University of the People

The University of the People (UoPeople) is a private, nonprofit, distance education university based in California, USA. It was founded by Shai Reshef in 2009 with the stated aim of increasing global access to higher education through a tuition-free online model. UoPeople is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission and by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission.

University of the People

Type	Private online university
Established	February 2009; 16 years ago (February 2009)
Accreditation	WASC Senior College and University Commission, [1] DEAC[2][3]
President	Shai Reshef
Administrative staff	57[4]
Students	28,992[5]
Location	Pasadena , California , United States
Website	uopeople.edu

The University has a very limited number of bachelor's, master's, and certification programs. Undergraduate offerings are concentrated in three fields: Business Administration, Computer Science, and Health Science.^[6] Although UoPeople describes itself as "tuition-free", it does charge fees for applications and course assessments.^[7]

History

University of the People President Shai Reshef and Provost Emeritus David Cohen

Shai Reshef started the University of the People in January 2009. He was inspired by his previous attempt at building an online University in the Netherlands in the early 2000s and his experience at Cramster. The intent of the University of the People was to provide a free online alternative for students who would not be able to afford tuition at traditional institutions.^[8] The university has no campus due to its online distance learning nature; it uses a shared office in Pasadena, California as an office of admission.^[9][10]

The first UoPeople students began classes in September 2009, studying for associate and bachelor's degrees in business administration and computer science.^{[citation needed]}

In 2016, the university began offering an online Master of Business Administration (MBA).^[11]

In 2017, the University of Edinburgh (UE) partnered with the school so that health science graduates of UoPeople could complete a bachelor's at UE.^[12]

In 2018, the university announced the new online Master of Education (M.Ed) in Advanced Teaching in collaboration with the International Baccalaureate.^[13] This new program started taking in students in 2019. IB started to offer 80 scholarships for eligible M.Ed. students in 2020.^[14]

UoPeople in Arabic, announced in the World Economic Forum^[15] in April 2019, launched in September 2020; it uses a different website in Arabic and does not require proof of English knowledge.^[16][17]

Accreditation

In February 2012, the Gates Foundation awarded the University of the People a grant of $613,282 for the purpose of helping the university earn national accreditation.^[18] Two years later, the university was accredited for degree-granting programs through the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC).^[2][3]

University of the People received "candidate" status in June 2021 with WASC Senior College and University Commission.^[19] In late February 2025, University of the People received "Accredited" status.^[20]

Organization

University of the People Education Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary^[21] which provides support services to the institution.^[22] The subsidiary is registered with the Israeli Corporations Authority^[23] and maintains an office in Tel Aviv, Israel.^[24]

Fees

According to the University of the People, the university charges no tuition fees but students must pay administrative fees to cover all course assessments. The listed estimate is $3,260 for an associate's degree (60 credits) and $6,460 for a bachelor's degree (120 credits). These estimates are the sum of a $60 application fee and a $160 fee for each course assessment. Fee estimates range from $5,260 to $5,460 for their three master's programs. ^[25]

The university does not participate in federal financial aid programs,^[26] but it does offer some scholarships.^{[27][28][29] [30]}