HIP (Hard-Working, Innovative, Passionate) People Place
A noble purpose inspires sacrifice, stimulates innovation and encourages
perseverance.
■ Gary Hamel
In an effort to develop future business leaders in Japan, where I am a
university lecturer, I publish a blog in Japanese. Though I initially wrote
about the work of other scholars and executives, I thought the blog would be
more interesting if I could interview management leaders directly. My only
concern was securing cooperation. Successful scholars and business
professionals are extremely busy.
To my pleasant surprise, most have made time for me despite their often
impossible schedules. I am delighted, indeed, moved. Not only have I enjoyed
the privilege of being able to dialog with these individuals, I have found
their talks inspirational. Each has exhibited exuberant passion and
demonstrated the value of sheer hard work. Thinking about how much I have benefited
from the interviews, I decided to establish this English blog to share them
with a wider audience than Japanese readers. I am certain they will enlighten
you. I hope they will inspire you.
This time, Shai Reshef, founder and president
of University of the People (UoPeople), spoke with me. As the first
tuition-free, non-profit, online academic institution, UoPeople enables people
who would not otherwise be able to attend college to earn a degree in business
or computer science. I am confident you will be inspired by this interview on
the University, founded on the belief that knowledge is a key ingredient of
world peace. For furthermore further information and inspiration, you might
also want to view the TED Talk by President Reshef linked below.
Shai Reshef: An ultra-low-cost college degree
1. Can you tell us a little about your personal background, education, and
career experience? What
motivated you to study Chinese politics as a graduate
student? How, if at all, is your interest in Asian politics related to your
passion for education?
I learned Asian culture in my program on Chinese politics
and history at Michigan State University. I am not sure that these studies have
direct correlation to what I do right now, but I think studying Chinese and
especially modern Chinese history led me to a strong realization of how people’s
behavior and effort can change things.
I spent twenty years of my life in the for-profit
education sector. Among other accomplishments, I established the first online
university in Europe. In doing so, I witnessed how powerful online learning can
be. We had students from all over the world. They stayed at home. Continuing
their jobs, they were able to obtain a high-quality European education. At the
same time, I realized that earning an online degree was nothing more than wishful
thinking for many people. Because the program was too expensive, they could not
afford it.
I eventually sold this business to go into semi
retirement. Soon after, I realized I wanted to continue to work, but not doing
more of the same. Because I am fortunate, because I have enough wealth, I felt
it was time to give back. I also knew I would have to do so through education.
Not only do I know this field best, more importantly, when you educate a
person, you change that individual’s life. Ultimately, you can change the
world. I want to have an impact on the world, and I believe the only way to do
so is through education.
As I looked around, I realized that all of the
resources that had made the online program I had established expensive were now
available for free: open-source technology, free online resources, and cyber
culture where people share with and teach one another and are open to one
another. At that point, I realized that all I really needed to do is bundle all
of these resources together. The University of the People is the outcome.
2. How did you conceive
of the idea of providing universal access to higher education? In a world of
many problems ranging from global warming to hunger to
pollution, why has education, in particular, attracted your attention?
As mentioned, when you educate people, you not only
change their lives but also the world. This is the primary reason why I have
focused on education, which also happens to be the area that I know best.
3. You started the
University of the People in January 2009. What did your organization look like
then? How has it evolved since? Where do you expect to be five years from now?
More specifically, by what metrics will you assess
your success?
The idea for the University of the People came from
considerable thinking on the problems of education in the world along with the
realization that all the resources necessary for creating a free, online
university are now available. When I announced the establishment of the
university at a conference called Verde in Munich, Germany, three people were
on my team. The New York Times published an article about the university the day
after I announced it. In response, I received hundreds of emails from people,
including professors expressing their desire to help. The university was
started by these people getting on board working to create the courses and
develop the infrastructure. We also created a web page to teach the students
about the university and how to apply, as well as a separate portal for
actually instructing students. People around the world were working on the
project by this time. As a result, in April we began the admission process, and
we started teaching students online by September 2009, a mere nine months after
announcing establishment of the University of the People. All of this work was
done by volunteers.
