Learning about and applying for Flexible Education (YMO) courses

Flexible Education explained:

Flexible Education (FE) is a way to obtain credits for (online) courses that are not mentioned in the Higher Education's study handbooks. In practice that means FE usually consists of MOOCs which are offered on various platforms such as edX and Coursera. MOOCs are Massive Open Online Courses that can be offered by universities and other institutions. Most courses are asynchronous, i.e. don’t have a fixed course schedule, and are completely online; hence you can follow them anywhere anytime.

With Flexible Education it is possible to get credits for these courses and take them up in your study programme. The credits are assigned by a WUR staff member by using a YMO course code and are similar to capita selecta credits, hence the same rules apply This means you are currently not allowed to exceed 6 credits of capita selecta courses in your study programme. Check Practical information for the steps you need to follow to receive credits.

A Flexible Education (YMO) course gives you a lot of benefits, like:

• Study anywhere, anytime
• Expand your horizon beyond that of WUR
• Content from well-known institutes/universities from all over the world

Practical information:

Steps that need to be taken:

• Student finds an interesting MOOC
• Student contacts their study adviser to determine if MOOC fits within their study programme
• Student fills in the FE contact form to get advice on how to find a teacher
• Student finds a teacher who has the time/expertise to assess the content and level of the MOOC. The teacher decides if the MOOC is eligible for credits
• Teacher contacts FE team via email to inform them on multiple matters: the found match (teacher-student), name of the MOOC, the number of credits issued, the level of the course, name of the student and student number
• In some cases the FE team can provide the student with a coupon code that gives free access to the MOOC
• Student finishes the MOOC and sends the obtained certificate to teacher and FE team
• Student has the final assessment, most likely an oral or written assignment and passes the course
• Teacher informs the FE team about the result (pass/fail)
• The FE team will register the grade to the appropriate YMO course code
• Student will take the course up in their free choice part of their study programme with the YMO course code which is subject to approval by the Examination board

Things to keep in mind:

• Make sure that you know what is expected from you (workload, required prior knowledge, assessment) and that you are committed to the course
• The online course must be approved by the teacher in order to receive credits for it
• Language courses aren't eligible for credits
• Always inform your study adviser about your future study plans and check if they fit your programme
• Credits can only be obtained upon completion of the online course and successful final assessment
• Contact your study adviser in case you want to exceed 6 ECTS
• Not all MOOC’s can be followed for free, for more information take a look at: Access opportunities to online courses

FE Contact Form

Fill in this form to express your interest in following a MOOC for credits.

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