A year ago, entrepreneur Shai Reshef’s vision came to fruition when the University of the People &-&-an nonprofit online college that doesn’t charge tuition &-&-opened its website to those without the time, cash or means to attend an accredited university either in-person or over the Internet. It set forth its aim to make college something universally attainable and culturally inclusive in a short-winded mission statement.
“We believe that education at a very minimal cost is a basic right for all suitable applicants, not just for a privileged few,” the institution’s website states.
By the sound of it, the company isn’t trying to market itself as something it’s not. It offers certification in the spheres of practical computer science and business administration programs and does not accept transfer students from accredited schools. It has a paid faculty of five, relies on volunteer efforts from the rest of its instructors and borrows syllabi and course materials from other schools.
The problem is, for its assurance that everyone is welcome as a student at the University of the People, it accepted only a little more than 10 percent of applicants for its current term after a lengthy application process and an undisclosed application fee of between $10 and $100. Moreover, each final exam carries an additional fee.
Charging a small amount of money for a nonprofit is not a crime against humanity and it is reasonable to expect that the institution should have some kind of an application process. Still, as basic and fundamental as these steps seem, they are also contradictions to the revolutionary ideals Reshef seems to believe the institution propagates. University of the People seems simply like a less-expensive online school &-&- and there’s nothing wrong with that &-&- but it certainly isn’t the all-inclusive, no-questions-asked academic haven it markets itself as. It shouldn’t continue to lead people to believe it is.
It is important &-&- especially for those who seek nontraditional means of higher education &-&- that schools are honest with their prospective students and do not patronize them by promising one thing and giving another. Being rejected from a school with a banner of across-the-board acceptance emblazoned across the Internet is misleading. False advertising is irresponsible, and if the University of the People rejects nearly 90 percent of its applicants and includes costs around each corner, then it should just say so.
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