The University of London Worldwide (previously called the University of London International Academy) is the central academic body that manages external study programmes within the federal University of London. All courses are branded as simply "University of London", having previously been "University of London International Programmes" and earlier "University of London External Programmes". It claims to be the world's oldest distance and flexible learning body, established under the University of London's royal charter of 1858, although academics have disputed whether it offered distance learning at that time.
Several member institutions of the University of London offer degrees through the programme, including Birkbeck, Goldsmiths, King's College London, London School of Economics, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Queen Mary, Royal Holloway, Royal Veterinary College, School of Oriental and African Studies and University College London.
The system offers courses of study for undergraduate and postgraduate diplomas and degrees to more than 50,000 students around the world."About Us", University of London International Programmes Website http://www.londoninternational.ac.uk/about_us/index.shtml A designated member institution of the University of London acts as the lead institution for each course and is responsible for creating materials to allow students to study at their own pace. Examinations take place at testing centres around the world on specified dates. Hallmarks of the programme are its low cost in comparison to attendance in London, and the possibility of pursuing either full-time or part-time study. As stated in the University of London Statutes,University of London Statutes, 14 December 2005. International Programmes students are graded on the same standard as internal students to ensure a uniform credentialing process.University of London Parity Standards, Document http://www.londonexternal.ac.uk/about_us/related_docs/parity_standards.pdf A student who completes a course of study under the programme is awarded a University of London degree with a notation specifying which lead institution provided the instruction.
, there are more than 100,000 University of London distance-learning alumni across the world, which include seven Nobel laureates, numerous presidents or prime ministers, current and former leaders of the Commonwealth of Nations, government ministers and Members of Parliament, academicians and notable judges. Currently, the global community of registered students number over 50,000 students in more than 180 countries including Antarctica.
History
The institution that later became known as University College London was established in 1826 and opened in 1828 under the name "London University", although without official recognition of university status. The institution – following the Scottish model in curriculum and teaching – was non-denominational and, given the intense religious rivalries at the time, there was an outcry against the "godless" university. The issue soon boiled down to which institutions had degree-granting powers and which institutions did not. The compromise solution that emerged in 1836 was that the sole authority to conduct the examinations leading to degrees would be given to a new officially recognised entity called the "University of London", which would act as examining body for the University of London colleges, originally University College London and King's College London, and award their students University of London degrees. As Sheldon Rothblatt states, "thus arose in nearly archetypal form the famous English distinction between teaching and examining, here embodied in separate institutions." With the state giving examining powers to a separate entity, the groundwork was laid for the creation of a programme within the new university that would both administer examinations and award qualifications to students taking instruction at another institution or pursuing a course of self-directed study.
People's University and larger role
The 1858 charter of the University of London allowed students at any college, whether affiliated or not, self-taught students, students with private tutors and students taking correspondence courses to sit University of London exams on payment of the £5 fee. On this basis, the University of London has claimed to be the first university to offer distance learning degrees, although its role at that time was limited to that of an examining board. Thanapal (2015) states that "the original degree by external study of the UOL was not a form of distance education".
In 1858, a British weekly literary magazine named All the Year Round, founded and owned by Charles Dickens, coined the term "The People's University" or "The English People's University", to describe the University of London as it provided access to higher education to students from less affluent backgrounds.
Several current degree-awarding universities started as colleges presenting candidates for University of London degrees, such as Owens College which later became part of the Victoria University and eventually the University of Manchester.Harte, Negley (1986), The University of London 1836–1986, p. 106. The external system continued to expand from its London base with examinations for non-collegiate students held in Gibraltar (1867), Canada (1868), Tasmania and West Indies (1869), India (1880), Ceylon (1882), Hong Kong (1888), with 18 centres worldwide by 1899.
With the reform of the University of London from an examining board to a federal university in 1900, the existing examination system became the External System, with the newly federated colleges in London forming the Internal System (with the university taking responsibility for approving courses and teachers). Both external and internal students continued to be awarded the same University of London degrees.
The University of London examination system and the External System were instrumental in the formation of British higher education. Most English and Welsh university colleges founded between 1849 and 1949 (exceptions include Newcastle, linked with Durham from its foundation in 1871, and Swansea, part of the University of Wales from its foundation in 1920) served what was a form of "apprenticeship" through offering London degrees by external study for a period (which could vary considerably in length), before receiving authorisation to award their own degrees and becoming universities in their own right. The External System also played a significant role in establishing many Commonwealth universities under a unique scheme of "special relations".
Enrolment increased steadily in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and during the Second World War there was a further increase in enrolments from soldiers stationed abroad as well as soldiers imprisoned in German POW camps. Because the Geneva Convention (1929) stipulated that every prisoner of war, in addition to being entitled to adequate food and medical care, had the right to exchange correspondence and receive parcels, many British POWs took advantage of this opportunity and enrolled in the University of London External Programme. The soldiers were sent study materials by mail, and at specified intervals sat for proctored exams in the camps. Almost 11,000 exams were taken at 88 camps between 1940 and 1945. Though the failure rate was high, substantial numbers of soldiers earned degrees while imprisoned.
However, as more universities were established in Britain and the Commonwealth in the decades following the second world war, the demand for the external system dropped. In 1972 it was announced that the external system would stop registering students at public institutions from 1977, and in 1977 overseas registrations were also stopped, although these were reopened in 1982.Harte (1986), The University of London 1836–1986, p. 271.
In 1985–6, there were 24,500 students registered for external degrees in six main subject areas. Law was by far the biggest subject, with 75 percent of all enrollments. In 1985, there were 358 LLBs awarded to internal students; in the same year, 298 graduated with external LLBs. Reform of the external system in 1987 saw colleges contracted (either individually or, as in the case of Law, as a consortium) by the university to provide academic support for external students. This established the concept of the "lead college" on a course, and led to programme directors in the lead colleges taking on not just examinations but also the delivery of the courses and, in collaboration with academics in the colleges, the development of teaching materials
The University of London International Programmes commemorated its 150th anniversary in 2008. A specially commissioned anniversary book was produced to mark the occasion.
Research programmes and degrees With the advent of inexpensive airmail services after the war, the number of external students taking University of London courses increased dramatically. According to relevant Regulations, until 2000 University of London external students could pursue research leading to the award of Master of Philosophy (MPhil) or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) albeit the completion rate had been rather low.
Organisation and administration University of London Worldwide is led by an executive director.
Current system
The system offers courses of study for undergraduate and postgraduate diplomas and degrees to more than 50,000 students around the world. A designated constituent institution of the University of London, called the "lead college", creates materials to allow students to study at their own pace. Unlike many modern distance learning degrees that are based on coursework alone, assessment was primarily based on examinations that take place at testing centres around the world on specified dates. Since 2019, coursework and forum participation can make up a percentage of the overall assessment in addition to in-person or online examinations, depending on the degree and modules studied. Hallmarks of the programme are its low cost in comparison to attendance in London, and the possibility of pursuing either full-time or part-time study. As stated in the University of London Statutes, International Programmes students are graded on the same standard as internal students to ensure a uniform credentialing process. A student who completes a course of study under the program is awarded a University of London degree with a notation specifying which lead college provided the instruction.