Remote Student Exchange

Remote Student Exchange

Motivation

Remote classes can dramatically expand access to quality education for students in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), while at the same time enhancing courses with the addition of diverse, new perspectives. The COVID-19 Pandemic provides a unique opportunity to pilot a new model of open education– most courses have been transitioned online, giving US and Europe based professors the chance to easily open up their courses to students from around the world. Providing access to remote classes may also bolster opportunities for LMIC students to conduct rigorous research through greater access to the cutting-edge work being done in their field and being able to form linkages with researchers from top universities.

Activities

Remote Student Exchange (RSE) is a platform connecting students from LMICs with professors around the world to participate in remote classes free of charge. Launched in January 2021 as a collaboration between Stockholm University and CEGA, RSE currently offers access to nearly 30 courses in economics, big data, engineering, psychology and more, taught by faculty at top universities, including Harvard, Oxford, the University of California, Berkeley, University of Zurich, and the University of California, Los Angeles. Unlike other initiatives in this area, selected students are offered the option to join regular classes at these institutions as guest participants in the class.

Logistics

If you are a student from a LMIC (see eligible countries at the bottom of this website) and interested in participating, you can register for an account here and browse a list of available classes. If the class still has open slots and you fulfill the prerequisites, you can apply to participate in the course. Please be sure to detail how you meet the prerequisites in your application. You will be informed if your application was successful or not via email. If you haven’t heard back 3 days before the start of the course, you may contact us for support.

If you are a professor interested in opening existing classes to remote students from LMICs, you can register for an account here and list your classes under “My Courses.” Professors have full discretion over how they involve these students and what prerequisites they need to fulfill. The two main participation modes are “active” participation (i.e. can participate in class discussion, complete written work, and you can offer feedback), and “silent” participation (i.e. listen to lectures without participating actively). Our team is happy to help you with listing classes and reviewing applications, please contact us for support.

For more information please refer to our Frequently Asked Questions.