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Neil Mosley

@neilmosley.bsky.social

856 followers 850 following 265 posts

Independent higher education consultant for online learning. Fellow at the Centre for Online and Distance Education, University of London.

Posts Replies Media

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

"if, as we are repeatedly told, UK higher education is high-quality and our universities are some of the best in the world, why are some acting like they’re trying to shift as many flat-screen TVs as they can on Black Friday?" www.neilmosley.com/blog/online-...

Online degrees, pricing and the pursuit of scale — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of online degree pricing, scale and value in UK higher education, including the role of OPM partnerships and financial sustainability.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

"for OPMs to continue to be valuable partners long into the future, they need to offer more than a standard set of capabilities that universities have historically lacked. Or, to put it another way, some new thinking and creativity is required." www.neilmosley.com/blog/why-are...

Why are more university OPM partnerships ending early? — Neil Mosley Consulting

The growing number of ended OPM partnerships raises questions about company performance, financial sustainability, university decision-making and the long-term future of online education partnerships.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

"One of the problematic elements of discounting or pricing things too low is that it can, over time, become an expensive mistake. Too often, it is driven by desperation rather than strategy, or by a fetishisation of “scale”." buff.ly/ibYya5p

Online degrees, pricing and the pursuit of scale — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of online degree pricing, scale and value in UK higher education, including the role of OPM partnerships and financial sustainability.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Nice to be quoted alongside others on the takeover of Lincoln Bishop University by GUS. For what it's worth, I predict we’ll see a very different institution develop over time, driven by an orthodoxy, that seems to have permeated UK HE at the moment.... www.timeshighereducation.com/news/lincoln...

timeshighereducation.com

Lincoln Bishop private takeover ‘sign of an unhealthy system’

University told to show it can balance new commercial pressures with retaining its academic ethos to prove new model is ‘credible’

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

"There is a subtle but very important difference between a strategy that only seeks to reach new audiences through a lifelong learning offer and one focused on deepening relationships with existing & past students and serving them over their lifetimes." buff.ly/uHSjyd4

Is the sector developing a blindspot in its lifelong learning strategies? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of lifelong learning strategies in UK higher education, exploring whether universities are too focussed on new student recruitment over building long-term loyalty and encouraging learners…

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

This is a significant turn of events, especially given Turnitin’s dominance in UK higher education and the lack of alternatives, which in my opinion has been fundamentally unhealthy for the sector. www.timeshighereducation.com/news/southam...

timeshighereducation.com

Southampton dumps Turnitin over use of students’ work to train AI

Academic integrity giant denies accusations as university declines to renew contract in favour of ‘other options’

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

"One of the biggest question marks people place over the LLE is demand. But it is impossible to prove demand in advance for something that does not currently exist in any meaningful or widespread way." buff.ly/44L01p6

Will the LLE become an opportunity universities fail to pursue? — Neil Mosley Consulting

Are universities at risk of missing the opportunities of the LLE? This article examines demand, credit transfer, online learning and growth in a challenging sector.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"if universities really want to signal that they are supporting people with career-focused study motivations, they could do a lot worse than seek to develop more flexible and accessible forms of study, such as online learning" www.neilmosley.com/blog/2026-q2...

2026 Q2 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A quarterly review of UK online higher education, covering the Canvas hack, edX leadership changes, OPM partnerships, short courses, microcredentials and new online degrees.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

"There are fundamental differences between the audience most universities are set up to serve and an online student audience. As a result, operations that are geared towards on-campus undergraduates - are often not well aligned to a different audience." buff.ly/xQrqH5f

Separate or embedded? Strategic choices for universities in online education — Neil Mosley Consulting

Universities face key decisions in developing online education, from whether to set up a dedicated online arm and brand to how to align operations for a different student audience.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

"Only a small number of partnerships have lasted over five years, and more have ended before that milestone. Given that these partnerships are typically entered into as long-term relationships, this is a pattern that is worth examining in more detail." www.neilmosley.com/blog/why-are...

Why are more university OPM partnerships ending early? — Neil Mosley Consulting

The growing number of ended OPM partnerships raises questions about company performance, financial sustainability, university decision-making and the long-term future of online education partnerships.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

"This approach would potentially put a greater emphasis on the learning process and create conditions for educators to think about what would be good for students to do, experience and be exposed to...and courses could be imbued with more of a metacognitive ethos." www.neilmosley.com/blog/three-u...

Three unconventional responses to the AI assessment challenge in higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

Three counterintuitive ideas for responding to the AI assessment challenge in higher education, from two-tier degrees to experience-only degrees and collective visibility in assessment.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

"The idea of a split undergraduate degree, with clearly defined, fully online modules requiring no campus attendance and others that do, may also face challenges when it comes into contact with the sector’s current understanding of “blended learning”."

