transformation in higher education. In setting long-term goals, universities
posed unprecedented challenges for and colleges globally will need to refocus on the following set of priorities:

universities. As campuses shuttered, Student employability: Developing curricula that teach job-relevant skills to help ensure
emergency response teams jumped graduates are ready for the workforce.
into action by implementing “remote Cost management: Lowering the cost of delivering for-credit learning to mitigate potential
teaching” stopgaps to keep, at the peak pressures on universities’ tuition cost, revenue, and value proposition.
of the pandemic, more than 1.6 billion
Capacity: Increasing technical capacity to help enable high-quality digital learning at scale.
students learning.
Faculty development: Enabling faculty members to develop capabilities to help teach
students in a virtual environment.

Innovation: Embracing technology to drive innovation as a university brand.

This report is organized into three sections. In the first section, we leverage data from millions of learners on
Coursera to identify skills proficiency gaps between students and working professionals that may contribute to the
employability gap. In the second section, we propose a model for addressing this employability gap by leveraging
blended learning to bridge curriculum gaps and teach in-demand skills at scale. In the third and final section, we
explore long-term skills trends that illustrate how the short shelf-life of digital skills might be part of the story that
explains why these student skills proficiency gaps exist.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 3

Student Outcomes:
Bridging the
Employability Gap
Introduction

Research suggests that recent economic volatility and rising unemployment caused by the pandemic has
only intensified pressure on universities to equip students with in-demand skills. With greater transparency
into existing workforce trends, universities can align curriculum with market demand to help ensure graduates Featured majors
are industry-ready.

In this section, we leveraged our data to uncover gaps between skills university students have and skills they’ll
Biological Sciences
need to succeed in the workforce.1 Specifically, we evaluated students’ business, technology, and data science
skills across majors as well as the average time it would take each student to develop skills needed to be job-
Business
ready for their intended careers.2 Computer Science
Education
Engineering
Health Sciences
Mathematics and Statistics
Physical Sciences
Social Sciences

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 5

Biological Sciences
Biological sciences students’
intended careers
The biological sciences field is evolving as computing, data processing, and artificial intelligence fuel new
advancements. Applications of biological sciences are even aiding the COVID-19 response with faster
identification of the virus and more effective diagnostics. Rank Biological Sciences

Our data show that biological sciences students are most interested in becoming biologists, microbiologists, 1. Biologist

biostatisticians, and biomedical engineers after graduation. 2. Microbiologist

3. Biostatistician

4. Biomedical Engineer

The employability skills biological sciences students are missing and the average time 5. Veterinarian

needed to reach target proficiency 6. Researcher

7. Surgeon
Biologists, biostatisticians, medical professionals, and biological researchers who learn on Coursera have 8. Retail Pharmacist
advanced skills proficiencies in leadership and management, statistical programming, and computer 9. Chemist
programming. Their skills proficiencies generally outpace the skills proficiency of biological sciences students
10. Physician
studying on the Coursera platform. The employability skills that students have the biggest opportunity to
deepen expertise in are data management, computer programming, and statistical programming. To close the
data management skills gap, students would need an average of 47 days of dedicated learning—which is more
than half a semester.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 6

 Skills Proficiency Level
St
at
ist
ica
Le lP
ad ro
er gr
sh am
ip m
& in
Ma g 27 days
na
ge
m
en
t 11 days
Co Sa
m le
Co m s 7 days
m un
pu ica
te
r
Pr
tio
n
og 0 days
ra
m
m
in
Da g 41 days
ta
Hu An
al
m ys
an is 0 days
Re
so
ur
ce
s 7 days
Ma
Bu rk
et
sin in
es g 3 days
sA
Da na
ta lys
M is
an 14 days
ag
em
en
t 47 days
St
ra
te F in
gy a nc
& e 0 days
Pr Op
ob er
ab a tio
ilit ns
y& 5 days
St
Re at
se i sti
Biological Sciences Skills Gaps

ar cs 0 days
ch
&
De
De sig
sig n 3 days
n
&

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

Pr
od

Skills
uc
Ac t 20 days
co
Co
m u nt
pu in
te g 0 days
rG
Da ra
ph
ta ics
Vi
su 14 days
al
Ma iza
ch tio
in n 9 days
Co eL
m e ar
pu n
te in
rA g 13 days
rc
hi
Th Op te
ct
eo
re
er
at u re
tic in 21 days
al gS
Co ys
m t em
pu
te s 18 days
rS
Hu En cie
m tre nc
e
an pr 0 days
Co en
m eu
pu rs
te hi
rI p 0 days
nt
er
ac
tio
Ma n 3 days
Mo th
em
bi
le a tic
De s 0 days
ve
Bu lo
sin pm
es en
sP t 3 days
So sy
ftw ch
ol
ar og
eE y 0 days
ng
W in
eb e er
in
De g 14 days
ve
lo
pm
en
t 12 days

10 days
To close the data
management skills gap,

days of dedicated learning.

biological sciences students
would need an average of 47

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

7
Business
Business students’
intended careers
According to Deloitte, a company’s ability to drive digital transformation is one of the most significant
indicators of growth and financial success. Data analyzed from Coursera’s Global Skills Index suggests that
industries with more highly skilled talent, especially pertaining to technology skills, see higher stock returns Rank Business
and less disruption from COVID-19.
1. Personal Financial Advisor

According to our data, business students are most interested in becoming financial advisors, marketers, and 2. Corporate Finance Professional

management consultants. In line with digital transformation trends, we believe technology and data science 3. Marketer
skills are increasingly critical to these in-demand business careers. 4. Accountant

5. Sales Account Manager

The employability skills business students are missing and the average time needed
6. Auditor
to reach target proficiency 7. Business Management Consultant

Business professionals like financial advisors, marketers, and management consultants who learn on Coursera 8. Securities Commodities Trader

have advanced skills proficiencies in leadership and management, statistical programming, and sales. These 9. Sales Representative

business students on Coursera have comparable skills proficiencies in leadership and management, sales, 10. Human Resources Professional

and communication. In terms of upskilling, there are opportunities for these students to deepen expertise in
critical technical skills, like software engineering, computer programming, and data visualization. According
to our data, a business student could close the software engineering gap in 39 days—half a semester on
average—and close the statistical programming gap in 19 days on average.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 8

 Le Skills Proficiency Level
ad
er
sh
ip
St &
at Ma
ist na
ic ge
al m
Pr en
og t 0 days
ra
m
m
in
g 19 days

Co Sa
m le
m s 1 day
un
ica
tio
Da n 0 days
ta
An
al
ys
is 0 days
St
ra Fin
te an
gy
& ce
0 days
Op
e ra
tio
ns
2 days
Ma
Hu rk
m et
in
an g
Business Skills Gaps

