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Stevens Institute of Technology is launching a new college and has appointed an expert in digital transformation to lead the effort. 

The Hoboken university recently announced Arshad Saiyed will serve as the inaugural chief online learning officer and dean of professional education, effective April 15. He is responsible for spearheading the establishment of the College of Online and Professional Education, an independent academic unit offering “technology-infused” online programs. 

Stevens Institute President Nariman Farvardin unveiled plans for the new college in August 2023. At the time, he said the “new academic unit will deliver on Stevens’ Strategic Plan Goal 2 to significantly grow our online programs by providing flexible learning opportunities for working professionals and upskilling the technology-focused labor force.” 

Bringing nearly 25 years of digital transformation expertise to the new role, Saiyed joins Stevens from Northeastern University in Boston. There, he’s directed the Experiential Digital Global Education (EDGE) unit as associate vice president for digital education and innovation since 2020.

Saiyed is credited with building Northeastern’s “digital services into a revenue center and launched significant corporate partnerships,” according to his hiring announcement. 

iMBA

Before Northeastern, he held various digital roles over his 18 years at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s Gies College of Business. Ultimately, he served as assistant dean for online programs. One of his notable accomplishments at Illinois was creating the iMBA program — one of the world’s largest online MBA programs. According to Stevens, in just four years, the iMBA program grew from 114 students to 3,200. 

“Saiyed’s experience in driving the digital evolution of education makes him the ideal leader for this pivotal role,” Jianmin Qu, Stevens’ senior vice president for Academic Affairs and provost, said in a statement. “His leadership will help propel Stevens to new heights in this space while meeting the evolving needs of students and employers.” 

Saying he was honored to accept the new position, Saiyed added, “This role represents a profound opportunity to continue the institution’s rich tradition of excellence and redefine what is possible in online and professional education.”

Saiyed earned an engineering degree from Gujarat University, India, and an MBA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

‘The time is right’

In 2021, approximately 60% of all college students were taking some or all of their classes online, according to a Forbes report. That number was about 36% in 2019, before the pandemic.

When he announced the new college, Farvardin said, “The time is right to create a dedicated unit with the necessary infrastructure to dramatically expand Stevens’ online graduate programs to meet the burgeoning demand for STEM and technology-focused credentials and advanced degrees. 

“Stevens is well-positioned to build on its leadership in online education, having been an early pioneer through the creation of WebCampus nearly 25 years ago … The College of Online and Professional Education will bring together all Stevens’ online educational programs within one academic unit and expand Stevens’ geographic reach and influence nationally and globally,” Farvardin continued. 

In February, U.S. News & World report its 2024 Best Online Programs list. Stevens ranked for four of its offerings:

• No. 35 (tie), Business Programs (non-MBA);
• No. 11 (tie), Information Technology Programs;
• No. 26 (tie), Engineering; and
• No. 60 (tie), MBA.

What else is new:

Thanks to a $1.45 million gift from Public Service Enterprise Group Foundation, Stevens Institute of Technology will launch the new Stevens Center for Sustainability. Click here to find out more.