Is it time for the UK to develop split-mode undergraduate degrees? — Neil Mosley Consulting

A look at why online undergraduate education has developed so differently in the US and UK, and whether it’s time for UK universities to explore split-mode degrees.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

"A £1,500 online microcredential, a live online evening-based course and reasonably priced microcourses, highlight the sheer variety of products within the short course landscape and the range of approaches being taken by universities."

2026 Q2 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A quarterly review of UK online higher education, covering the Canvas hack, edX leadership changes, OPM partnerships, short courses, microcredentials and new online degrees.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

"The current doctrine of being robust in course identification and selection is through being “data-driven”. But the related issue is when this approach becomes orthodoxy and is cross-fertilised, everyone begins to do the same thing."

Is data narrowing how universities think about course portfolios? — Neil Mosley Consulting

A critical look at how data-driven course selection can narrow university course portfolios, encourage convergence and overlook what the numbers leave out.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

"While trying to ensure that degrees support students’ future career aspirations is clearly an important aim, I worry that UK HE is at risk of employability theatre, developing initiatives that are either impractical or sound good but deliver little."

2026 Q2 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A quarterly review of UK online higher education, covering the Canvas hack, edX leadership changes, OPM partnerships, short courses, microcredentials and new online degrees.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

"Twhere there is choice, there is competition, and competition is only growing in online education. The necessity of having a smart strategy that enables universities to build sustainable cohorts of online students is becoming ever more important "

Are marketing orthodoxies limiting online student recruitment? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of online course marketing, performance marketing dominance, OPM models, and why universities may need more differentiated recruitment strategies.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

"Lifelong learning presents an opportunity for loyalisation, not simply diversification, and notably the former involves engaging with those you already know, including existing students, alumni and other stakeholders who have engaged with the university before."

Is the sector developing a blindspot in its lifelong learning strategies? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of lifelong learning strategies in UK higher education, exploring whether universities are too focussed on new student recruitment over building long-term loyalty and encouraging learners…

Reposted by Neil Mosley

Jim McGrath @jimmcgrath.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

I don't love any of these ideas but agree that we are in the midst of an "assessment crisis" in higher ed due to AI. Some of the proposals here favor investments in surveillance, misguided perceptions of "academic rigor," and inattentiveness to contexts like, say required courses outside of majors.

Reposted by Neil Mosley

Jerome Hodos @jhodos.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

This is a wonderful think-piece. It explores novel possibilities before we get locked into less-than-ideal pathways. Tbh, the 2-tiered option is already consistent with pre-existing tendencies in the US system; for-profit schools, for example, are already considered a kind of second-tier degree.

Reposted by Neil Mosley

Thomas J. Tobin @thomasjtobin.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Few folks work through the possibilities of big topics—incuding the far-flung or less likely ones—like @neilmosley.bsky.social. Definitely worth 10 minutes of your reading time on #AI in higher ed. Let us know your thoughts and reactions, too!

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

"In the past few years, the same things come up, such as the need to move to viva-style or in-person assessment, or authentic assessment..so far higher education has few genuine answers to the challenges that generative AI has presented."

Three unconventional responses to the AI assessment challenge in higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

Three counterintuitive ideas for responding to the AI assessment challenge in higher education, from two-tier degrees to experience-only degrees and collective visibility in assessment.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

"There are advantages to committing to online provision as a long-term business-as-usual strategy, and there is evidence that points to this amongst universities that have done that."

Why are more university OPM partnerships ending early? — Neil Mosley Consulting

The growing number of ended OPM partnerships raises questions about company performance, financial sustainability, university decision-making and the long-term future of online education partnerships.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

"One cannot help but feel that some of the online course platforms that sprang up in the mid-2010s really need significant attention, reinvigoration and reimagining."

2026 Q2 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A quarterly review of UK online higher education, covering the Canvas hack, edX leadership changes, OPM partnerships, short courses, microcredentials and new online degrees.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

"we have to properly understand the limitations of data, and how our human biases and nature can lead us to think too much of it, and to norm it as a singular robust method because it’s numerical and comes with some nice charts."

Is data narrowing how universities think about course portfolios? — Neil Mosley Consulting

A critical look at how data-driven course selection can narrow university course portfolios, encourage convergence and overlook what the numbers leave out.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

"When challenges arrive, sometimes it is helpful to generate more radical solutions that are less fettered by day-to-day realities, on a journey towards coming up with plausible, realistic and desirable solutions and options."

