Online Learning Showcase

Explore our Online Offerings

Georgetown has supported a diverse range of courses through all stages, from conception to launch — then evaluation and iteration. CNDLS mobilizes a number of different platforms, including Canvas, edX, and Blackboard, to deliver the best possible learning experience based on the needs and audience of each course. Explore the following featured courses and programs to glimpse the breadth Georgetown’s online offerings.

Online Programs

Georgetown’s online programs reach students in a broad range of disciplines across undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels. Below are just a few featured examples.

Integrated Marketing Communications

Georgetown’s Master of Professional Studies in Integrated Marketing Communications develops students’ strategic and creative thinking skills, preparing them to design cohesive brand experiences. It draws upon communications disciplines such as advertising, direct marketing, social media, and word-of-mouth marketing.

Master’s in Public Relations & Corporate Communications

This program supports students in learning the essential planning, critical thinking, and creative skills that place them in high demand with today’s employers public relations and corporate communications employers. They develop a 360-degree perspective of the modern communications landscape while learning how to think strategically, digitally, and globally. strategic planning, research, writing, and ethics.

National Urban Fellow Program with McCourt School of Public Policy

Georgetown’s Master’s of Policy Management at the McCourt School of Public Policy is the home of the National Urban Fellows program, which strives to develop mid-career professionals, particularly men and women of color, to be leaders and change agents in the public and nonprofit sectors.

MOOCs

Georgetown has produced dozens of MOOCs across a wide range of disciplines such as theology, public health, and computational methods. Explore the entire catalogue of currently available MOOCs or read about a sampling below.

Ethical Decision-Making for Global Managers

Students explore and apply ethical decision-making frameworks to real-world ethical dilemmas. This 3-course professional certificate program covers ethical issues across political, environmental, and cultural areas, walks students through the perspectives of multiple stakeholders in complex decision-making using real world cases, and inspires students to build their own ethical decision-making processes to solve complex issues in a globalized world.
View Ethical Decision-Making for Global Managers on edX

American Sign Language

In this 4-course professional certificate program, students learn about the history and evolution of American Sign Language. Grounded in rich linguistic study, this program provides powerful perspective to professionals in a range of fields including speech pathologists, bio-medial engineers, and software developers as well as linguistic students and those who work directly with speakers of ASL.
View American Sign Language on edX

Impact Evaluation Methods with Applications in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Economic development is about making a difference in the lives of the poor, through interventions in the health, education, microfinance, transport, agriculture, and other sectors. In this course students learn how to design and conduct a randomized control trial, and how to evaluate the data using regression techniques. They will also explore what other quasi-experimental methods can be used to measure the impacts of programs related to economic development.

View Impact Evaluation Methods with Applications in Low- and Middle-Income Countries on edX

What’s Inside an Online Course?

The details of online courses and programs at Georgetown can vary widely — based on the specific needs of student populations, course content, and the instructor’s style. However, they all incorporate rich media, active learning, opportunities to connect with peers, and a guiding instructor presence. The examples below are just a few ways we accomplish these goals.

Engaging Video Lectures

Successful educational videos are not simply recorded versions of in-person lectures. CNDLS supports faculty in transforming their lecture content to align with current research on how learners process educational media. We provide script writing training, professional film shoots, and customized graphic development. On top of that, many video lectures incorporate interactive elements like discussion boards and quizzes.

Discussion Boards

Discussion boards can be used to facilitate asynchronous discussion on a range of topics. Many faculty use discussion boards to gage student understanding and engagement in a low-stakes way. Others ask students to bring outside content to discussion boards — such as links to news articles or examples from their professional lives that connect to course content. Discussion boards are also sometimes used for peer review.

Structure: Learning Objectives, Course Activities, & Framing Questions

Students benefit from the explicit naming of module- and course-level learning objectives. These, paired with course activity lists, provide students a roadmap of what to expect in each module. Additionally, framing questions offer guidance about what to reflect on as they read or watch video lectures.

Expert Interviews

Engagement with outside experts — whether through guest lecture podcasts, Zoom interviews, or even social media — can elevate diverse voices, lend authenticity to the course, and add the value of multiple perspectives.

Interactive Student Presentations

In online courses — as in face-to-face experiences — it is important to give students the opportunity to speak and to hear from one another. Through collaborative multimedia tools like VoiceThread and Panopto, CNDLS supports faculty in setting up asynchronous presentations. Both students and faculty can comment on others’ submissions, providing feedback and asking questions. Many faculty also use VoiceThread for low-stakes engagement, such as introductions at the beginning of the course.

Custom Applications

Occasionally, CNDLS supports faculty and programs in developing customized applications for pedagogical use. For example, a web-based app used in the Ethical Decision-Making for Global Managers MOOC certificate program helps students engage in a multi-step process of case study analysis. This process, facilitated through the app, strengthens reflection and decision-making skills.

Immersive and Empathy-Building Activities

Many faculty members are committed to providing learning experiences that build empathy through simulations and other immersive strategies. For example, a course on social work included a character’s simulated home environment to illustrate the details of a case study. CNDLS can support the development of simulations like this, which include interactive audio, video, and quizzes embedded in a 360° environments.

Student Feedback

CNDLS supports faculty and program leadership in developing and analyzing mid-semester and post-course student surveys. These lead to key insights about student learning, preferences, and overall experiences.