Currently, 3000 volunteers run the university,
supported by a small cadre of paid staff. Like me, the provost is a volunteer. However,
the vice provost is a paid staff member. The deans are volunteers, but the
Associate Provost for Academic Affairs is a salaried employee. Similarly, the
Director of Finance is paid even though the CFO is a volunteer. We designed
this organizational structure for two reasons. Because we rely on many
volunteers, we want to use their time efficiently. Whereas many university
professors squander an enormous amount of time navigating the bureaucracy, we
remove this burden by using our paid staff. This way, volunteer faculty can
focus on the tasks for which their skills are most important. Second, we have
understudies who can immediately step up to the plate until a suitable
replacement is found if a volunteer must discontinue due to other priorities or
for other reasons.
We have already achieved several milestones. In
addition to accepting over two thousand students from over 147 countries, we received
accreditation this year. This testament to the educational quality of our
program will help students land jobs when they graduate. The accreditation also
makes them eligible to study for advanced degrees at other universities. The
next major milestone is achieving financial sustainability. Though the
University of the People is tuition-free, students are expected to pay $100 for
each exam they take. To earn a bachelor’s degree, students must pass a total of
40 exams, ten per year. We offer a variety of scholarships to students who cannot
afford to pay for the exams because our major mission is to ensure no one is
left behind due to financial reasons. At the same time, the university receives
one hundred dollars per exam, either from the student directly or through a
scholarship. If we attain our goal of 5000 students by 2017, we will reach
financial sustainability.
According to UNESCO, by 2025 over 98 million individuals
in the world will not be able to attend college because no seats will be
available. The University of the People is a model showing how to serve all of
these people. If we can do it, other universities can, too. Instead of building
universities, which will drain resources without meeting the demand for
education, developing countries can establish online universities. The
University of the People’s mission is to ensure these 98 million people are
served. If other universities and countries do not join the effort, we will
continue to grow until we achieve this mission.
4. How do you see your curriculum developing over time? Do you currently plan
to provide graduate and professional degrees like the MS in Computer Science, MBA,
MPA, or Judicial Doctorate?
We have started creating a bachelor-level program in
health science. Looking at the recent Ebola outbreak as an example, we realized
that this field is an acute need in many developing countries. For this reason,
health sciences will be our next program. We are also evaluating areas in which
to develop a master program and plan to begin creating a masters course
shortly.
5. Before founding UoPeople,
you worked for a for-profit education company. Comparing this experience to
your current one, what would you say is the biggest difference between the
for-profit and not-for-profit world? Would your mission of rendering higher
education universally accessible be more easily achieved with a for-profit
business model?
The University of the People operates like a
for-profit business. We have a business plan and goals, and we evaluate
ourselves on a monthly basis. We are exactly like any other business with
respect to our daily activities. Because I am from the for-profit world, I
believe the organization needs to have a plan and objectives. Individuals need
goals and plans, too. And they all need to be measured closely and regularly.
That said, I will mention some differences. First,
lots of people support the University of the People as a nonprofit that we
would never be able to attract otherwise. The Chair of our Council of
Presidents is the Chancellor of New York University. The Vice Chancellor of Oxford
also serves on the council along with the Secretary of Education of the United
States. Similarly, the Provost is from Columbia University. You would not
attract these luminaries as a for-profit business. The University of the People
also benefits from the assistance of 3000 volunteers.
On the other hand, fundraising would be easier if we
were a for-profit enterprise. I chose a non-profit model because many are
suspicious of for-profit education. Because our approach is so different, so
disruptive, I knew people would be even more skeptical: They would assume that
we were not serious, or perhaps that we had a hidden agenda. By organizing as a
nonprofit, we have circumvented this problem and achieved legitimacy. People
support us. If you look at the current state of for-profit American
universities today, they are under attack. Seeing this, I am glad I am not a
for-profit enterprise. As a nonprofit, I am positioned to prove my point,
achieve my mission more quickly and easily.
6. What challenges have
you faced
in establishing UoPeople? How have you overcome them?
The two major challenges we have faced are
fundraising, as previously explained, and skepticism about whether a free
university was a viable model that could ensure quality, receive accreditation,
and operate sustainably. Our recent accreditation is helping us overcome these
obstacles.
7. Tell
us about how instruction is provided in your specific distance-learning model.
How is it different from MOOCs and other online platforms like Coursera? What
feedback or critiques of your model have you received
from these "competitors"?
