MOOCS as a Tool for International Student Recruitment: A Cross-Country Analysis

P. 130–143.

Minaeva E., Zakharova U., Zhuchkova S.

One of the promises of MOOC platforms that were widely discussed during the first two waves of MOOC popularity in 2010–2016 was its marketing potential for international student recruitment. However, the research on the effects of MOOC on international enrolment is currently scarce. Based on the data from Coursera and edX platforms for MOOC supply information, and Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THE Ranking) for national and international students’ statistics, this research aims to explore whether the MOOC supply is positively associated with international students enrolment. Results of regression modelling reveal that, considering the whole sample and all other factors being equal, there is no significant association between the number of MOOCs university supplies and the percentage of international students at this university. However, the second model, which includes interaction term, and thus divides the overall effect of MOOCs by different countries, demonstrates that for some countries such an association does appear. These countries are the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, and Russia. For all four countries the detected effect is positive. Finally, the study presents MOOC description page content analysis to define the elements that might promote the university enrolment and push the MOOC learners through the Marketing Funnel from Awareness and Interest to Desire and Action. This paper might be of interest for the university international affairs and student recruitment deputies, to benefit from MOOC supply the university has, or vice versa for the online learning department managers to contribute to the university key performance indicators improvement designing and redesigning online courses for the international audience.

Keywords: MOOC, international student recruitment, Marketing Funnel theory, AIDA model

In book

Digital Education: Shaping Sustainable Lifelong Learning for All in the Era of AI. 9th European MOOCs Stakeholders Summit, EMOOCs 2025, Paris, France, June 30 – July 2, 2025, Proceedings

Springer, 2026.