UC Irvine Extension Partners with Brazilian College for Free Online Courses

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 07/29/08
UC Irvine Extension, the continuing education arm of the University of California, Irvine, has announced a joint educational venture with Brazil-based Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV). Through the partnership, FGV--a nonprofit higher education institution and the largest provider of online education in Brazil--has created free online courses, presented in Portuguese, as part of the UC Irvine Extension's OpenCourseWare (OCW) initiative. The two new courses are "Ethics in Portuguese" and "Training and Human Resources Development."

"The sharing of free, high-quality courses between two higher education institutions with international reach will benefit students all over the world. Exemplifying the power of the OCW initiative, this partnership enables learners, no matter whom or where they are, to gain access to University-level courses," said Gary W. Matkin, dean of continuing education at UC Irvine. "Also, since most educational material is shared from the Northern hemisphere to the Southern, this partnership provides us the opportunity to showcase high quality educational content produced in the vibrant countries of South America. The collaboration between UC Irvine Extension and FGV represents one of the first times that an international institution has created content for utilization by the United States--making it an early example of both cultural significance and educational pioneering."

Through the partnership, FGV has shared its MBA course, "Ethics in Portuguese," and has also adapted UC Irvine Extension's course, "Training and Human Resources Development." The UC Irvine course has been localized by adding concepts and cases that reflect the business and cultural environment of Brazil.

UC Irvine's OCW is a Web-based resource that houses educational assets that are discoverable, searchable, modifiable, and free and easily available. Through the OCW Movement, UC Irvine provides university-quality courses and learning assets to self learners.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • geometric pattern features abstract icons of a dollar sign, graduation cap, and document

    Maricopa Community Colleges Adopts Platform to Combat Student Application Fraud

    In an effort to secure its admissions and financial processes, Maricopa Community Colleges has partnered with A.M. Simpkins and Associates (AMSA) to implement the company's S.A.F.E (Student Application Fraudulent Examination) across the district's 10 institutions.

  • stylized figures, resumes, a graduation cap, and a laptop interconnected with geometric shapes

    OpenAI to Launch AI-Powered Jobs Platform

    OpenAI announced it will launch an AI-powered hiring platform by mid-2026, directly competing with LinkedIn and Indeed in the professional networking and recruitment space. The company announced the initiative alongside an expanded certification program designed to verify AI skills for job seekers.

  • Abstract AI circuit board pattern

    New Nonprofit to Work Toward Safer, Truthful AI

    Turing Award-winning AI researcher Yoshua Bengio has launched LawZero, a new nonprofit aimed at developing AI systems that prioritize safety and truthfulness over autonomy.

  • hooded figure types on a laptop, with abstract manifesto-like posters taped to the wall behind them

    Hacktivism Is a Growing Threat to Higher Education

    In recent years, colleges and universities have faced an evolving array of cybersecurity challenges. But one threat is showing signs of becoming both more frequent and more politically charged: hacktivism.