Southern New Hampshire University: America's Largest Robocollege Facing Resistance From Human Workers and Student Complaints About Curriculum

Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), America's largest robocollege, is facing layoffs again. And this time, workers are talking. 

For years, Southern New Hampshire has avoided scrutiny compared to other online schools that have been labeled as bad actors. Part of this reduced scrutiny may have been because SNHU is a non-profit and some because Paul LeBlanc, its long-time president, was perceived as a higher education visionary, granting degrees that consumers could use and afford.  

Consumer advocates largely ignored that Southern New Hampshire often worked like a for-profit.  The school, which includes a physical campus in Manchester, New Hampshire employs 130 full-time instructors and 8,042 part-time instructors for 164,000 students. A  lion's share of the organization's budget is spent on marketing and advertising rather than on curriculum and instruction: about $14,000 per student.  

But things have changed, with the higher education terrain, with public opinion, and with Southern New Hampshire leadership. More people and organizations are questioning the value of degrees, especially graduate degrees, which Southern New Hampshire specializes in. SNHU has lowered tuition to $10,000 to increase demand, which has reduced financial margins. 

Despite good enrollment numbers, layoffs at Southern New Hampshire have occurred in 2023 and 2024. Now at SNHU, after the latest round of IT layoffs, folks are talking about the new leadership and of office politics taking precedent over innovation. And students are complaining about the course materials as old and recycled.  

The Higher Education Inquirer will continue to monitor the situation at Southern New Hampshire University as it develops.