Uned
Encyclopedia
The Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED), is the only state-run Spanish
distance-learning
university, with headquarters in Madrid
, Spain
. It the largest university in Spain with more than 180,000 students.
to provide quality higher and continuing education opportunities to all through a distance education system. It awards the same qualifications as other Spanish universities
, and has the same entry requirements
. This implies that it is not 'Open': Even if the study is at distance, admissions are as strict as for 'on-site' education, and exams are supervised like in the rest of Spanish universities. However, some special features of UNED make it different from most other Spanish universities: It is nationwide in scope, applies the most advanced teaching technologies, and has a wide social influence with radio and TV programming.
, Berlin
, Bern, Brussels
, Buenos Aires
, Caracas
, Lima
, London
, Malabo
, México D.F., Paris
and São Paulo
.
The University maintains an excellent standard of higher education: in the last 30 years, it has awarded less than 2,000 PhD
degrees.
Its international prestige is also illustrated by the fact that, since 1997, UNED has held the UNESCO
chair in Distance Education which promotes research, development and documentation in the field of distance education.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
distance-learning
Distance education
Distance education or distance learning is a field of education that focuses on teaching methods and technology with the aim of delivering teaching, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional educational setting such as a classroom...
university, with headquarters in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. It the largest university in Spain with more than 180,000 students.
Origins and methodology
UNED was founded in 1972 following the idea of the UK's Open UniversityOpen University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
to provide quality higher and continuing education opportunities to all through a distance education system. It awards the same qualifications as other Spanish universities
Spanish universities
There are 73 universities in Spain, most of which are supported by state funding. 23 Spanish universities are private, of which 7 are affiliated with the Catholic Church.Former degrees were:*Licenciatura or ingeniería, can last four or five years....
, and has the same entry requirements
Selectividad
Selectividad is the popular name given to the Spanish University Access Tests , a non-compulsory exam taken by students after secondary school, necessary to go into University...
. This implies that it is not 'Open': Even if the study is at distance, admissions are as strict as for 'on-site' education, and exams are supervised like in the rest of Spanish universities. However, some special features of UNED make it different from most other Spanish universities: It is nationwide in scope, applies the most advanced teaching technologies, and has a wide social influence with radio and TV programming.
International presence
UNED’s mission is to be present as a centre of excellence throughout the world. UNED currently has 60 study centres in Spain and 20 abroad, thanks to the cooperation of local institutions. These centres provide face-to-face sessions with professors once a week. The international centres can be found in BataBata, Equatorial Guinea
Bata is a port city in the Litoral Province of Equatorial Guinea. With a 2005 estimated population of 173,046, it is the largest city in Equatorial Guinea. It lies on the Atlantic Ocean coast of Río Muni....
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Bern, Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
, Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Malabo
Malabo
Malabo is the capital of Equatorial Guinea, located on the northern coast of Bioko Island on the rim of a sunken volcano....
, México D.F., Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
.
Advantages
A number of factors have been cited to justify the public prestige of UNED:- Unlike in other distance learning institutions, all of UNED exams are supervised
- Exams must encompass the entirety of the program
- Students are objectively graded based on a strictly uniform test
- Distance learning requires additional self-teaching effort and discipline, highly regarded by employers
- Students from UNED are more likely to continue their education and Research after graduation day, applying the self-teaching methodologies learned during their studies
The University maintains an excellent standard of higher education: in the last 30 years, it has awarded less than 2,000 PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
degrees.
Its international prestige is also illustrated by the fact that, since 1997, UNED has held the UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
chair in Distance Education which promotes research, development and documentation in the field of distance education.