University appoints new Director of Open Online Courses

Wednesday, 08 July 2015

Dr Matthew Nicholls

Following a competitive process, Dr Matthew Nicholls has been appointed as Director of Open Online Courses for a period of two years with effect from 1 August 2015.  The role includes guiding the University’s involvement in the FutureLearn platform which offers free online courses and developing this activity with further innovations in online teaching. Dr Nicholls will succeed Professor Shirley Williams who, after guiding the University’s portfolio of open online courses for over two years, will be retiring at the end of July.

Since the launch of the FutureLearn platform in October 2013 Reading has offered eight distinct courses attracting over 320,000 enrolments, making Reading one of the most popular choices for learners. Additional small online courses are also being developed to offer further learning and continuing professional development opportunities in a manageable bite-size format for learners who might otherwise be unable to access Higher Education. The potential of online courses for engaging with large numbers also extends to research with courses showcasing and promoting the impact of our research.

Speaking on Dr Nicholls’ appointment, the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning), Professor Gavin Brooks said:

 "I am delighted that Matthew has been appointed to this role and I am sure that he will prove to be an inspirational and innovative Director for our open online course provision going forwards.  The University’s highly successful MOOCs and our strong partnership with FutureLearn are due in no small part to the excellent pioneering work of Shirley and the OOCs team who have engaged so enthusiastically with this exciting opportunity.  I am very grateful to Shirley for her valuable contribution to this Project and I wish her a long and fulfilling retirement.” 

On his appointment, Dr Matthew Nicholls commented:

 "I am delighted to move into this role, and will look forward to building on the excellent foundations laid by Shirley Williams. Reading now offers an outstanding set of open online courses. I have enjoyed their development and the excitement of seeing them go live and attract over 300,000 learners; I’m now looking forward very much to working with colleagues across the University to add new courses (including my own on Rome). We have a tremendous wealth of talent and knowledge here in the University, and helping to bring that to a global audience is an exciting and challenging role.’

For more information on the University’s free open online courses please visit:

http://www.reading.ac.uk/ready-to-study/study/further-learning/online-courses.aspx