University’s global community of learners
Posted on 1 December 2008
She sat at her computer doing the course work that earned her an MA in Public Policy and Management from the University of York, 3,500 miles away in the UK.
There’s a real energy that comes out of these global cultural connections
Ellen Roberts
It was the same in Nigeria with tropical rain splashing on the hot asphalt, and while on holiday in Venice when her family were enjoying gondola rides, that the online course gave her the flexibility to work around her working and domestic life.
Juliana is one of a community of more than 200 online students in 37 different countries working on the University’s e-Masters in Public Policy and Management.
Juliana is Bulgarian and married to an Englishman. They both work as international development consultants, so she needed a course that offered total flexibility.
"My working life really does demand flexibility. This means a different dynamic of life – constant travel and often working in difficult conditions," she said.
"I have spent most of the last three years working in Afghanistan, but also travelling around the world for professional and family reasons. None of this posed an obstacle to my Master’s studies, as long as I had my computer and an Internet connection so I could access the online resources and take part in the weekly discussions."
Juliana also wanted an MA course that was relevant to her career as a consultant working on international development – and be good value for money.
"My work has involved working with central and provincial governments and supporting public sector reform – processes, which are complex and often involve painful change. The real life/real time applicability of the course material was the most rewarding part of my study," she said.
"A great part of the course material – learning how to lead and manage change, or the specifics of policy formulation and analysis – are universally applicable."
The online Masters course was launched in 2003, and there are graduates of it in every continent except Antarctica.
Ellen Roberts, who runs the e-Masters course in the University’s Department of Social Policy and Social Work, said: "It’s distance learning, it’s online and it’s collaborative. The students have tutorial and discussion forums online and they form the heart of the programme, giving the students the opportunity to share their backgrounds, and their experiences.
"Although the students can be thousands of miles away from us, and we hardly ever see them in the flesh, we nevertheless try to build this sense of community. Some of the students feel that they have more contact time than if they were on conventional academic course. There’s a real energy that comes out of these global cultural connections."
Ellen Roberts said there were plans to expand the range of courses on offer, because of an increasing demand for online learning. She wants to involve more practitioners and to develop an even more critical edge in the academic programme.
Juliana Stoyanova is in no doubt about the value of the e-Masters course in her career development.
"I am proud to have earned a degree from a highly respected faculty in Public Policy and Management in the UK. I am confident that the time and money invested in this course will pay dividends in the future."
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- More information about the e-masters in Public Policy and Management at www.york.ac.uk/depts/spsw/gsp/onlinemasters.html