May 29, 2011

Online Learning Portals: Customizing Colleges Right Out of Higher Education?

Online Learning Portals: Customizing Colleges Right Out of Higher Education? 1

Lance Murphey for The Chronicle

At the U. of Memphis University College, Joe Rowell applied for academic credits with a portfolio based on his experience in starting and running a software company. "This kind of thing would be extremely useful in the workplace" in the hiring process, he says.

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close Online Learning Portals: Customizing Colleges Right Out of Higher Education? 1

Lance Murphey for The Chronicle

At the U. of Memphis University College, Joe Rowell applied for academic credits with a portfolio based on his experience in starting and running a software company. "This kind of thing would be extremely useful in the workplace" in the hiring process, he says.

By David Glenn

Somewhere out there is an ambitious but frugal high-school graduate who wants to avoid a traditional college path. Maybe she has read Anya Kamenetz's DIY U or one of the other end-higher-education-as-we-know-it manifestoes that have circulated in recent years.

Her plan is to pursue an education à la carte, spending as little money as possible. She'll use free online resources like MIT's OpenCourseWare project. She'll find workplace apprenticeships. If she needs