Re 0 days
s ou
En rc
tre es
pr 0 days
en
eu
rs
hi
p 0 days
Ac
co
Bu u nt
sin in
es g 0 days
sA
Re na
s
ea lys
rc is 2 days
So h
ftw &
ar De
e sig
En n 0 days
gi
ne
Da er
Co t aM i ng
m an 39 days
pu ag

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

te em
rP

Skills
en
ro t 0 days
gr
am
Hu D a m
m t aV i ng
an isu 20 days
Co al
m iza
pu tio
te
rI n 11 days
nt
Co er
m a ct
pu io
te n 3 days
rG
ra
De ph
sig ics
n 10 days
&
Pr
od
uc
Ma t 9 days
th
em
Ma
ch a tic
in s 0 days
Mo eL
ea
Th b ile rn
eo
re i ng
tic
De
ve 0 days
al
Co lo
pm
m en
pu
te t 7 days
Pr rS
ob cie
ab nc
ilit
y& e 11 days
Co
m St
at
pu
te i stic
rA s 0 days
rc
hi
W te
eb ct
u re
De
ve 8 days
Bu lo
sin pm
es en
sP t 7 days
sy
Op ch
er o lo
at gy 0 days
in
gS
ys
te
m
s 2 days

10 days
programming skills.
expertise in software
Business students have

engineering, computer
opportunities to deepen

number of days
to close the gap
programming, and statistical

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

9
Computer Science
Computer science students’
intended careers
Computer science graduates have some of the highest starting salaries in the United States labor market
and have the opportunity to work in cutting-edge fields like cybersecurity, big data analytics, and artificial
intelligence. Rank Computer Science

According to our data, computer science students are most interested in becoming cloud architects, full-stack 1. Cloud Architect

developers, and front-end developers. 2. Full-Stack Developer

3. Front-End Developer
The employability skills that computer science students are lacking and the average 4. Machine Learning Engineer
time needed to reach target proficiency 5. Cyber Security Engineer

6. Back-End Developer
Computer science professionals like cloud architects, full-stack developers, and front-end developers
who learn on Coursera have advanced skills proficiencies in statistical programming, communication, 7. DevOps Engineer

and computer programming. Computer science students learning on Coursera have comparable skills 8. Software Engineer

proficiencies in data analysis, probability and statistics, and finance. Skills that they can strengthen the 9. Computer Scientist

most are critical data management and software engineering. These findings may seem counterintuitive 10. Network Engineer Architect

at first glance; however, a prior study has corroborated this information. Data management and software
engineering skills are required to build software products at scale; however, it is common for university
curricula to focus primarily on programming principles. Our data shows that a computer science student can
close the software engineering skills gap in 49 days, or less than a semester, on average.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 10

 Skills Proficiency Level

Co
m
St
at m
ist un
ica ica
lP tio
Co ro n 26 days
m gr
am
pu
te m
Le rP in
ad ro g 28 days
er gr
sh am
ip m
& in
Ma g 30 days
na
ge
m
en
t 9 days
Da Sa
ta le
M an s 9 days
So
ftw ag
ar em
e e nt
En
gi 65 days
ne
Hu er
m in
an g 49 days
Re
so
Bu ur
sin ce
es s 18 days
sA
na
lys
is
10 days
Ma
Op rk
et
er in
at
in g 0 days
gS
ys
te
m
Da s 36 days
ta
W An
eb al
ys
De is 0 days
ve
lo
Computer Science Skills Gaps

pm
en
t 28 days
Fin
Da an
ta ce
Vi
su 0 days
al

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

iza

Skills
tio
n 10 days
Ac
co
Co
m u nt
pu in
te g 1 day
rG
ra
Re
se p hi
ar cs 9 days
St ch
ra &
Th te De
eo gy sig
re & n 12 days
tic Op
al er
Co at
m i on
pu s 16 days
Co te
m rS
Hu pu cie
m te nc
an rA e 6 days
Co rc
hi
m te
pu ct
te ur
rI e 8 days
nt
Mo er
bi ac
le tio
De n 0 days
ve
lo
Ma pm
ch en
in t 10 days
eL
ea
rn
in
Ma g 0 days
th
De em
sig at
n ics
0 days
an
Pr
ob d
Pr
ab od
ilit uc
y& t 8 days
Bu St
sin a tis
es tic
sP s 0 days
sy
ch
En ol
tre og
pr y 0 days
en
eu
rs
hi
p 0 days

10 days
strengthen software
have opportunities to
Computer science students

building software products.

engineering skills critical for

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

11
Education
Education students’
intended careers
Educators mitigated disruption of campus closures caused by the pandemic by moving their courses,
assessments, and even graduation ceremonies online. We believe it’s never been more critical to build
resilience into teaching. Rank Education

Our data shows that students studying education are most interested in careers in education 1. Education Administrator

administration, teaching, and teaching assistance. 2. Teacher

3. Teaching Assistant

4. Education Trainer

The employability skills education students are lacking and the average time 5. Coach

6. Advisor
needed to reach target proficiency
7. College-level Instructor
Education professionals like education administrators and teachers who learn on Coursera have advanced 8. Mathematician
skills proficiencies in leadership and management, communication, and stastical programming. These 9. Interpreter/Translator
education students have comparable skills proficiencies in data analysis, entrepreneurship, and finance.
Our data shows that an education student could close the data visualization skills gap in just 12 days on
average. This vital skill can help educators analyze students’ progress during the semester to identify any
necessary interventions.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 12

 Skills Proficiency Level
St
at
ist
ica
Le lP
ad ro
er gr
sh am
ip m
& in
Ma g 60 days
na
ge
Co m
en
m t
m 11 days
un
Hu ica
m tio
n
an 0 days
Co
m Sa
pu
te le
rI s 9 days
nt
er
ac
tio
Da n 12 days
ta
Op An
al
er
at y sis
in
gS 0 days
ys
te
m
s 24 days
Co Fin
m an
pu ce
te
rG 0 days
ra
Education Skills Gaps

ph
ics
10 days
Ma
En r ket
in
tre
pr g 2 days
en
Re e ur
se sh
ar ip 0 days
ch
&
Hu De
m sig
Co an n 7 days
m Re
pu so
te ur
rP ce
ro s 4 days
gr
am
Da
ta m
in
Ma g 16 days
na

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

ge
m

Skills
en
Ac t 36 days
So co
ftw un
ar tin
eE g 0 days
Co ng
m in
ee
pu
te rin
rA g 28 days
rc
hi
te
ct
ur
Ma e 5 days
St th
ra em
te a
gy tic
& s 0 days
Op
er
Bu a tio
sin ns
es 9 days
Pr sA
ob na
ab lys
ilit is
y& 6 days
St
Da at
ta ist
i cs
Vi
su 5 days
Mo al
Th bi iza
eo l eD t io
re ev n 12 days
tic el
al op
Co m
m en
pu t 6 days
te
rS
Ma cie
ch nc
in e 5 days
eL
ea
De rn
sig in
n g 3 days
&
W Pr
eb od
uc
De t 19 days
ve
Bu lo
sin pm
es en
sP t 7 days
sy
ch
ol
og
y 0 days

