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No college degree? Not a problem. No high school degree? Not an issue either.
Applicants to a pioneering master’s degree program at the elite Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) can now enter graduate school without having earned a diploma.
Candidates can now take courses online and if they do well on exams, they’ll be eligible to apply to MIT’s master’s program in data, economics and development policy. The program is part of MIT’s Poverty Action Lab, which measures the effectiveness of programs meant to help the poor. The classes are meant to equip “learners with the practical skills and theoretical knowledge to tackle some of the most pressing challenges facing developing countries and the world’s poor.”
Over 8,000 students from 182 countries around the world have enrolled online, according to a report at wburg.org. Students take five online classes at no cost, and only pay for the final exam, which costs $100 to $1,000 depending on the student’s income. If students score highly on their exams, they can apply to MIT’s on-campus master’s program.
The five-courses offered are:
The Challenges of Global Poverty
Data Analysis for Social Scientists
Foundations of Development Policy: Advanced Development Economics
Designing and Running Randomized Evaluations
According to the report, MIT is still working out the details on tuition and cost of living in Cambridge, but expects it to be based on a student’s ability to pay. The first group of students is expected to arrive in 2020.
