About COU

About Commonwealth Open University

COU provides adult continuing education. It was developed to meet the needs of adults by offering non-resident degree and other programs on an international basis. The programs have been organized and developed using as a starting point the "off-campus" external degree concept tried and tested by the various "universities without walls".

There are no entry requirements for undergraduate courses. You decide how long you will take to complete your course work. While you are studying, a teacher will be available to offer help, answer questions, and guide you through the learning process, but students are free to choose their own study pace.

As an institution of distance learning, COU has been able to assemble a faculty of recognized experts from throughout the global marketplace. Our faculty consists of university professors, business executives, consultants, and other specialists. Though these instructors vary in subject matter expertise, they share important attributes. All of them are actively practicing what they teach, and they are skilled in imparting their knowledge through distance learning channels and technology.

COU is committed to providing equal opportunities for study. We welcome applications from English speaking people of all nationalities and from any background, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, occupation, marital status, sensory or physical disability, religious or other beliefs.

Commonwealth Open University is an international institution registered and established in the British Virgin Islands (U.K.), which has many students all over the world. COU educational programs are acknowledged as the foremost, with an excellent academic reputation. COU staff and lecturers are very committed to quality in services.

Our graduates have had remarkable success in having their degrees accepted. Although we can not guarantee that a COU degree will be accepted, we will gladly supply information to potential or current employers or institutions.


COU is a member of the Council for Education in the Commonwealth, a parliament based NGO founded nearly 40 years ago. Its purpose is to create an informed public opinion on the salient issues concerning education and training in the Commonwealth and to identify appropriate ways in which Britain and the European Union can best contribute to their development. The CEC is run by its honorary officers with the help of an elected committee, on which the Commonwealth Secretariat has observer status.



This web site is referenced by the International Center for Scientific Research. CIRS.NET is the first and the most important scientific portal.


COU collaborates with Wiener School for Advanced Studies to support research and innovation as well as to deploy infrastructure technology and academic resources.



"What then is a Virtual University? A virtual university emulates a physical university, adding the global interactive advantage of computers in bridging time and space. It enables teaching and learning to occur anytime/anywhere. It has built in mechanisms for assessment and accountability.

Virtual University programs may be housed within a conventional university, it can result from a consortium of universities such as the Western Governor's University, or it can originate in a teaching institution where no students are physically present, such as the Commonwealth Open University."

From the Editors
ED-Education at a Distance. The United States Distance Learning Association.
January 1997
Volume 11#1


"If you are not sure exactly what you want to study, the Commonwealth Open University based in British Virgin Islands offers BS, BA, MA, MS, MBA, and even PhD programs in a wide range of subject areas. Simply supply them with your education and work experience history and they will place you in a curriculum that is tailored specifically for you."

Education on the Internet
PC Journal
December 1997


"The page of Commonwealth Open University was selected as a Links2Go Key Resource in the Distance Learning topic. Each quarter, Links2Go samples millions of web pages to determine which pages are most heavily cited by web pages authors.

The Key Resource award is based on an analysis of millions of web pages. Any group or organization who conducts a similar analysis will arrive at similar conclusions. When Links2Go says your page is a Key Resource, we mean that your page is one of the most relevant pages related to a particular topic on the web today, using an objective statistical measure applied to an extremely large data set."

Links2Go Awards
May 1999


"I found COU to be very professional and responsive to student needs to ensure that the student made progress. Your guidance and professional assistance is superior. The caring attention from COU made the difference in my growth and experiences. The way in which I had been furnished guidance is the way all learning institutions should operate. I had successfully completed my doctorate and I have you and COU to thank. I highly endorse Commonwealth Open University to any person desiring to complete the dream for their educational goals."

Carl F. Hartig, Ph.D., CBM, CIA
January 2003


"I would like to thank you for all your support, assistance, and efficiency over the last three years. It has been a pleasure communicating with you. I will not hesitate to recommend the University to friends and colleagues looking to do distance learning"

Helen Featherby, M.Sc.
September 2004


"I continue to be impressed with the focus of the course assignments and the efficient administration that COU provides. I expect to complete the MSc in Economics course work this June and I plan on continuing my educational pursuits."

