First Asian University to Provide Online Courses through FutureLearn Platform

Yonsei recently concluded a deal to offer Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in the Asia Region through the FutureLearn platform. FutureLearn is a private British education company owned by The Open University, which offers a diverse selection of free, high quality online courses from some of the world’s leading universities and other outstanding cultural institutions. FutureLearn’s partners include the University of Birmingham, Edinburgh University, King’s College London, and the University of Auckland, along with the British Council, the British Library, and the British Museum. While most of FutureLearn’s partners are located in the U.K. and New Zealand, recently the company has expanded its market, offering a number of online courses in the Asia Region.  Yonsei is the first Asian university to conclude a partnership with FutureLearn. Last March, FutureLearn CEO Simon Nelson visited the Republic of Korea; and with the cooperation of the British Council, he requested a partnership with Yonsei.  Yonsei officials believe that offering MOOCs through the FutureLearn platform will help to enhance Yonsei’s reputation regionally and worldwide.  In the future, Yonsei also hopes to establish partnerships with edX, Coursera, and other American MOOC platforms in order to more effectively share its educational resources online.