Students are enrolling in online courses in record numbers. Whether it is due to the sluggish economy, the convenience or financial reasons, more and more universities are offering online courses to supplement more traditional face-to-face classroom settings. Some universities are even offering complete online degree programs.

According to a survey of more than 2,500 colleges and universities by the Sloan Consortium, in 2010 there were nearly 1 million more students taking online classes than in 2009. Dr. John Bourne, executive director of Sloan, said that represents the largest growth in one year.

Bourne said the latest numbers show there are 5.6 million college students who have enrolled in at least one online course. "Since we have about 15 million college students in the U.S., that is about one-third of our students," he said.

"Not only is this on the upswing, but we are hearing from more and more universities and colleges who want us to help them train their faculty for online delivery," he said. "That obviously means they want to start or expand their online offerings."