MBA students to start using intuitive technology for online courses

Online MBA students attending American InterContinental University in Schaumburg will be using Intellipath MBA technology starting April 28, according to AIU's parent company, Schaumburg-based Career Education Corp.

The tool, with a full rollout planned for June, customizes programs to the students. It tracks what the student is learning, what still needs to be learned, and whether more challenges are needed.

"The engine employs a business intelligence, somewhat like Amazon does, to ascertain what is helpful to the student," said Robert Manzer, AIU provost and chief academic officer.

Career Education, which includes AIU and other institutions, said last August that it planned to expand its adaptive learning technology.

Career Education is using Intellipath, developed by CCKF, a research-and-development company based in Dublin, Ireland, with an office in New York. As of February, more than 33,000 students at Career Education's American InterContinental University, Colorado Technical University and International Academy of Design & Technology online had taken at least one of the 71 courses that uses Intellipath. Those students have answered more than 33.3 million assessment questions since pilot courses began in October 2012, a company spokeswoman said.

Students taking an online course know its Intellipath because it is designed differently than other online courses. Students see a map that outlines the concepts they need to learn in the course and different color coding to indicate what's been accomplished, what needs work, and what's next. The map continues to change as the student progresses through the course, the company said.

Intellipath MBA is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs. As in other AIU programs, students enrolled in the Intellipath MBA will take more courses devoted to their field of interest, on average, than at other similar schools. By taking two classes per quarter, students can complete their master's degree in less than one year.

Intellipath also allows faculty to follow and guide students, monitor their progress, and where they need help. Students receive immediate, real-time feedback on their progress through Intellipath also can benefit from faculty's industry perspective through conversations on online discussion boards, twice weekly live chats, online office hours and one-on-one interactions via email, IM or phone.

"This is a whole new way of teaching and a whole new way of learning for the student," Manzer said. "It really changes the educational landscape."

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