10 days
could close the data
An education student

just 12 days on average.

visualization skills gap in

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

13
Engineering
Engineering students’
intended careers
Careers available to engineering graduates are wide and varied, but many of them require graduates to
analyze complex problems and build thoughtful solutions that leverage cutting-edge tools and technologies.
Rank Engineering
According to our data, engineering students are most interested in becoming solutions engineers, electrical
engineers, and mechanical engineers. 1. Solutions Engineer

2. Electrical Engineer

3. Mechanical Engineer

4. Structural Materials Engineer

The employability skills engineering students are lacking and the average time
5. Civil Engineer
needed to reach target proficiency
6. Automotive Engineer

Engineering professionals like solutions engineers, electrical engineers, and mechanical engineers who 7. Automation Engineer
learn on the Coursera platform have advanced skills proficiencies in statistical programming, leadership 8. Mechatronics Engineer
and management, and computer graphics. Engineering students learning on Coursera are trailing furthest 9. Mechanical Design Engineer
behind in software engineering, statistical programming, and data management skills. Cornell Assistant 10. Petroleum Engineer
Professor of Engineering Brian Johns recently observed that “industry engineering jobs are becoming more
interdisciplinary,” and our data corroborates this finding. Current engineering students learning on Coursera
appear to be left unprepared in certain key digital skills. Our data show that it would take an engineering
student 48 days, or less than a semester on average, to close the software engineering gap.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 14

 Le Skills Proficiency Level
ad
er
sh
ip
St &
at Ma
ist na
ic ge
al m
Pr en
og t 9 days
ra
m
Co m
in
m g 45 days
m
un
ica
tio
n 5 days
Co
Hu m Sa
m pu le
s
an te 11 days
Co r Gr
m ap
pu hi
te cs
Co r In 19 days
m te
pu ra
te ct
r io
Pr n
og 11 days
ra
m
Bu m
s in in
g
St es 28 days
ra sA
te na
gy lys
& is 15 days
Op
er
at
io
ns
18 days
Ma
rk
Engineering Skills Gaps

et
in
Da g 1 day
ta
An
al
ys
is 0 days
Co
m Fin
pu an
te ce
rA
rc 0 days
hi
te
ct
ur
Ac e 5 days
co
Op un
er tin
at
in g 0 days
gS

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

ys
En te
m

Skills
tre
pr s 25 days
en
Da eu
ta rs
M h ip
an 0 days
ag
Da em
ta en
Vi t 35 days
su
al
Hu iza
m tio
an n 11 days
So Re
ftw so
ur
ar ce
eE s 3 days
ng
in
ee
rin
Ma g 48 days
Mo th
Th bi em
eo le a tic
re De s 0 days
tic ve
al lo
Co pm
m e nt
pu 11 days
te
De rS
sig cie
n nc
e
an 5 days
d
Pr
Re od
se u ct
ar
ch 7 days
&
De
Ma
ch s ig
in n 0 days
Pr eL
ob ea
ab rn
ilit in
y& g 0 days
Bu St
sin at
ist
es ics
sP 0 days
sy
W ch
o
eb lo
De gy 0 days
ve
lo
pm
en
t 19 days

10 days
in key digital skills like
trailing furthest behind

and data management.

statistical programming
Engineering students are

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

15
Health Sciences
Health sciences students’
intended careers
Data, artificial intelligence, and open, secure platforms have the potential to revolutionize the delivery of
healthcare. Accenture predicts an estimated 25% of existing tasks in today’s healthcare workplace will be
automated by 2030. A digitally skilled workforce can help drive toward this technologically advanced future. Rank Health Sciences

According to our data, health sciences students are most interested in becoming retail pharmacists, dentists, 1. Retail Pharmacist

nurses, and nutritionists. 2. Dentist / Orthodontist /

Prosthodontist

3. Registered Nurse

4. Dietitian Nutritionist
The employability skills health sciences students are lacking and the average time 5. Physician
needed to reach target proficiency 6. Surgeon

7. Veterinarian
Health sciences professionals like retail pharmacists, dentists, nurses, and nutritionists who learn on Coursera
8. Therapist
have advanced skills proficiencies in statistical programming, design and product, and leadership and
management. Health sciences students learning on Coursera are falling furthest behind professionals in 9. Psychiatrist

design and product, statistical programming, and software engineering. Some of the health sciences students’ 10. Microbiologist

skills gaps can be closed relatively quickly, while others require a more prolonged investment. The human
computer interaction skills gap, for example, can be closed in an average of just five days, but the substantial
design and product gap will take 29 days to close.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 16

 St Skills Proficiency Level
at
ist
ic
al
Pr
og
ra
m
De m
Le sig in
ad n g 15 days
er &
sh Pr
ip od
& uc
Ma t 29 days
Pr na
ob ge
ab m
ilit en
y& t 0 days
St
at
ist
ics
8 days
Sa
le
Da s 0 days
So ta
ftw An
al
ar
eE y sis
ng 0 days
in
Da ee
ta rin
Ma g 43 days
St na
ra ge
te m
gy en
& t 26 days
Op
er
Hu at
m i on
an s 3 days
Re
Re so
ur
se ce
ar
ch s 1 day
&
De
sig
Ma n 0 days
th
Health Sciences Skills Gaps

em
at
ics
0 days
Ma
rk
et
in
Ac g 0 days
co
M u nt
Hu
m a ch i ng
an in 0 days
Co eL

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

m ea
rn
pu

Skills
te in
rI g 0 days
nt
er
Bu a ct
sin i on
es 5 days
sA
na
Da
ta l ys
Vi is 2 days
su
Op al
iza
er
at t i on
in 2 days
gS
ys
te
m
Co s 15 days
m
pu Fin
te an
rP ce
ro 0 days
gr
Co am
m m
pu in
te g 4 days
Mo rG
b ra
Th
eo ile p hi
re De cs 5 days
tic ve
al
Co lo
pm
m en
Co
pu
te t 5 days
m rS
cie
pu
te nc
rA e 1 day
rc
Bu hi
sin te
ct
es ur
sP e 4 days
sy
ch
En ol
tre og
pr y 0 days
en
eu
Co rs
hi
m p 0 days
m
un
W i c
eb at
io
De n 0 days
ve
lo
pm
en
t 13 days

