National University gets green light to merge with online graduate college

Higher Ed Dive

Natalie Schwartz

July 18, 2022

Dive Brief:

• National University, a private nonprofit institution that caters to working adults, announced Monday it is combining with Northcentral University, an institution that offers online graduate degrees.

• The accreditor for the two institutions, the WASC Senior College and University Commission, approved the merger at a June meeting. The combined institution will retain the name of National University and be headquartered in San Diego.

• The merged institution will enroll more than 45,000 students, according to the announcement. The merger with Northcentral University will also expand National University’s graduate offerings.

Dive Insight:

National University was established in San Diego in 1971 to serve working adults and student-veterans. Over the next few decades, it expanded its reach with online programs and new campuses in California.

Today, National University has about 30,000 students, the majority of whom take most of their classes online, according to the merger announcement. The university is part of the National University System, a network of nonprofit institutions.

Northcentral University was founded in 1996 as an online-only institution, with a focus on graduate degrees. The National University System acquired Northcentral University in 2019, bringing the institution into its fold as an affiliate and converting it from a for-profit into a nonprofit. Northcentral University currently has about 10,000 students.

After the merger, National University will become a fully online university, according to the announcement. It will offer both undergraduate and graduate programs, with an emphasis on microcredentials and workforce training programs built with the help of employers.

National University’s and Northcentral University’s leadership plan to create an academic structure for the combined institution in the coming months. The merger is expected to be official by the end of September.

The two institutions collectively have about 160 programs. They don’t have immediate plans to phase out specific programs, but they expect to evolve them to fit workforce and student needs, a National University spokesperson said in an email.

Continue Reading