Not all colleges and universities see online classes as the Holy Grail. Academic philosophies about the need for face-to-face instruction and the perceived quality of Web-based courses play into schools' decisions about whether or not to offer them. Student satisfaction has been overwhelming with Wayne State University 's online MBA, said Barbara Price, associate vice president for academic personnel in the provost's office. "They love the flexibility to go onsite or online for the class," she said. Wayne State also is tracking the academic performance of online students very carefully, Price said. The school compared the performance of MBA students taking on-site courses versus those taking its online MBA degree program. The courses are taught by the same instructor and follow the same format, Price said. The comparison showed that the academic performance of the students was on average, identical, she said. "It hardly ever deviated." But the study showed that were more high-performing or A students online, as well as more students earning Cs, Price said. "But the averages came out the same," she said. "The performance does not go down in the online."