10 days
programming skills.
have opportunities to
Health sciences students

deepen expertise in design

and product and statistical

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

17
Mathematics and Statistics
Mathematics and statistics
students’ intended careers
Advancements in machine learning and deep learning can unlock new capabilities for many mathematics-
based roles. For example, deep learning can enhance the predictive power of models built by actuaries and
provide the means to extend actuarial modeling to new types of data. Rank Mathematics and Statistics

Our data shows that mathematics and statistics students are most interested in becoming data scientists, 1. Mathematician

actuaries, risk managers, and biostatisticians. In these roles, graduates will be tasked with extrapolating and 2. Actuary

communicating meaning from an ever-increasing amount of data. 3. Risk Manager

4. Biostatistician

5. Securities Commodities Trader

The employability skills mathematics and statistics students are missing and the 6. Data Scientist

7. Teaching Assistant
average time needed to reach target proficiency
8. Investment Specialist
Mathematics professionals like data scientists, actuaries, risk managers, and biostatisticians who learn on 9. Corporate Finance Professional
Coursera have advanced skills proficiency in statistical programming. These mathematics and statistics 10. Economist
students studying on Coursera are trailing furthest behind professionals in data management skills. This skills
gap would take mathematics and statistics students an average of 51 days to close.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 18

 Skills Proficiency Level
St
at
ist
ica
l Pr
og
ra
m
Co m
Le m in
ad m g 8 days
er un
sh ica
ip
& tio
n
Ma
na 14 days
ge
m
en
t 12 days
Sa
le
s 20 days
Da Fin
ta an
M ce
Co an 4 days
m ag
pu em
te
r en
Pr
og t 51 days
ra
m
m
in
Da g 15 days
ta
A na
Bu
s in
lys
is
es 0 days
sA
na
lys
is
0 days
Ma
Hu rk
et
m in
an g 0 days
St Re
ra so
te ur
gy ce
& s 9 days
Op
er
Ma a tio
ch ns
in 17 days
eL
ea
rn
in
Ac g 4 days
co
Da un
ta t i ng
Vi
su 0 days
al

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

Re iza
se

Skills
tio
ar
ch n 8 days
&
Co
m D es
pu ig
te n 2 days
Co rG
m ra
Mathematics and Statistics Skills Gaps

pu ph
te ics
rA
rc 5 days
hi
Th En te
eo ct
tre ur
re pr e 12 days
tic en
al
Co e ur
m s hi
pu p 0 days
Pr te
ob rS
ab c ie
ilit nc
y& e 0 days
St
at
ist
ics
Ma 0 days
th
em
Hu De at
m sig ics
an n 0 days
Co &
m Pr
od
pu
te uc
rI t 5 days
nt
Mo er
bi ac
le tio
De n 0 days
ve
lo
Op pm
er en
at t 10 days
in
Bu gS
sin ys
te
es m
sP s 4 days
sy
W ch
eb ol
og
De y 0 days
So ve
ftw lo
pm
ar en
eE
ng t 15 days
in
ee
rin
g 19 days

10 days
would need an average
of 51 days of dedicated

management skills gap.

learning to close the data
Math and statistics students

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

19
Physical Sciences
Physical sciences students’
intended careers
As advancements in technology and data science permeate every field of study, physical sciences students
will need the technical knowledge to keep pace.
Rank Physical Sciences
Physical sciences students are most interested in becoming physicists, geologists, chemists, and researchers.
1. Physicist

2. Geologist

3. Chemist
The employability skills physical sciences students are lacking and the average time
4. Researcher
needed to reach target proficiency
5. Interdisciplinary Scientist

Physical sciences professionals like physicists, geologists, chemists, and researchers who learn on Coursera 6. Mathematician

have advanced skills proficiency in statistical programming, data analysis, and communication. Additionally, 7. Education Trainer
physical sciences students learning on Coursera have comparable skills proficiencies in these three skills. They 8. Professor
are trailing furthest behind professionals in operating systems and software engineering skills. It would take a 9. Teacher
physical sciences student 36 and 37 days on average to close these skills gaps, respectively. 10. Physician

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 20

 Skills Proficiency Level
St
at
ist
ica
Le lP
ad ro
er gr
sh am
ip m
& in
Ma g 1 day
na
ge
Co m
en
m t
m 11 days
un
ica
tio
n 0 days
Sa
l es
Co Da
ta 12 days
m A
pu na
te
r Pr
lys
is
og 0 days
ra
m
m
in
g 6 days
Fin
an
ce
0 days
Op Ma
er rk
et
at in
in g 0 days
g
Co Sy
st
m em
pu s
te 36 days
r Gr
Hu ap
m hi
cs
an 8 days
Re
so
Da
ta u rc
Ma es 3 days
na
ge
Re
se m
en
ar t 30 days
Physical Sciences Skills Gaps

ch
&
Hu En De
m tre sig
n
an pr 6 days
Co en
m eu
rs
pu
te h ip
rI 8 days
nt
er

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

ac

Skills
tio
n 9 days
Ac
co
Bu u nt
sin in
es g 0 days
St sA
ra na
te l
gy ys
& is 0 days
Co Op
m er
pu at
te io
rA ns 4 days
rc
hi
te
Da ct
ta ur
e
Vi 10 days
Pr su
ob al
ab i zat
io
ilit
y& n 0 days
St
Th at
eo i s tic
re
tic
Ma s 0 days
al th
Co em
m at
i cs
pu
te 0 days
rS
Ma cie
ch nc
in e 2 days
eL
ea
De r ni
sig n g
n 0 days
Mo &
Pr
bi od
le uc
So
De t 12 days
ve
ftw lo
ar p m
e en
En t 0 days
Bu gi
ne
sin er
es in
sP g 37 days
sy
W ch
o
eb lo
De gy 0 days
ve
lo
pm
en
t 0 days

10 days
deepen expertise in
have opportunities to

operating systems and

Physical sciences students

software engineering skills.

