Arizona State University ranks among the top 10 best schools in the nation for online education, according to rankings released today by U.S. News & World Report.

ASU is ranked eighth place overall for undergraduate online programs in the U.S. News & World Report 2015 edition of “America’s Best Online Programs” among public and private universities. That’s a move up from No. 9 last year.

The university also claimed five spots among the top 25 graduate online programs.

“We are pleased that ASU continues to be recognized for its academic excellence and as an innovator in higher education,” says Phil Regier, dean and executive vice provost of ASU Online. “We are committed to offering the best experience possible to all of our students and ensuring that anyone who is motivated to pursue a bachelor’s degree has the opportunity to achieve his or her educational and career goals.

U.S. News & World Report rankings are based on factors such as graduation rates, indebtedness of new graduates and academic and career support services offered to students. Only degree-granting programs offering classes online were considered. For more information on the Best Online Programs rankings, visit www.usnews.com/online.

ASU Online (http://asuonline.asu.edu) currently offers 41 undergraduate and 38 graduate online degrees and continues to see tremendous enrollment growth, with a 42.6 percent increase since 2013.

Unlike a standard online lecture, ASU’s courses are highly interactive, engaging each student and ensuring the subject matter is fully understood. This structure also facilitates interaction with the highly recognized faculty on campus and classmates to encourage learning through collaboration. The courses are specifically designed to provide access to the vast academic, research and career resources that ASU offers – to anyone, anywhere.

Individual ASU programs recognized for online excellence in the rankings include:

  • ASU School of Criminal Justice, in the College of Public Service and Community Solutions, ranked No. 2 in the country for best online graduate program in its field.
  • The W.P. Carey School of Business, named third best for online graduate business program and No. 4 for online graduate MBAprograms.
  • The Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, ranked 14thin the nation for best online graduate engineering programs.
  • The Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, rated 23rdfor online graduate education
  • The College of Nursing and Health Innovation, rated 74thfor online graduate nursing programs.