Three unconventional responses to the AI assessment challenge in higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

Three counterintuitive ideas for responding to the AI assessment challenge in higher education, from two-tier degrees to experience-only degrees and collective visibility in assessment.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

"This quarter has seen continued growth in online course portfolios across a number of institutions.While new online degrees continue to be launched, there is also interesting and varied activity in the online short-course market." buff.ly/EYvutKt #onlinelearning

2026 Q2 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A quarterly review of UK online higher education, covering the Canvas hack, edX leadership changes, OPM partnerships, short courses, microcredentials and new online degrees.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

"My sense so far is that higher education has few genuine answers to the challenges that generative AI has presented. But if this challenge is going to be properly taken on, then I think it will require some creative experimentation"

Three unconventional responses to the AI assessment challenge in higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

Three counterintuitive ideas for responding to the AI assessment challenge in higher education, from two-tier degrees to experience-only degrees and collective visibility in assessment.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

"we should be making more noise about the role that online education is playing in career advancement and development rather than having endless vapid debates about the efficacy of modalities."

What does the Voice of the Online Learner UK report mean for online education? — Neil Mosley Consulting

Discover the key insights from the Risepoint Voice of the Online Learner UK report, including online learner demographics, motivations, career outcomes, AI perceptions and how students choose courses.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

"there is a delicate balance between actions that increase the likelihood of remaining perpetually smaller and poorer, and those that enable you to grow income and pursue opportunities."

Will the LLE become an opportunity universities fail to pursue? — Neil Mosley Consulting

Are universities at risk of missing the opportunities of the LLE? This article examines demand, credit transfer, online learning and growth in a challenging sector.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

"some may need to break away from the idea that there is essentially one main way to do online course marketing and recruitment. There are other strategies, other approaches and other ideas of merit."

Are marketing orthodoxies limiting online student recruitment? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of online course marketing, performance marketing dominance, OPM models, and why universities may need more differentiated recruitment strategies.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

"when the way you approach identifying and justifying courses only ever leads you to the same place, and increasingly the exact same place as everyone else, you’re likely to have a problem, and one that will most probably compound."

Is data narrowing how universities think about course portfolios? — Neil Mosley Consulting

A critical look at how data-driven course selection can narrow university course portfolios, encourage convergence and overlook what the numbers leave out.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

"There are advantages to committing to online provision as a long-term business-as-usual strategy, but online education is still too often viewed as a diversification tap that can be turned on and off"

Why are more university OPM partnerships ending early? — Neil Mosley Consulting

The growing number of ended OPM partnerships raises questions about company performance, financial sustainability, university decision-making and the long-term future of online education partnerships.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

"The flip side of student mobility, moving between institutions, is student loyalty, returning to the same institution again and again, and it’s this very idea that is rarely discussed in relation to the LLE"

Is the sector developing a blindspot in its lifelong learning strategies? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of lifelong learning strategies in UK higher education, exploring whether universities are too focussed on new student recruitment over building long-term loyalty and encouraging learners…

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

"when the way you approach identifying and justifying courses only ever leads you to the same place, and increasingly the exact same place as everyone else, you’re likely to have a problem, and one that will most probably compound." www.neilmosley.com/blog/is-data...

Is data narrowing how universities think about course portfolios? — Neil Mosley Consulting

A critical look at how data-driven course selection can narrow university course portfolios, encourage convergence and overlook what the numbers leave out.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

"for OPMs to continue to be valuable partners long into the future, they need to offer more than a standard set of capabilities that universities have historically lacked. Or, to put it another way, some new thinking and creativity is required."

Why are more university OPM partnerships ending early? — Neil Mosley Consulting

The growing number of ended OPM partnerships raises questions about company performance, financial sustainability, university decision-making and the long-term future of online education partnerships.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

"If we don’t take care to adopt more well-rounded approaches to course identification, selection and justification, we’ll be headed in the direction of highly comforting and reassuring convergence, greater competition and ultimately sameness"

Is data narrowing how universities think about course portfolios? — Neil Mosley Consulting

A critical look at how data-driven course selection can narrow university course portfolios, encourage convergence and overlook what the numbers leave out.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

"credit transfer is about facilitating student mobility across institutions. The flip side of student mobility, moving between institutions, is student loyalty, returning to the same institution again and again, and it’s this very idea that is rarely discussed."

Is the sector developing a blindspot in its lifelong learning strategies? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of lifelong learning strategies in UK higher education, exploring whether universities are too focussed on new student recruitment over building long-term loyalty and encouraging learners…

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

"Only a small number of partnerships have lasted over five years, and more have ended before that. Given that these partnerships are typically entered into as long-term relationships, this is a concerning pattern that is worth examining in more detail."