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

21
Social Sciences
Social sciences students’
intended careers
As the volume of available data has grown exponentially, the ability to analyze and extrapolate meaning from
data can be critical. Whether a student dreams of becoming a UX researcher analyzing how a user interacts
with a product or an economist forecasting trends in the market, strong data science skills can give them a Rank Social Sciences
competitive edge.
1. Social Worker

According to our data, social sciences students are most interested in becoming social workers, therapists, 2. Therapist

and psychologists. 3. Psychologist

4. Economist

5. User Experience Researcher

The employability skills social sciences students are lacking and the average time 6. Communications And Public
Relations Professional
needed to reach target proficiency 7. Journalist

8. Government Employee
Social sciences professionals like social workers, therapists, and psychologists who learn on Coursera have
advanced skills proficiency in leadership and management, data analysis, and statistical programming. Social 9. Community Leader

sciences students have comparable skills proficiencies in leadership and management and communication, 10. Urban Planner

but have opportunities to develop stronger statistical programming skills. It would take them only 16 days on
average to close the statistical programming skills gap.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 22

 St Skills Proficiency Level
at
ist
ic
al
Le Pr
ad og
er ra
sh m
ip m
& in
Ma g 16 days
na
ge
m
en
Da t 0 days
ta
A na
lys
is 0 days

Co Sa
m le
m s 0 days
un
ica
tio
n 0 days
St Ma
ra rk
te et
gy in
& g 0 days
Op
Mo er
bi at
le io
De ns
ve 0 days
lo
pm
en
Ac t 20 days
co
Hu u nt
m in
an g 0 days
Re
s ou
Re rc
s ea es
rc 0 days
h
&
De
sig
n 0 days
Social Sciences Skills Gaps

Pr
ob Fin
ab an
ilit
Co y& ce 0 days
m St
pu at
te ist
rP ics 0 days
ro
gr
am
Da
ta m
in 15 days
Ma g
na

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

ge
Da m

Skills
ta en 15 days
Vi
su t
al
iza
tio
Ma n 4 days
th
em
Bu at
sin
es
ics 0 days
sA
na
Hu
m
En l ys
an
tre
pr is 0 days
Co en
m eu
pu rs
te hi 0 days
rI p
nt
er
De ac
tio
sig
n n 0 days
So &
ftw Pr
od
ar
eE u ct 9 days
ng
Co in
m ee
rin
pu 48 days
te g
rG
ra
Ma ph
ch ics 3 days
in
eL
Th Op ea
eo er rn
in 0 days
re
tic
at
in g
al gS
Co ys
m te
m 7 days
pu
te s
rS
W cie
eb nc
De e 6 days
ve
Bu lo
sin pm
es en
Co sP t 20 days
m sy
pu ch
ol
te o
rA gy 0 days
rc
hi
te
ct
ur
e 0 days
skills gap.

10 days
would need merely an
Social sciences students

average of 16 days to close

the statistical programming

number of days
to close the gap

university students
skills proficiency of
skills proficiency of
working professionals

23
Conclusion

This data suggests there is often a disconnect between

the skills needed in the workforce and the skills that
students develop during their studies. By leveraging
these rich insights, universities can adapt their
curricula to improve student employability.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 24

Blended Learning:
Delivering on Student
Expectations
Introduction
Creating custom degrees

Blended learning allows universities

Blended learning, or the integration of face-to-face and online instruction, is becoming the new normal
to couple cutting-edge skills with
in the wake of COVID-19. Universities around the world can supplement on-campus programs with
online capabilities to: their core curriculum to offer
unique honors degrees. NMIMS,
• Engage students with content and certifications from top universities and companies—online, offline,
a deemed-to-be university in
and on mobile
Mumbai, started leveraging content
• Build their own credit-eligible courses in core curriculum or for honors credit with academic integrity
tools and custom online assessments through Coursera in July 2019.
• Provide hands-on learning for students using real-world tools to learn practical skills Engineering students at NMIMS have
• Increase student capacity without increasing infrastructure costs the option to complete 20 extra
credits online—for a total of 180
In this section, we surface the most in-demand online content on the Coursera platform to share how credits—to receive an honors degree
academic departments can use digital content to meet students’ evolving needs and expectations. with a specialization in artificial
intelligence and other emerging
technologies such as Internet of
Things (IoT) and cloud computing.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 26

Complementing core curriculum Social Sciences
Skills Missing in Existing Curricula

As cutting-edge skills often develop faster than Skills Offered in Fewer than 25% of Course Catalogs

faculty may be able to update their syllabi, digital Physical Sciences Skills Offered in More than 25% of Course Catalogs

content can complement the core content that

universities offer. Courses that develop specific Mathematics & Statistics

skills in computer programming and data analysis,

for example, are more likely to be missing from a Health Sciences

university’s curriculum and have higher rates of

engagement from learners on our platform. Engineering

Major
Engineering and computer science students in
Education
particular tend to enroll in Coursera courses that
aren’t often found on campus. These courses
Computer Science
develop cutting-edge data science and computer
science skills that are often lacking in university and
college curricula. Our course catalog analysis shows Business

that data analysis skills only appear in 9% of course

catalogs, but that engineering students on Coursera Biological Sciences

enroll in courses teaching data analysis more often

than other skills. Arts & Humanities

0 5000 10000

Average Enrollments in Skill

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 27

 Top content domains by region3

The World Economic Forum estimates that by 2025, 85 million jobs

may be displaced by a shift in the division of labor between humans and
machines, while 97 million new roles may emerge that are more adapted
20%
to the new division of labor between humans, machines, and algorithms.
As many students prepare to enter a competitive labor market after they
Percent of Enrollments

graduate, our data shows that they are gravitating towards job-relevant
business, technology, and data science courses—regardless of region.

10%

Other
North America
Middle East & Africa
Latin America
Europe

0% Asia - Pacific
s

es

lo n

th

er ce

ni e

iti d

ic
ie er

nc l

en l
es

ie cia

pm na
ar ag
no tio

an an

g
al
nc

ne n
Sc put

Lo
e

gy

ng

es

es

t
sin

gi cie

Le ngu

lo so
He
ch a

Sc So
nc

in

m ts
cie

Te form

&
m

ve Per
Bu

Hu Ar
En al S

La
S

th
Co

ta

Ma
In

ic
Da

ys
Ph

De
&

Domain

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 28

Top trending skills globally Top courses by enrollments globally Top professional certificates globally

As the demand for cutting-edge technical skills
grows, our data shows that students are looking
to develop related skills, including artificial neural
networks and blockchain.
As technology permeates nearly every industry,
students across fields of study are engaging with
foundational tech skills, including introductory
programming and AI courses.
Blended learning allows universities to offer students
access to online certifications from industry leaders.
In one example, students at the University of
London who earn a Google IT Support Professional
Certificate on Coursera can apply the credit towards
their computer science bachelor’s degree.

