This paper focuses on the problem - or ups and downs - of online participation in higher education. Models of participation drawn from instructional design (ID) and computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) are contrasted with data gathered from thirteen participants and one teacher during a fulltime online course lasting five months. This paper indicates that participation in online courses in higher education is more complex than the views offered within conventional theories of CSCL and ID. Personal conditions, for example, are more important than noticed in these theories. A view of participation as a relationship between the student, the study group and the educational institution is proposed as an alternative model for understanding the ups and downs of learning online.