Why are more university OPM partnerships ending early? — Neil Mosley Consulting

The growing number of ended OPM partnerships raises questions about company performance, financial sustainability, university decision-making and the long-term future of online education partnerships.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

"we are in a phase where developments are largely focused on efficiencies, ideation and generation within existing practices. I have seen only minimal evidence of more sophisticated features that reflect a deeper understanding of learning and teaching"

Are AI-driven EdTech developments improving learning in higher education? — Neil Mosley Consulting

Are AI-driven EdTech developments really improving learning in higher education, or just focussed on boosting efficiency?

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

"I would strongly caution against thinking of the TNE online student landscape as a kind of homogeneous global B2C market. The student numbers presented here are not solely indicative of universities acting independently"

International online students in UK higher education: What the 2024–25 TNE data reveals — Neil Mosley Consulting

Analysis of HESA 2024–25 data on international online students at UK universities, examining trends in transnational education (TNE), regional markets and leading providers.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

"What these developments highlight...is that universities developing shorter course provision face competition not only from each other but from a wider landscape of online provision, which in many cases is far more operationally mature and sophisticated."

2026 Q1 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A Q1 2026 review of online learning developments in UK higher education, covering MBA rankings, HESA data, OPM partnerships, VLE changes and new online programmes.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

"The current stronger focus on lifelong learning, has overall been one where the challenges presented and discussed, which certainly exist, have obscured thinking and creativity in relation to the opportunities."

Is the sector developing a blindspot in its lifelong learning strategies? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of lifelong learning strategies in UK higher education, exploring whether universities are too focussed on new student recruitment over building long-term loyalty and encouraging learners…

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

"we are at risk of missing something significant if we are only asking ourselves, how do we reach new groups of people through lifelong learning? Instead of also asking, How do we become institutions where people return to study with us again and again?"

Is the sector developing a blindspot in its lifelong learning strategies? — Neil Mosley Consulting

An analysis of lifelong learning strategies in UK higher education, exploring whether universities are too focussed on new student recruitment over building long-term loyalty and encouraging learners…

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

"there is a delicate balance between actions that increase the likelihood of remaining smaller and poorer, and those that enable you to grow and pursue opportunities. It's much harder to consider the opportunity costs of pursuing cost cutting exclusively."

Will the LLE become an opportunity universities fail to pursue? — Neil Mosley Consulting

Are universities at risk of missing the opportunities of the LLE? This article examines demand, credit transfer, online learning and growth in a challenging sector.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

"Overall, the data shows that a decline at the Open University is obscuring some growth, albeit modest in scale, across a number of universities, most notably those that are seriously invested in online undergraduate dprovision and have been for years."

UK HE online student trends 2024/25: Analysis of the latest HESA data — Neil Mosley Consulting

An in-depth analysis of the latest HESA data on UK online undergraduate and postgraduate student enrolments in 2024/25, examining provider performance, market trends and the evolving competitive…

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

"The first quarter of the year has seen partnerships announced between UK universities and online programme management (OPM) companies. However, this quarter has also provided a trail of evidence that points to several partnerships coming to an end."

2026 Q1 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A Q1 2026 review of online learning developments in UK higher education, covering MBA rankings, HESA data, OPM partnerships, VLE changes and new online programmes.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

"The 2024–25 HESA student data shows the most significant year-on-year increase in TNE distance learning undergraduate degree students over the past decade. The number of students increased by 6%, continuing a trend of year-on-year growth since 2019–20."

International online students in UK higher education: What the 2024–25 TNE data reveals — Neil Mosley Consulting

Analysis of HESA 2024–25 data on international online students at UK universities, examining trends in transnational education (TNE), regional markets and leading providers.

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Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

"This quarter reflects a number of trends currently shaping the online education landscape in UK higher education..and illustrate the mixed fortunes of UK universities, with some expanding and others making missteps into online education"

2026 Q1 Review: Online learning developments in UK higher education — Neil Mosley Consulting

A Q1 2026 review of online learning developments in UK higher education, covering MBA rankings, HESA data, OPM partnerships, VLE changes and new online programmes.

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

This is a really shameful episode, and whoever is in the wrong here, it is not the students who are being asked to repay significant sums of money. This episode lays bare many things, not least HE policies around distance and online learners. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

22,000 students told to pay back 'mis-sold' maintenance loans

Those affected have been told their courses were never eligible for maintenance or childcare loans

Neil Mosley @neilmosley.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

It’s been fantastic to be at the 20th Research in Distance Education (RIDE) conference these past couple of days. Lots of great sessions on what’s happening in online learning in the UK and across the world. Great to meet and catch-up with lots of people across the days, here’s to the next one.

Large presentation screen at a conference displaying “RIDE 20 YEARS 2026” in bold lettering with a blue gradient background, viewed over a blurred audience seated in the foreground.