Independent Study

Many of our students take advantage of our our network of learning centres, where you can take advantage of such services as classroom instruction and in-person tutoring. But if such a centre is not yet available in your area, or if you are simply more interested in studying on your own, then guided independent study may be right for you.

Courses at New World University are built to combine the advantages of independent study but with access to a faculty tutor still available to assist you in understanding the material. Here is a typical sequence of events for each course:

  1. You will enrol in one course at a time. When you join our community and select a programme, you will receive a list of compulsory and optional courses so that you know how to proceed.
  2. On enrolment in each course, you will receive a list of online study materials that will help you learn that course. These materials will be freely available online, you will not need to pay extra for them.
  3. You will study the materials for as much or as little time as you need to become confident that you have learnt them. Self assessments are included to help you detemine whether or not you are ready.
  4. Should you require clarification, or if you are having difficulty with any of the material, you simply visit the discussion forum. On this forum, you can search for previous similar questions that might answer yours, or you can ask a new question and get answers from fellow students and from faculty tutors.
  5. When you feel confident about the material, you schedule an examination. This examination will be proctored. If New World University does not have a proctor available in your area, you can nominate one who is an educator or is from another trusted profession.
  6. Your results are reported back to you within a few days’ time. Assuming you have passed the examination, you have earned credit for that course and can move on to the next one.

One Course at a Time

Students almost always enrol in just one course at a time. This allows you to achieve all of the following:

  • You can focus intensively on one topic at a time rather than juggle many at once.
  • You can maintain a balance among work, life, and your studies.
  • You can complete a degree program in less time because you never spend longer on a course than necessary.

Discussion Forum

While most of our students are independently motivated, that doesn’t mean that there’s no room for working with other people. We’ve set up a community discussion board online where students and faculty tutors can help one another with courses they’re studying, or talk about any other issues that are important to them.

The goal is to build a community of learning not just in name, but where people really take an interest in one another’s success. Some examples:

  • People might find interesting articles or other resources that add an additional perspective on a particular course, and post it to the community discussion board so that others can consider it as well.
  • People might comment on the relevance of current events to the materials they are studying.
  • People might offer compliments about something New World University is doing well, or suggestions about something New World University could do better.
  • People might post announcements about major events in their lives, such as the birth or adoption of a child, or a new level of commitment in a personal relationship, or a professional accomplishment.

These are only examples. There’s a “miscellaneous” category so that nothing that’s disrespectful is out of bounds.

To access the discussion board, one must first join New World University, but that’s a simple process.