The COVID-19 outbreak has sped up the development of online education sector by at least a decade through transforming learning habits of millions of students across the world, according to an industry insider.

"The novel coronavirus outbreak has accelerated people's acknowledgement and acceptance for online education in China and around the world. It has moved up the sector by at least 10 years," said Tom Dretler, co-founder and CEO of Shorelight Education.

With the epidemic becoming increasingly severe in foreign countries, schools and universities from over 22 countries and regions have halted normal classes temporarily. In China, authorities also postponed the new semester and encouraged students to study at home.

"For us, it brought us opportunities. As students and educators learned that there was a solution that would allow them to return to school quickly, even back to normal in the future, more interactive courses or teaching models that mixed with online and offline will be adopted by them," he said.

The Boston-based company, which helps recruit and manage the first-year international student for US universities, just launched a new online education program in the country.

By leveraging technology, the program allows international students from all over the world to earn a degree from top universities in the US without leaving their home country. Those universities include Adelphi University, Auburn University, Florida International University, Louisiana State University and the University of Massachusetts, Boston.

"When we designed this product, we never thought that we would encounter an epidemic outbreak globally. The original intention was to enable students around the world enjoy the quality education from the US," Dretler said.

ACT, a well-known nonprofit organization in college and career readiness solutions, also cooperated with education providers including Shorelight, to provide help for students whose plans to complete high school or studies in the US have been interrupted by the epidemic.

Dretler added that international students spend $43 billion annually in the United States, more than half in tuition, so the financial risk is significant.

"China is an important market for Shorelight as Chinese families are deeply connected with internet and their habits are more integrated with blended learning experience," he said.