Charlotte Ryan | Contributing Writer
Trinity College Dublin and the University of Melbourne, Australia were yesterday announced as being the first international educational institutions to join Semester Online’s program of for-credit online undergraduate courses. The two universities have joined an impressive collection of institutes which the initiative, led by educational technology company 2U Inc., works with including Northwestern University and Boston University.
In a press release issued yesterday, Andrew Hermalyn, executive vice president and general manager of Semester Online, said: “Trinity College Dublin and the University of Melbourne are world-renowned education institutions with a legacy of innovation in teaching. Semester Online students will benefit from the talents and global perspective of their respective faculty.”
Dr. Patrick Prendergast, Provost of Trinity College, emphasised the potential of this cutting-edge scheme in reaching students around the world: “The growth of online learning has the capacity to revolutionise how students learn, and to increase access to high-quality higher education. Trinity is at the forefront of innovation in Ireland and we welcome the disruptive potential of online learning.”
“Trinity College Dublin and the University of Melbourne are world-renowned education institutions with a legacy of innovation in teaching.”
The programme offers an inventive take on online education with students partaking in discussions, exercises, and lectures in a live virtual classroom. Courses are crafted as close to on-campus classes as possible with guidance from renowned professors and official transcripts provided by the institution offering the course.
The first online course offered by Trinity will be Ireland in Rebellion, 1798-1916, led by associate professor in History, Dr. Patrick Geoghegan and beginning in Spring 2014. The course will chart the foundation and development of the Irish Republic, allowing students to investigate Ireland’s transformation from being a part of the British Empire to a country primed for independence.
“The growth of online learning has the capacity to revolutionise how students learn, and to increase access to high-quality higher education.”
Trinity’s involvement with Semester Online marks a watershed in the university’s international identity, made all the more relevant by its proximity to the Trinity Global Graduate Forum, the theme of which is “Trinity Growing Globally”. As Hermalyn stated, the participation of both Trinity and the University of Melbourne “demonstrates our commitment to making this initiative international in scope, thereby enriching the development of all the students in this new for-credit program.”
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