Earlier this week, the University of Pennsylvania (UPENN) announced they will begin offering for-credit undergraduate courses and complete B.A. Degrees.
This might be one of the most important news articles for educators this year, as it represents a huge change in the mentality of ‘elite’ universities.
For the first time, students can receive an ‘Ivy League Education,’ completely online (the one exception they make is that each student needs to visit the campus twice - once towards the start and once towards the end of the program.)
The admission requirements allow you to pursue one of two paths: application or ‘prove your way in.’ This means that you need to take pre-courses and receive marks/grades of a certain level and then you will receive admission to the program.
For those who wish to work from an earlier age, who don’t have the ability to geographically move to Philadelphia, or for those who come from non-traditional backgrounds, this is a major equalizing opportunity.
We are watching tertiary education have the biggest change in the last 200 years before our very eyes.
Online degrees may not be what our core clientele desire or what we’re used to - for many others, however, this is welcome news.
Watch this space - something big is happening.