Itunes U, Post four

The Hidden Value Of "Free" Education

There are many advantages to universities giving away free material.  Although it appears that there is little advantage to the universities, the real advantage is hidden. 

The Iceberg Concept

The Iceberg concept?  Right.  The true value of giving away free education is a lot like observing an iceberg.   Only a small fraction of it's monstrous size is visible.

What is Seen? (the tip of the iceberg)

Universities that give out free material and courses appear to be very generous.  We know that the courses must be taught whether we (the general public) look at the material or not,  so what harm does it cause the universities to share?

What hidden value's there are? (All the underwater hidden values)

Universities have many advantages of providing courses in an online library, such as Itunes U.  By providing this free information, universities gain free publicity,  have a potential to make money, and can maintain a more diverse student base.

1.  Free Advertising

Some of the universities that put out courses online are not widely known.  Since students now see these courses, they may consider enrolling in the university.  Other universities may already have a prestigious reputation.  Regardless, universities are getting free publicity.

2.  To Make Money


It is possible to access these courses however, universities do not supply the degree or certificate of completion... at least not for free.  For many of the courses it is possible to write exams on the material which would, upon completion, reward you with a certificate.  These exams are not free, and universities make more money off of a course that's already been taught.  This means that a new professor need not be hired.  In addition,  the potential money that they can make is limitless, since the lectures are recorded and may be distributed an unlimited amount of times.

3.  Provide more opportunity and choice for students


The volume of applications vary year to year and university to university.  Sometimes there are not enough students that applied to a course to run it.  Since a university will have recorded all of the lectures from the last time the course ran, it is possible to just have the students do the course online.  Students may now still do a certain course at their university of choice, instead of resorting to switching universities.  This means universities can sustain a bigger student body, regardless of application volume.

My Course

To be honest, I have only listened to six lectures.  To defend this,  I must state that these six lectures however add up to just under three hours of my time and I have been very busy with my regular school schedule.  My apologies.  

Reflection

Personally I think it is a wise move by Universities to give away the information as there are many different advantages that can occur because of it.  It is evident that free information can potentially be profitable for universities. At the same time these universities acquire the reputation of being generous.  As far as I'm concerned it's a win-win situation.

On another note, from what I've listened to, owning a business is going to be a lot more complex than I thought.  I will need to keep a day job to pay for living, whilst attempting to start up my business... and that's if I even get funding.  Seriously I'm going to have to organize my time better in the future, in order to make owning a business a worthwhile consideration.

And Finally on a completely unrelated note... this video is hilarious.  Business competition at it's finest.