Meta's First EdX Courses Provide Skills for Building the Metaverse

EdX has launched two Spark Augmented Reality courses from Meta, developed as part of the online learning platform's partnership with Meta Immersive Learning. The goal: to "build a learning ecosystem for the metaverse and give professionals broader access to the tools and education needed to build a career in augmented reality," the companies explained in a news announcement.

"The metaverse has vast potential to change how we experience and access education, much like how various technologies came together 10 years ago to increase access to high-quality education at scale with MOOCs," said Anant Agarwal, edX founder and chief open education officer at 2U, in a statement. "This partnership will provide learning opportunities that give creators around the world greater access to the skills needed to envision and build quality and impactful learning experiences within this exciting innovation."

The new courses, Getting Started with Spark AR and Creating and Designing with Spark AR, are the first of a suite of free-to-audit courses that will help learners of all skill levels prepare to become a Certified Spark AR Creator. Participants will learn fundamental AR design principles and AR creation skills using Meta's Spark AR Studio software; courses covering more advanced Spark AR skills will be released later this year.   

Together, Getting Started with Spark AR and Creating and Designing with Spark AR make up a paid Professional Certificate program in Spark AR for Beginners. Meta is providing free access to its Spark AR Certification exam for the first 200 learners who complete the certificate program and receive a certificate of completion from edX. Those who complete the certification will also have access to the Meta Career Programs Job Board, a platform that connects people who have any Meta Certification with employers and job listings.

"We're thrilled to work with edX to help students prepare for careers in augmented reality," said Leticia Jauregui, global head of Meta Immersive Learning. "Courses in the Spark AR curriculum will empower students to become the next generation of creators with skills needed to build for the metaverse."

About the Author

Rhea Kelly is editor in chief for Campus Technology, THE Journal, and Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • data professionals in a meeting

    Data Fluency as a Strategic Imperative

    As an institution's highest level of data capabilities, data fluency taps into the agency of technical experts who work together with top-level institutional leadership on issues of strategic importance.

  • stylized AI code and a neural network symbol, paired with glitching code and a red warning triangle

    New Anthropic AI Models Demonstrate Coding Prowess, Behavior Risks

    Anthropic has released Claude Opus 4 and Claude Sonnet 4, its most advanced artificial intelligence models to date, boasting a significant leap in autonomous coding capabilities while simultaneously revealing troubling tendencies toward self-preservation that include attempted blackmail.

  • university building with classical architecture is partially overlaid by a glowing digital brain graphic

    NSF Invests $100 Million in National AI Research Institutes

    The National Science Foundation has announced a $100 million investment in National Artificial Intelligence Research Institutes, part of a broader White House strategy to maintain American leadership as competition with China intensifies.

  • black analog alarm clock sits in front of a digital background featuring a glowing padlock symbol and cybersecurity icons

    The Clock Is Ticking: Higher Education's Big Push Toward CMMC Compliance

    With the United States Department of Defense's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification 2.0 framework entering Phase II on Dec. 16, 2025, institutions must develop a cybersecurity posture that's resilient, defensible, and flexible enough to keep up with an evolving threat landscape.