Open Nebraska Pathways highlight programs and sequences of courses intentionally designed to reduce the total cost of required materials across multiple semesters.
Rather than focusing on a single course, pathways show how departments and programs can build affordability into an entire student experience—helping students plan ahead and reduce cumulative textbook costs.
Available and Upcoming Pathways
Sociology and Anthropology Pathway: During the 2020-21 academic year, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology received a grant from the Office of Digital Learning to create UNO’s first fully Open Nebraska major. Department faculty worked directly with Criss Library and the instructional design team to integrate no-cost and low-cost materials into every core course and the most popular electives within the major. The result was an easily navigable pathway in which students could complete all the requirements for the major (and minor) taking only Open Nebraska courses.
General Education (MavEd) Pathway: This pathway focuses on high-enrollment general education courses that meet MavEd requirements while minimizing material costs for students early in their academic careers.
Social Work Pathway: Beginning in the 2024-25 academic year, the Grace Abbott School of Social Work began developing an online Bachelor of Science in Social Work degree. As part of their commitment to access and equity, the department faculty decided that every course redesigned for online delivery would switch to no-cost and low-cost materials at the same time. This created UNO’s second fully Open Nebraska major, and the first in a practice-focused discipline.
Why Pathways Matter
Course-by-course savings add up—but pathways allow students to see the bigger picture. By making affordability visible across a program, Open Nebraska Pathways supports informed decision-making, academic planning, and long-term student success.