A recent visit to China by TRU administrators resulted in Thompson Rivers University signing an agreement with the world’s largest university.

TRU Open Learning and The Open University of China have agreed to establish a joint centre at OUC in Beijing to collaborate on a broad range of academic activities including joint research and Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition training (PLAR).

The Open University of China is the world’s largest University with 2,766,500 active students.

Beginning in early 2011, TRU Open Learning will begin training OUC academic staff in the philosophy, practice, and application of PLAR. Delegations from China will attend training sessions at the BC Centre for Open Learning facilities in Kamloops as well as at TRU Open Learning’s Vancouver Centre, which recently opened at 1030 West Georgia in Vancouver.

“We are confident that such friendly cooperation will promote harmonious relations and advance global understanding” – Dr. Yang Zhijian, President of the Open University of China

“In 2009 TRU Open Learning founded the Prior Learning International Research Centre (PLIRC) as an extension of the work that we have been doing in the application of PLAR” said Judith Murray, Vice President TRU Open Learning. “Signing this agreement to train the world’s largest university on the application of PLAR within their institution speaks to the fact that we have become recognized as a world leader in Prior Learning Assessment.”

According to TRU’s Director of PLAR, “Having the opportunity to assist in developing a “made in China” PLAR system for the Open University of China is a great one for TRU – OL.” Dr. Christine Wihak looks forward to the collaboration with her OUC colleagues and anticipated that this relationship will also generate new research initiatives in association with PLIRC.

“We are confident that such friendly cooperation will promote harmonious relations and advance global understanding,” said Dr. Yang Zhijian, President of the Open University of China.

The Open University of China (OUC), founded in February 1979, as the Central China Radio and Television University is responsible for providing open and distance education to the people of China. OUC carries out its open and distance educational activities using an integration of three networks, including a satellite TV network, a computer network, and the network of open universities’ full-time and part-time faculty in China.

Thompson Rivers University is one of the most comprehensive public universities in Canada. Established in 1970, TRU is a teaching-focused institution offering over 100 undergraduate and graduate-level degree and post-baccalaureate options, and more than 75 professional diplomas, certificates, trades, apprenticeship and university preparation programs.