The University of the People is quite different from a
MOOC. Actually, I am a great supporter of MOOCs. First, they spread knowledge throughout the world, a contribution which
I, of course, applaud. Second, the fact that famous universities like Stanford,
MIT, and Harvard, among others, offer MOOCs, which are online education, endorse
the validity of online learning. I really appreciate and admire MOOCs and I
believe that they show a great importance in online learning. However, if you
take a MOOC, you might attend in a virtual classroom containing 10,000, or
100,000 or even 200,000 other learners. At the University of the People,
students are in classes of twenty or thirty. We use peer-to-peer learning, but
the course is supervised by an instructor who responds to questions and
monitors discussion. Students also receive personalized instructor attention.
This was a very important part of our pedagogy.
The students in our programs are also
different from typical MOOC students. Eighty percent of Coursera or MOOC
students already have a previous degree. Forty percent have a bachelor’s
degree, and the same proportion has a Master’s or higher degree. A majority of
the remaining 20% are university students. Though they may all have strong
academic backgrounds, less than 5% of MOOC participants actually complete the
courses in which they enroll.
MOOCs have received some criticism for not
succeeding to reach the have-nots, but rather those who have had the
opportunity of attaining higher education before, and therefore just widening
the gap between the haves and the have-nots. In addition, although most MOOCs
users have strong academic backgrounds, less than 5% of MOOC participants
actually complete the courses in which they enroll. Many of our students, in
contrast, have been through extreme hardships such as natural disasters and
conflict in many cases. In spite of these obstacles, 95% of our students
complete the courses they take, so I know we are doing something right.
I might also add that the University of the
People is a university, and not an online course. As with other universities,
students apply for admissions, follow a curriculum, and must pass courses. We
grant degrees. MOOCs, in contrast, are stand-alone courses. You cannot receive
a degree from a MOOC. Our model has not received critique, only praise.
8. Your partners include the United Nations, New York University, Microsoft, and
Hewlett-Packard, among others. Can you tell us about some of the collaborative
projects you are currently undertaking with these partners and others globally?
HP has donated money and computers. They have also
developed an internship program and scholarship program for women. Throughout
their studies, these women are mentored by a HP employee. In Africa, Microsoft
has provided complete scholarships to 1000 students, who have free access to
Microsoft Certifications opportunities while at the university. The students
are also mentored by Microsoft employees and will complete internships.
Students may also be offered Microsoft jobs after completing their programs. As
mentioned, the chair of our Council of Presidents is from NYU, as are all of
our deans. Furthermore, many NYU professors are also volunteering for the
University of the People. Our best students have the opportunity to transfer to
NYU, where they enjoy full scholarships.
9. How many students have
graduated from the university in business administration? In computer science?
What are their demographics (average age, age range, gender breakdown,
geographic region)? In what organizations do they work?
Our students range in age from 18-66, with the
average age being 29. With 30% female and
70% male (a number I’d like to see even out in the near future), our students
hail from all over the world (US ~ 28%,
Central and South America ~ 14%, Africa ~33%, Asia ~10%, and the rest from
Europe, Oceania and South America), and work in a very broad spectrum of
occupations.
10. For Japanese students who would like to study at the University of the
People, the English language is a major obstacle. Do you plan to provide online,
ESOL courses for non-English speaking students? Do you anticipate offering
instruction in other languages?
To study at the University of the People, students
must first past the TOEFL or an equivalent exam. For those who have not, we
offer a nine-week English course that they must pass to enter a degree program.
However, we are not an English school. Students who do not know English will
have to learn it elsewhere before they can apply to the university. If we
someday have the resources, we would consider offering instruction in other
languages.
11. What advice would you give to others aspiring to found a not-for-profit organization
or for-profit start up? Are the required skills different for each?
In both cases, you need to be passionate about what
you do. You need a clear vision. You also need to know what your core business
is and avoid becoming side-tracked by any activity that is not part of that
core. Most important, never give up! Whether your organization is a for-profit
or non-profit, the journey is a long marathon. No matter what happens, never
give up. If you keep on keeping on, the results will eventually come.
12. What pastimes do you
enjoy when you are not working?
Over the past five years, I have been extremely involved
with the University of the People. I enjoy my work a lot. In fact, if you ask
me what I enjoy doing most, I would respond, “the work I am doing now.” In the
sparse time that I have outside of work, in addition to meeting new people and
reading, which I very much enjoy, I like to run. Running is my way of
meditating. It clears my mind and helps me focus.