Rank Skills Rank Courses Rank Certificates

1. Artificial Neural Networks 1. Google Cloud Platform Fundamentals: Core 1. Google IT Support
Infrastructure, Google Cloud
2. Digital Marketing 2. Google IT Automation with Python
2. Programming for Everybody (Getting Started with
3. Blockchain Python), University of Michigan 3. Cloud Architecture with Google Cloud

4. Python Programming 3. The Data Scientist’s Toolbox, Johns Hopkins University 4. Cloud Engineering with Google Cloud

5. JavaScript 4. Python Data Structures, University of Michigan 5. DeepLearning.AI TensorFlow Developer

6. Bioinformatics 5. Write Professional Emails in English, Georgia Tech 6. SRE and DevOps Engineer with Google Cloud

7. Algorithms 6. Neural Networks and Deep Learning, Deeplearning.AI 7. Google Cloud Security

8. Graphic Design 7. Excel Skills for Business: Essentials, Macquarie University 8. Google Cloud Networking

9. Data Structures 8. Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI), IBM 9. IBM Cybersecurity Analyst

10. SQL 9. Front-End Web UI Frameworks and Tools: Bootstrap 4, 10. IBM Applied AI
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
According to our campus learner survey, more than half of Coursera
10. AI For Everyone, Deeplearning.AI learners reported that the professional certificates they earned on the
platform improved their application for a job or internship.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 29

Top Guided Projects by Major Rank Biological Sciences Rank Business Rank Computer Science

1. COVID-19 Data Analysis Using 1. Getting Started with Power BI 1. Facial Expression Recognition
Over 2.5 million students have enrolled in Guided Python Desktop with Keras
Projects on Coursera—and for good reason. Guided 2. Create a Resume and Cover Letter 2. Google Ads for Beginners 2. Build Your Portfolio Website with
Projects provide students with hands-on learning with Google Docs HTML and CSS

using commonly used tools to develop practical, 3. Introduction to Python 3. Introduction to Project 3. COVID-19 Data Analysis Using
Management Python
job-ready skills. Students use cloud-based desktops
in a web browser while industry leaders guide them
Rank Education Rank Engineering Rank Health Sciences
step-by-step through a project. These projects provide
focused support for students, freeing up time for 1. Spreadsheets for Beginners Using 1. Create Your First Python Program 1. Use Canva to Create Social Media
Google Sheets Marketing Designs
faculty to focus on broader projects. In 2020, COVID-19
2. Introduction to Google Docs 2. Build Your Portfolio Website with 2. Create a Resume and Cover Letter
Data Analysis Using Python was the #5-ranked project HTML and CSS with Google Docs
among college students on Coursera. 3. Create a Resume and Cover Letter 3. COVID-19 Data Analysis Using 3. COVID-19 Data Analysis Using
with Google Docs Python Python

Rank Mathematics and Statistics Rank Physical Sciences Rank Social Sciences

1. COVID-19 Data Analysis Using 1. Introduction to Python 1. Introduction to Project

Python Management

2. Linear Regression with NumPy 2. COVID-19 Data Analysis Using 2. Google Ads for Beginners
and Python Python

3. Getting Started with Power BI 3. Create Your First Python Program 3. Spreadsheets for Beginners Using
Desktop Google Sheets

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 30

Conclusion

Knowing which online content to blend with on-

campus curricula can be a daunting task. But using
these insights, universities can develop blended
curricula that teach job-relevant business, data
science, and technology skills in high demand
among students.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 31

Lifelong Learning:
Education at All Ages
Introduction

The World Economic Forum predicts that 42% of the core skills within existing jobs on average are expected to Shelf life of domains
change by 2022. Lifelong learning and continuous retraining can help meet these evolving skill demands.

Our analysis shows that skills in the data science and technology domains decay faster than any other field
Information Technology
of study, meaning they have a shorter half-life. While business skills such as leadership and management
have half lives of more than 15 years, machine learning, data visualization, and web development skills have Computer Science

half lives of less than 10 years. The median half-life of a data science or technology skill is about seven years Math & Logic

shorter than the half-life of a skill outside of those domains. Data Science

Language Learning
The rapid pace of skill decay suggests that universities must broaden access to lifelong learning opportunities

Domain
and find ways to engage learners at every age. Social Sciences

Physical Science & Engineering

Health

Business
Business, data science, and technology skills with the shortest shelf lives
Personal Development

Arts & Humanities

Communication Machine Learning Web Development
0 5 10 15
Finance Statistical Programming Computer Graphics Median Skill Half Life (Years)

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 33

 Le
ad
er Median Skill Half Life (Years)
sh
ip
&
Ma
n

0
5
10
15
20
ag
En em
tre en
p re t
n eu
rs
hi
p
Ma
rk
et
in
g

Business skills
Ac
co
u nt
in
g
Sa
le
s
Fin
Co an
m ce
m
un
ica
tio
n
Shelf Life of Skills

Median Skill Half Life (Years)

Ma
0
5
10
15
20

Pr th
ob em
ab
ilit at
y& ics
St

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning

at
ist
Data skills

Da ics
ta
Da An
ta al
ys
Ma is
na
ge
Da m
St
ta e nt
Vi
at su
ist al
ica iza
lP tio
ro n
gr
am
Ma m
ch in
in g
eL
ea
rn
in
g
Technology Skills

So Median Skill Half Life (Years)

ftw
ar
eE
0
5
10
15
20

ng
in
Hu
m
Op
er er e
an at in
Co in g
gS
m y
pu ste
te m
Co rI s
m nt
pu er
te ac
rP tio
ro n
Mo gr
bi am
le m
in
Technology skills

De g
ve
Co lo
m pm
pu en
te t
rG
W ra
eb ph
De ics
ve
lo
pm
en
t
34
Supporting Faculty to Support Students
Top courses for faculty
Before the COVID-19 outbreak, less than half of higher education faculty had taught an online course.
Integrating online technologies into instruction can be a challenging prospect for faculty, but it can be
by enrollment
effective to engaging students both on and off campus.

On Coursera, some of the courses with the most faculty enrollments are McMaster University and University of Rank Course
California San Diego’s Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects and
1. Machine Learning, Stanford University
UNSW Sydney’s Learning to Teach Online.
2. The Science of Well-Being, Yale University
Faculty are also engaging with cutting-edge trends and skills within their fields, including business, 3. Programming for Everybody (Getting Started
with Python), University of Michigan
technology, and data science skills like MATLAB, machine learning, and IoT. Gamification has also become a
trending skill for faculty on the platform. 4. Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental
tools to help you master tough subjects,
McMaster University & University of California
San Diego

5. Learning to Teach Online, UNSW Sydney

Top Trending Skills for Faculty
6. Neural Networks and Deep Learning,
deeplearning.ai
Rank Business Data Science Technology
7. AI For Everyone, deeplearning.ai

1. Spreadsheets Python Programming IoT 8. COVID-19 Contact Tracing, Johns Hopkins

2. Oral Communication Machine Learning Gamification 9. Understanding Research Methods, University

of London & SOAS University of London
3. Lean Project Management Multi-Task Learning C Programming
10. The Data Scientist’s Toolbox, Johns Hopkins
4. Blockchain Hyperparameter Optimization Keras

5. Design Thinking Backpropagation Numerical Analysis

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 35

Conclusion

Business, data science, and technology skills are

essential to the future of work—and yet they also
decay faster than skills in any other domain. Online
content can be a powerful tool for universities to
build lifelong relationships with learners, from
alumni and faculty to part-time students.

