Campus life will never be the same again when a novel online collaboration network goes online next month. Following a successful beta phase which saw 11,000 users register, iversity has attracted 1.6 million US dollars in funding from the European Union, the German state of Brandenburg and BMP media investors.
The network, created by a Berlin-based startup, allows both faculty members and students to make better use of the internet for teaching and studying. “This funding provides us with a sizeable launch pad. It enables us to present a world-class product this fall,” said iversity founder Jonas Liepmann.
Using iversity, lecturers can organize courses, research projects and conferences, easily and for free. In addition, it provides students with tools for interaction and collaboration which are not part of standard e-learning systems. Liepmann added: “iversity offers what I always felt was lacking during my own studies – possibilities for real student collaboration outside the classroom.”
Co-founder Hannes Klöpper said that iversity has appeared at just the right moment: “For example, in Germany, not only is the number of incoming students rising year over year, but changes in the high school system in some federal states means that two full year groups will enter universities this year. Rather than just sitting alongside each other in anonymous lectures, iversity enables students to learn from and with each other online.”
The new iversity website will go live in September, although it is possible to sign up for early access at iversity.org.