Dive Brief:

• The New York Times reports on how Georgia Tech's online master's degree in computer science is attracting attention, and spurring a revolution in cost management for distance learning modules. 
• The university charges $510 for a three-credit class, which covers the costs of offering and running the course for one of the nation's top programs in the discipline. 
• The average cost for a degree from a peer institution runs between $43,000 and $57,000, according to the Times.

Dive Insight:

Georgia Tech's online master's degree program may present a competitive challenge for peer institutions, but the institution is exercising a simple proposition that comes with being a well-endowed, highly attractive institution for undergraduate and graduate study. Why not make education cheaper and more accessible if enrollment and the baccalaureate colleges will make up the difference? 

If there is money to be made in a highly-selective, highly-competitive program, it seemingly can come from the increased enrollment in that program, while other shortfalls can be addressed through the tuition and fees collected from students choosing to live on campus. It is a model other schools and legislators have tinkered with, but should become practice sooner than later to stop growing disparities in educational access.