The Unbounded University is one that looks

beyond campus walls to embrace online learning
and unlock new opportunities for teaching job-
relevant skills, offering blended curricula, and
reaching lifelong learners.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 36

Methodology
METHODOLOGY OVERVIEW For The Unbounded University report, in particular, we leverage the Business Technology Data Science GRANULARITY 1 SKILL
(DOMAIN)
The Unbounded University report assesses the skills proficiency gaps that following parts of the Skills Graph:
GRANULARITY 2
students face when moving from a university into the labor force, and • Skill to skill: Describes the connections among skills and generates
Machine Learning Math (COMPETENCY)

positions this in the context of their online learning behavior to identify a skills taxonomy where broad, higher-level skills are parents of more
Supervised Learning Unsupervised Learning GRANULARITY 3
the role that universities could play as we move into an age of continuous granular, lower-level skills (see Figure 1).
reskilling. • Skill to content: Maps skills to the Coursera courses that teach them. Regression Modeling Cluster Analysis GRANULARITY 4

• Skill to assessment: Maps skills to the graded items that assess

This report focuses on the global base of learners on Coursera who took
them. Graded items on Coursera can be of several types: multiple Linear Regression K-Means Clustering GRANULARITY 5
courses through a Coursera for Campus program. As of December 31, 2020,
choice quizzes, peer review assignments like essays and projects, or
these campus programs reached 4,000 distinct colleges and universities and
programming assignments. Figure 1: Sample Portion of Coursera’s Skills Taxonomy
over two million students with over 19 million enrollments. The scale of this
• Skill to learner: Connects competencies, i.e., Level 1 skills, to learners
data leaves Coursera uniquely positioned to share insights on what courses
who have demonstrated them by passing relevant graded items. We The full set of competencies for which we measure learner proficiency in
university learners are taking and how their skills benchmark against the
measure this using a variant of the Glicko algorithm, described further The Unbounded University report, grouped by domain, are listed in Figure
skills of working professionals on Coursera’s platform.
below. 2 below.
Building this report involves data from several sources:
Business Technology Data Science
1. The Coursera Skills Graph SKILL-TO-SKILL RELATIONSHIPS
Accounting Computer Architecture Data Management
2. Coursera Skills Benchmarking We assemble a vast skills taxonomy of over 40,000 skills in the subject
Business Analysis Computer Graphics Data Visualization
3. Campus Learner Surveys areas of business, technology, and data science through a combination of
open-source taxonomies like Wikipedia and crowdsourcing from Coursera Business Psychology Computer Programming Machine Learning
4. Over-Indexing Skills
educators and learners. Communication Design and Product Mathematics
5. Skill Half-Life
6. Course Catalog Gaps Data Analysis Human Computer Interaction Probability and Statistics
Guided by open-source data combined with knowledge from industry
Entrepreneurship Mobile Development Statistical Programming
This report includes “Over-Indexing” skills which are different from the experts, we assemble a structured taxonomy that connects Coursera
Finance Operating Systems
“Trending” skills referenced in other Coursera Reports, such as the Global domains to the set of skills within them, ranging from competencies (Level
1 skills) down to very specific skills (Level 2+ skills). For The Unbounded Human Resources Software Engineering
Skills Index. More details on the differences between these methodologies
are detailed in the “Over-Indexing Skills” section of the appendix. University, we focus on measuring performance at the competency level. Leadership and Management Theoretical Computer Science

Marketing Web Development

THE COURSERA SKILLS GRAPH
The Coursera Skills Graph maps the connections among skills, content,
careers, and learners on the Coursera platform.
To illustrate the mapping among domains, competencies, and skills, Figure 1
Research and Design
shows a snapshot of a subsection of Coursera’s Skills Taxonomy.
Sales
Figure 2: Set of Competencies in The Unbounded University report