Jeffrey Riggs, Ph.D.
May 2005


"I would like to compliment the Commonwealth Open University for the good planning of the course. The assignments helped the students to gain a solid understanding of the subject and challenged the students to form their own ideas and opinions. I would certainly recommend the COU to anyone who is thinking about taking a distance learning degree programme."

Adele O'Shea, M.A.
August 2006


"I personally found the course very useful and I am so proud to have pursued this course through COU. I know a number of UNICEF staff have undertaken their studies through COU and have always been successful in their careers."

Hamida R. Laseko, M.A.
April 2007

Corporate officers

R.A. Carbajales, Ph.D.
CEO

M.J. Rossi, Ph.D.
Director of Education

M.L. Rua, M.A.
Admissions & Operations

D. Williams, M.Sc.
Student Services

Visiting professors

M.K. Rabbani Bhuiyan, Ph.D. S.A. Chowdhury, Ph.D.
A. Triguero Egea, Ph.D. F. Greenwood, Ph.D.
J.W. Harris, M.Sc. C. Siew Hun, M.B.A.
K.A. Iannone, M.Sc. M. Aslam Khan, M.Sc.
R.H. Whalley, M.Sc. J.E. Mankowsky, M.S.W., L.C.S.W.
E.A. Mathews, J.D. G. Nambiar, LL.B.(Hons)
B. Nelson, Ph.D. D. Newling, M.Sc.
U. Paz, B.A.(Hons) C.J. Ross, Ph.D.
A. Sivera, Ph.D. K. Subramanian, Ph.D.
A. Kumar, Ph.D. K.S. Chandrasekar, Ph.D.
A.H. Verster, Ph.D. S.K. Dash, Ph.D.
D. Iornem, Ph.D. P.A. Agashua, Ph.D.
J. Roberts, Ph.D. N.C. Kumarasinghe, Ph.D.

Honorary members of the faculty

Mohammed Abubakar, Raphael Adebayo, Iyorchia Ayu, Alejandro Berlin, Theodore A. Burger, Carlos Campoy, Henry D.R. Carrol, Lavelda Davis, Victor E. Effiom, Luis Fernandez, Michael Festa, Walter R. Frisby, Jose M. Gay, Jose M. Gallego, Joseph H. Gelberman, Franklin D. Hall, Scott F. Hall, Jusuf Hariman, Syed A. Hassan, Liezl Herholdt, Marius D. Herholdt, Kassim M. Khamis, Sum-Wah Lam, Wooi B. Lee, Daniel Lemmer, Juan E. Llaneza, Julia Loytved, Paul W. Miller, Hadi Moghadasi, Frederick M. Monderson, Andy Ng Yoke Beng, Janice A. Nielsen, Johan Potgieter, K.L. Michael Prendergast JR, Naomi S. Prendergast, Roger Ross, Stefanus S. Saaiman, Michael L. Siebers, Lorraine H. Teller, Javier Teres, Mario Teres, Felix Tomillo, Pierre J.M. van Niekerk, Govert Westerveld, John H. Wilkinson.



Affiliated organizations

The Professional Institute of Marketing and Business Studies

Institucion de Nuevas Profesiones

Commonwealth Training Consultants

The National Institute of Business Administration and Information Science

Advance Academy Resources Sdn Bhd

All Faiths Seminary International

New Idea Management Consultants

Commonwealth Open University
Headquarters:
Palm Chambers
P.O.Box 119
Road Town, Tortola
British Virgin Islands (U.K.)
Fax/Voice: 1-305-675-3739
bvi@off-campus.org


International Information Centre
 cou@commopu.org


Admissions & Operations
admissions@off-campus.org


Student Services
services@off-campus.org


Marquis d'Olhonce Institute
olhonce@off-campus.org


Yacht Club
commodore@off-campus.org


While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, this information is subject to later alteration or amendment in the light of policy changes or other constraints. The University does not intend by publication of this information to create any contractual or other legal relation with applicants, registered students, their advisers or any other person.

Commonwealth Open University has no relation with The Open University.