Continuing education opens new doors

dubai — American national Jesse Silva is an undergraduate student pursuing his Bachelors in Business Management for Fashion and Design, at the College of Fashion and Design. Apart from his studies, Jesse also freelances. “There is a regular stream of income, and you need it when you’re living in an expensive city. But freelance only covers my materials for school and maybe a few of my utility bills. It does not pay tuition,” he said.

Experts suggest that students need not take time off and study in expensive university campuses, they can also use the help of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). In an earlier interview with Prof Asha Singh Kanwar, president and chief executive officer of the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) said: “Changing four jobs by the age of 32 is new normal for millennials, making it imperative for them to remain employable even several years after completing conventional education.”

She advised that blended learning, MOOCs and other online learning platforms would help meet demands posed by companies in the future.

What are MOOCs and who benefits from it?

In the last three years, over 25 million people from around the world have enrolled in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). According to a study conducted by the Harvard Business Review, it demonstrates that among learners who complete courses, MOOCs do have a real impact: 72 per cent of survey respondents reported career benefits and 61 per cent showed educational benefits.

Twenty-eight percent of all people who completed a MOOC enrol primarily to achieve an academic goal — they are ‘education seekers.’ Of education seekers, 88 per cent report an educational benefit of some kind.

Eighty-seven percent report an intangible educational benefit (such as gaining knowledge in their field), and 18 per cent indicates a tangible educational benefit — either increasing credit toward an academic degree or completing prerequisites for a university programme.