Since autumn 2015, the University of Basel has been offering online courses in various subject areas, with videos, exercises, discussions and much more.

• Courses are free and open both to University of Basel members and the general public
• English is the language of instruction
• Depending on the course, each course lasts between four and six weeks and requires two to six hours of study per week
• Course participants can choose to receive certificates of participation
• The courses are also optimized for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets

Our partner for developing the courses is FutureLearn, an international platform based in the UK that has already offered online courses to more than two million participants from over 60 internationally renowned universities and research institutions.

Course start date: 12 April 2021
Course length: 5 weeks
Hours of study per week: 4 hours

Nonprofit organizations operate globally in many areas. They address societal issues in fields like health, culture and arts, environment, education and research. With their work, they make a significant contribution to sustainable social and ecological development. This course provides you with the economic tools and knowledge that are needed to become a successful social entrepreneur. It gives you an introduction to the topics that need to be addressed in order to make informed decisions in nonprofits, and it asks to look upon your own practice in order to critically reflect your learnings.

(This course was first published in 2018 and had a re-run in 2020.)

Course start date: 15 March 2021
Course length: 6 weeks
Hours of study per week: 4

As we make sense of what we read, we construe meaning using the cultural technique of interpretation. Only rarely do we actually reflect this process: what are the means that help us understand literary texts? How does interpretation work? And how has our increasing use of electronic devices changed the way we read and interpret literature?

This free online course addresses these questions as it introduces you to a variety of ways of interpreting literary texts. We will look into time-tested methods such as close reading and will also address more recent practices such as computer-based distant reading.

(This course was first published in 2016 and had re-runs in 2017 and 2018.)

Course start date: 22 February 2021
Course length: 6 weeks
Hours of study per week: 5 hours

In today’s world, we face many complex societal challenges. Projects addressing these challenges often involve actors and stakeholders from different fields and disciplines bringing together their own perspectives or knowledge on a topic. Accordingly, collaborative transdisciplinary approaches are crucial for the success of a project. In this course, you’ll explore how to meet the challenges of conducting effective transdisciplinary research. You’ll gain insights into a variety of case studies from different fields as you learn from the experiences of peers and experts.

(This course was first published in March 2020.)

Course start date: 19 October 2020
Course length: 3 weeks
Hours of study per week: 4 hours

The human immune system is designed to fight infection, but sometimes this defence mechanism provokes allergic disorders. On this course, you will explore the similarities and differences of infections and allergies, and understand the intricacies of the immune system. You will address the events, mishaps, and discoveries that have led to a common understanding of allergies today. You will explore different types of allergies, like food allergies and hayfever, as well as allergy symptoms, methods of diagnosis, and different allergy treatments with the support of case studies.

(This course was first published in 2019 and had a re-run in early 2020.)

Course start date: 17 Feb 2020
Course length: 8 weeks
Hours of study per week: 4 hours

Statistical shape models are one of the most important technologies in computer vision and medical image analysis. With this technology, the computer learns the characteristic shape variations of an object or organ. The model resulting from this analysis may then be used in implant design, image analysis, surgery planning and many other fields.

In this free online course, you will get insights from mathematics, statistics and machine learning, in order to address practical problems, as well as a theoretical and practical introduction to the open source software Scalismo.

Requirements: This course is intended for students and professionals with a Bachelor in computer science, medical imaging professionals and biological anthropologists, who are interested in top-notch research, scientific insights and a useful application.

Course start date: 30 September 2019
Course length: 6 weeks 
Hours of study per week: 4

In times of economic uncertainty and increasing migration within Europe, the relationship between Switzerland and the European Union (EU) is severely tested. This course offers a legal and political look at the position of Switzerland in Europe and its challenges as a non-Member State of the EU. We will put a particular focus on much debated and sometimes misunderstood issues such as corporate taxation, banking secrecy and the debate about curbing immigration. With this in mind, you will be able to reflect on Switzerland, the EU and regional integration on a differentiated basis.

• University of Basel students can participate in the online courses as part of their degree.
• The online courses offer a new teaching format that is integrated into the University of Basel's existing degree programs.
• For University of Basel students, the online courses can be complemented by courses requiring attendance (e.g. introductory seminars, projects, exercises, internships, seminars or lectures) and specific mentoring opportunities.
• Classes offering online courses are announced and listed in the course directory.
• To earn credit points, University of Basel students must complete an exam at the university.
   

A steering committee oversees the planning of online course projects during the pilot phase:

Prof. Dr. Thomas Grob
Vice Rector Teaching & Development (Chair)

Christoph Tschumi
Administrative Director

Prof. Dr. Philipp Schweighauser
Department of English

Natalie Hofmann
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute

Dr. Gudrun Bachmann
Teaching Technology/LearnTechNet

Dr. Thomas Lehmann
New Media Center