An OER degree, sometimes referred to as a Z-degree or a zero textbook cost (ZTC) degree, is a complete pathway to a degree, certificate, or credential that has no textbook costs. All of the courses in these degree pathways use open educational resources (OER) or other instructional materials that are zero cost to students. The first OER degree was launched in 2013 by Tidewater Community College saving students majoring in business administration up to 25% on the cost of attendance. OER degrees have been growing in the United States and Canada, particularly at community and technical colleges where textbooks costs represent a significant percentage of student costs.
OER degree pathways represent a commitment by an institution to significantly invest in open education as a tool for student success. The benefits go much further than just saving students money, including:
- Increase student equity – Research has shown that the high cost of textbooks negatively impacts student access, success, and completion particularly for lower income students. When textbook costs are high, students are often forced to take fewer courses, drop courses, or try to forgo the textbook and earn a poor grade.
- Improve student completion – Students taking OER courses have been shown to enroll in more credits during that semester and at least one subsequent semester suggesting that they can complete their degrees or certificates more rapidly.
- Enhance academic freedom – The open licenses on OER allow faculty to regularly modify, update, etc. the learning resources for their courses. Faculty no longer feel like they need to use every single chapter of an expensive publisher textbook – they are free to use and remix many different OERs to teach to their learning outcomes.
- Open pedagogy – Faculty may include students in the modification and revising of OER used in a course including such activities as revising materials, creating test questions, and generating learning materials for future students. When students become content creators, they deepen their understanding which can lead to improved outcomes.
- Growth of open course repositories – Many faculty who have converted their courses to use OER and zero cost materials are sharing them in open repositories making it possible for other colleges to adapt these materials their impact.
Video Credit: Carolyn Trujillo, is a member of the Associated Student Government and has a double major in Water Systems Technology and Physics at the College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita, California. Learn more about Carolyn and her college journey in her student story – College of the Canyons’ Zero Textbook Cost Degree Program.