A Place for Global Opportunities

The concept of higher education throughout history has been intimately tied to a physical campus location with places and spaces for students to learn, study, and fellowship with peers. Now with widely-available internet access and online degree programs, higher education can happen anywhere a student can access the internet, from St. Paul, Minn. to São Paulo, Brazil, from Portland, Ore. to Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

Concordia St. Paul’s history of online education can be traced back to the early 1990s, when the college’s Concordia School of Adult Learning (CSAL) program held undergraduate degree programs at sites other than the St. Paul campus, such as Duluth and Rochester. Then, by the late 1990s, online classes and programs were offered, opening up a Concordia St. Paul education to students around the world.

The accessibility fostered by online and non-traditional programs has spurred tremendous growth in the number of students Concordia serves, especially in the past two decades. Since the advent of online education, Concordia has grown from serving 1,500 students to more than 5,500 students. Adult undergraduate and graduate students now comprise more than 70% of the student population.

In January 2023, Concordia unveiled the next iteration of the university’s structure, which is designed to foster enrollment growth to 2030 and beyond. The university introduced a newly branded division, CSP Global, which will be home to Concordia St. Paul’s proven online and hybrid undergraduate and graduate degree programs in St. Paul and Portland. At the same time, the physical Concordia University campus in St. Paul remains the vibrant hub for the university’s traditional four-year undergraduate programming, as it has for 130 years.

CSP Global launches with more than 40 career-focused degree programs, including undergraduate and graduate offerings. This new alignment brings greater clarity to how various degree programs are delivered. It also provides an even greater ability to support and invest in the traditional undergraduate programs for students at the Concordia St. Paul campus. By housing the online and hybrid programs geared for non-traditional students within CSP Global, the university can sharpen its focus on enrollment growth via online programs that are accessible regionally, nationally, and internationally.

“This introduction of CSP Global is the smart, logical next step in our university’s long-term growth, while further strengthening our traditional on-campus presence for decades to come,” said Provost and COO Eric LaMott. “CSP Global brings our student-centered, careerpropelling private university degree programs to a broader national and international audience. We have set our sights on doubling enrollment again by 2030.”

A degree earned through CSP Global carries with it the full value and benefits of a Concordia St. Paul education. With fully accredited degree programs designed around the needs of today’s businesses and organizations, CSP Global graduates emerge as top choices for businesses and institutions nationally and worldwide.

“Professionals with a Concordia St. Paul degree earn, on average, more than their peers from most other universities,” added LaMott. “Our online programs now reach students in all fifty states and more than 40 countries around the world. Career-relevant degree programs via CSP Global prepare students for careers in business, technology, health sciences, nursing, education and other high-growth, highpotential fields.”

“CSP Global is intimately tied to our identity as a Christ-centered Lutheran university and is committed to meeting the spiritual, academic, professional, and personal needs of each student,” said President Brian Friedrich. “We seek to form service-driven leaders who address challenges and opportunities in this world with wisdom, compassion, and grace.”