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 38

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SKILLS AND CONTENT
The skills in the Coursera Skills Taxonomy are mapped to the courses
that teach them using a machine learning model trained on a data set of
university instructor and learner-labeled skill-to-course mappings. Features
of the model include occurrence counts (e.g., in the lecture transcripts,
assignments, and course descriptions) and learner feedback.
With over 2,500 courses in business, technology, and data science from top-
ranked university and industry partners around the world, our catalog spans
the wide variety of skills that are relevant to the competencies in this report.
For each skill-course pair, this machine learning model outputs a score that
captures how likely it is that the skill is taught in the course. To define the
set of skill-to-course tags that power this report, we tune a cutoff threshold
based on expert feedback from our content strategy team.
When a skill within a competency is tagged to a course, we extract the graded
items in that course as being relevant for assessing a given competency.
These competency-to-assessment mappings were reviewed with industry
experts to ascertain their fidelity and adjusted as needed. This final set serves
as the pool we use to measure individual learners’ skills proficiencies.
COURSERA SKILLS BENCHMARKING
To benchmark skills proficiency at the university major level, we first
benchmark the skills proficiency of each learner in each skill. Then, we
aggregate those proficiencies to compute statistics like the average skills gap
by major.
Individual Skill Scores
With the set of assessments for each competency defined, we consider
grades for all learners taking relevant assessments and train machine
The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning
learning models to simultaneously estimate individual learners’ skills
proficiencies (i.e., how proficient each learner is in each competency) and
individual assessment difficulties (i.e., how challenging each assessment
is). Each domain and competency has its own model to estimate these
parameters.
This methodology allows us to measure learner skills proficiencies adjusting
for item difficulty. This is essential because the Coursera platform contains
a wide variety of courses ranging from the introductory college level to the
advanced graduate level. Adjusting for item difficulty ensures we neither
penalize learners for taking difficult courses nor over-reward learners for
strong performance in easy courses.
Because learners attempt various numbers of graded items at various levels
of difficulty, we also assess the precision with which we are measuring skills
proficiency for each learner through the calculation of standard errors. The
full details of our methodology for individual skill scoring are detailed in a
public technical paper.
Skills Gaps by Major
We use the skills proficiency estimated above as a measure of the relative
ability of each learner within a domain or competency. Aggregating across
learners in an entity (major or current occupation in this case) reveals the
average proficiency in that group.
We calculate the weighted average of skills proficiency estimates, where
weights are the inverse of the standard error for that learner. To avoid undue
influence of any individual learner, weights are trimmed to be at or below
the median value of the overall distribution of weights within each domain/
competency.
Within each major, we compute the weighted average of the skills proficiency
in each scored competency to assess the skills proficiency of the typical
university student taking courses in that competency on Coursera.
Following the methodology outlined below in the “Over-Indexing
Occupations” section, we identify the 10 occupations that learners in
each major are most interested in moving into after graduation. For each
competency, we then take the 70th percentile skill score of learners on
Coursera who are currently working in any of those 10 occupations to be
the “target proficiency” that students in a particular major should aim for.
This is a suitable target proficiency because it reflects the stated career
goals of the learners and the actual proficiency of workers in a given set
of occupations, weighted by the prevalence of those occupations among
working professionals who take courses on Coursera.
The skills gap is defined as the difference between the students’ current
proficiency within a major-skill pair and the student’s target proficiency
within a major-skill pair. This skills gap methodology was developed in
conjunction with the World Economic Forum for use in their Future of Jobs
report.
Time to Close Skills Gaps
In addition to current learner scores, we have learner score histories, so
we know on what date each learner achieved a particular skill score. To
determine how long it would take for the typical learner to close the skills
gap between current proficiency and target proficiency, we employ the
following methodology. First, look at the set of learners who have achieved
the target proficiency and see what date they achieved that proficiency level.
Then, we look at the date when they were at the current proficiency level
of the typical learner within a group of interest (as computed in the prior
section). Next, we take the difference between these two dates to determine
the number of days it took the learner to close that skills gap and move
39
from the current group average proficiency level to the target proficiency
level. Finally, we take an average over all learners closing this skills gap to
determine the typical time it takes to close a skills gap of that magnitude,
repeating this for all skills in The Unbounded University report.
CAMPUS LEARNER SURVEYS
To better understand our learners, Coursera conducts numerous outcomes
surveys to measure everything from demographics to career impact. This
section describes how the survey data used in this report was collected.
Over-Indexing Occupations
Users are able to set a current occupation and an interested occupation
within the Coursera platform in order to improve course recommendations
tailored to their interests. We use these datasets to identify the current and
intended future occupations of our learners.
To determine which occupations university students are most interested in
by major, we look for occupations that over-index in the data. We do this to
better reveal the kinds of occupations in which students in a particular major
are disproportionately interested.
The methodology is fairly straightforward and works as follows:
1. Compute the share of students interested in career X on the platform
overall (say 20%)
2. Compute the share of students within major Y interested in career X
(say 30%)
3. Compute the “occupation-quotient” of career X as (30% / 20% = 1.5)
In this case, we would say that “career X over-indexes in major Y” because it
occurs in major Y significantly more often than it occurs on Coursera overall.
To avoid edge cases with occupations with little overall interest that over-
The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning
index, we restrict to occupations that have at least 100 university students
interested in them.
Learner Demographics
Other learner demographics are from an off-platform survey of Coursera
learners affiliated with Coursera for Campus programs. This survey had
more than 26,000 responses at the end of 2020 and asked questions about
demographic information such as age, gender, primary field of study, current
educational program type. Additionally, the survey asked questions on
career and education objectives for using Coursera.
Learner Outcomes
Learner outcomes are taken from an off-platform survey administered to
Coursera learners between three and six months after joining their Coursera
for Campus program. It asks questions on both educational and career
outcomes as well as on the quality of Coursera content compared with
on-campus offerings at the learner’s home institution. This survey had more
than 29,000 respondents at the end of 2020. The set of outcomes learners
could select from are detailed in the sections of this report that present that
data. Learners were given the option of selecting no outcome.
OVER-INDEXING SKILLS
Over-indexing skills follows the same procedure as over-indexing
occupations, replacing “students” with “enrollments” and “careers”
with “skills”:
1. Compute the share of enrollments in courses teaching skill S overall
(say 20%)
2. Compute the share of enrollments in courses teaching skill S from
students within major Y (say 30%)
3. Compute the “skill-quotient” of skill S as (30% / 20% = 1.5)
We restrict to skills with greater than 1,000 enrollments to ensure the over-
indexing skills are sufficiently popular (and then use the “skill-quotient”
formula to show the ones that are uniquely popular within a given major).
The notion of whether a course teaches a skill is derived from the Coursera
Skills graph, described earlier in this section.
This methodology for computing over-indexing skills is very different from
the Trending Skills methodology used in the Global Skills Index which looks
not just at skill enrollments, but also Google trends, skill dollar value, and
skill searches from the Coursera platform.
HALF-LIFE OF A SKILL
The half-life of a skill is defined as the number of years it takes for a skill to
reach half its value in the labor market. We compute the half-life of a skill
by combining Google search trends data with data from the Coursera skills
graph.
For each granularity 3 or below skill (EX: FORTRAN, a programming
language), we examine the full Google search trend history for that skill. In
the event that search interest in the skill peaked over three years ago, and
the skill has consistently declined in search interest since then, we fit an
exponential decay curve to the search trends. In the case of FORTRAN, visual
inspection reveals the search interest takes a little under three years to halve
each time and nicely fits an exponential decay curve.
We exclude skills that are not yet in decline and those whose decline pattern
is not modeled particularly well by an exponential decay curve. To assess
the half-life of a skill at the competency level, we take the median half-life of
the more granular skills within each competency (EX R programming rolls up
into statistical programming). The relationships between skills in Coursera’s
40
Skills Graph allow us to generalize the behavior of skills that were popular in
the past to similar skills that are popular now, providing insights on what will
happen to the trending skills of today and when students with today’s top
skills will need to re-skill in the future.

COURSE CATALOG GAPS

Our college catalog gaps leverage a dataset of publicly available course
catalogs from over 1,800 colleges and universities. CourseMatch is an NLP
machine learning solution that matches on-campus courses to the most
relevant courses on Coursera. By linking course catalogs to Coursera courses
and then leveraging the Coursera Skills Graph to link Coursera courses to the
skills they teach, we are able to see which skills are and are not being taught
in the typical University course catalog.

By leveraging this rich dataset, we consider a skill rarely available if less

than 25% of university catalogs contain a course teaching the skill and
generally available otherwise. This dataset allows us to examine whether
campus learners are seeking out online courses in skills often taught at their
university or skills that are unlikely to be taught at their university, and also
identify which skills essential to work are typically missing from university
offerings.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 41

End Notes

1. A full description of the methodology used to develop the insights in

this section can be found in the Methodology section of this report.
Coursera users are able to identify their current occupation and an
interested occupation within their account on the Coursera platform in
order to improve course recommendations tailored to their interests.
We use these datasets to identify the current and intended future
occupations of our learners. To determine which 10 occupations
university students are most interested in by major, we look for
occupations that over-index in the data. We do this to better reveal
the kinds of occupations in which students in a particular major are
disproportionately interested.
2. For each competency, we take the 70th percentile skill score of learners
on Coursera who are currently working in the aforementioned top ten
occupations to be the “target proficiency” that students in a particular
major should aim for. The skills gap is defined as the difference
between the students’ current proficiency within a major-skill pair and
the students’ target proficiency within a major-skill pair. This skills gap
methodology was developed in conjunction with the World Economic
Forum for use in their Future of Jobs report.
3. Based on Coursera enrollments in 2020.

The Unbounded University: Unlocking Opportunities Through Online Learning 42