Japan Brings College Courses To Mobile Phones

by Heather McLaughlin

Higher learning just got more convenient in Japan. Cyber University, Japan’s only Cyber University, is now bringing college classes to students with mobile phones in the country.

Cyber University, which opened in April with government approval to give bachelor’s degrees, has 1,850 students.

The virtual campus is 71 percent owned by Softbank Corp., a major Japanese mobile carrier, which also has broadband operations and offers online gaming, shopping and electronic stock trading services.

The cell phone lectures may be expanded to other courses but for now will be for the pyramids course, according to Cyber University, which offers about 100 courses, including ancient Chinese culture, online journalism and English literature.

These classes are available free of charge, but viewers will be charged for airtime. Currently these classes can be accessed only through the carrier Softbank. The school is hoping to add more carriers over time.

What are you’re thoughts on getting an education with your mobile phone? Is it something you’d be interested in?