Amanda Raney: Transforming Online Education

Amanda Raney’s journey to becoming the Senior Director of Student Operations at Udacity is an example of how passion, purpose, and adaptability can shape a meaningful career. Starting fresh out of graduate school with a Master’s in Social Entrepreneurship, Amanda was eager to find a path where she could make a difference in education. Early in her career, she co-founded Simba Education, a social enterprise that brought early education programs to South Africa. While the impact was profound, the expectation of constant travel led her to seek a more stable, long-term role where she could continue making a difference, but closer to home. That’s when she discovered Udacity.

What attracted Amanda to Udacity was its mission: to help individuals handle career transitions and skill development in a balanced way. It was a mission that aligned perfectly with her own goals. Over the past decade, she has grown alongside the company, taking on new roles and meeting new challenges.

She began as one of the first operations associates for Udacity’s Project Reviewer platform, collaborating with engineering and product teams to deliver expert feedback to learners at scale. Her contributions helped globalize and streamline operations, localizing content and services, and integrating cross-regional teams. As her role expanded, she took on launch operations for Udacity’s Societal Impact programs, driving large-scale education opportunities through corporate and government partnerships.

Today, Amanda leads a global team of more than 25 professionals focused on learner support, community engagement, program operations, student outcomes, and customer experience research. Her leadership centers on a single, powerful belief: that anyone can change their life through education. Her deep background in operations has profoundly shaped how she approaches student success. She believes that success starts with data. Her team is often on the front lines, engaging directly with learners, which provides them with a wealth of tools like 360 Voice of Customer reporting and AI-driven analytics, Amanda’s team can transform feedback into actionable change. This approach earned Udacity two major accolades in 2025: the USA Today award for America’s Best Customer Service and a Stevie Award for exceptional digital-first experiences.

Amanda shares that Udacity learners come from all walks of life, including individuals, company employees, and scholarship recipients. No matter their background, success is measured by real results like job-ready projects and in-demand skills. Unlike traditional learning, Udacity focuses on active, hands-on learning through practical projects. Experts then review these projects and give personalized feedback to help learners truly understand and apply what they’ve learned.

To keep learners engaged and motivated, Udacity uses a combination of compelling content strategy, community support, and mentorship. Courses are designed with asynchronous videos, visuals, and text, allowing learners to absorb information in different formats. Once foundational understanding is established, learners dive into real-world projects that solidify their skills. The Udacity community platform offers an environment where learners can share knowledge and grow together, while mentors play a key role by providing guidance, project reviews, and live interactions.

Balancing efficiency with personalization is one of Amanda’s operational strengths. While standardization is necessary for scale, she emphasizes that one-size-fits-all solutions don’t work in edtech. Her team uses experimentation and rapid ROI analysis to determine which services truly move the needle.

Supporting learners through the transition from education to employment is another area where Amanda’s leadership shines. Career readiness is built into the learning journey through resume and GitHub reviews, fluency courses, and live coaching. Udacity also partners with organizations like Exponent to address gaps in interview skills. This collaboration equips learners with peer mock interviews, curated question banks, and personalized resume support, helping them bridge the gap between learning and landing the job.

In her view, the needs of adult learners and career switchers are evolving rapidly. With technology like generative AI becoming more prevalent, workers are looking to upskill, but most organizations still don’t offer training at scale. Udacity fills this gap by offering focused, industry-validated programs with hands-on projects and expert mentorship. These offerings help learners develop real-world competencies and prepare for the changing demands of the job market.

When hiring for student-facing roles, Amanda looks for more than just technical skills. She seeks out individuals who genuinely care about learners and are resilient, creative, and resourceful. The ability to empathize and keep students at the heart of every decision is what sets great team members apart.

Looking ahead, Amanda believes that adaptive learning systems will play a major role in the future of online education. Platforms will need to personalize content in real-time and offer ways for learners to prove their skills quickly. Operational teams, she notes, must be prepared to move at the speed of technology and the learners they serve.

Her advice to aspiring leaders in online education is clear: be curious, stay agile, and never stop learning. The journey of Amanda Raney shows how a data-driven strategy, human-centered leadership, and dedication to learner success can transform lives.