Tunxis Community College in Farmington was recently recognized among the best Connecticut community colleges offering online learning by OnlineU.

A resource for students to compare online learning at U.S. colleges, the site released the annual 2020 Best Online Community College Rankings in its Guide to Online Schools for the 2020 academic year, featuring Tunxis as one of the best in Connecticut, ranked at #3.  

 “Tunxis has for many years provided exceptional online education to our students, which is now more important than ever,” said Dr. James Lombella, North-West regional president of the Connecticut Community Colleges.  

“As a leader in online education in Connecticut, Tunxis continues to invest in quality training opportunities for our faculty teaching online as we move forward in delivering outstanding online educational experiences to our students,” added Dr. Darryl Reome, Tunxis Campus CEO. “In addition, nearly all of our courses transfer seamlessly to four-year universities.”  

To qualify, colleges must be regionally accredited and offer at least one fully online associate degree or certificate. Colleges were ranked based on retention rate, graduation rate, online enrollment data, and the variety of programs available. The rankings also weigh the percent of students enrolled in online degrees as an indicator of the success of the college’s distance education program. 

OnlineU, a product of higher education researcher and publisher Optimal, researched 550 community colleges with data collected by the National Center of Education Statistics, and gave each a score based on these factors. Only colleges that scored 70% or higher were included on the rankings. 

At the time of the study, Tunxis offered online programs in Business Administration, Criminal Justice and General Studies, and a certificate in Homeland Security. The college now offers the majority of its programs and courses online.  

Tunxis is currently enrolling students for fall semester. Fall classes at Tunxis start on August 26, with a mix of on-campus, online, accelerated online 7-week classes, and hybrid course options that are a mix of online and on-campus.   

The college provides online student support services, as well as limited in-person appointments to students for tutoring, advising, Computer Center, help with financial aid, technical support and Tunxis Library services. 

Tunxis offers more than 70 associate degrees and certificates, and seamless transfer pathways through its Guaranteed Admission program with UConn and Transfer Ticket associate degrees that enable graduates to continue at the CT state universities.

Those who are interested in enrolling should email [email protected] or visit tunxis.edu/apply.