Founder & President
University of the People
Shai Reshef is the Founder & President of the University of the People, the world’s first tuition-free, online academic institution, which he established following 20 years in the international education market. From 1989 to 2005, Reshef served as Chairman of the Kidum Group, the largest for-profit educational services company based in Israel which was sold to Kaplan, Inc. in 2005. Between 2001 and 2004, while continuing as the chairman of Kidum, Reshef lived in the Netherlands where he chaired KIT eLearning, a subsidiary of Kidum, the eLearning partner of the University of Liverpool and the first online university outside of the United States. The company was sold to Laureate in 2004. In 2009, Reshef was named one of Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business,” joined the United Nations’ Global Alliance for Information and Communication Technologies and Development as a High-level Adviser, and spoke internationally at conferences including DLD: Digital, Life, Design in Munich and the World Economic Forum on the Middle East in Jordan. Reshef holds a B.A., magna cum laude, from Tel Aviv University and an M.A. from the University of Michigan in Chinese Politics.
Rahul- What were the drivers of establishing the University of the People? Please share the concept and how do you plan to sustain the university with no tuition fee?
Shai- My idea for University of the People stemmed from over 20 years in for-profit education, as well as extensive international travel. As the founder of KIT, I realized that the tools for providing accessible higher education were out there, but the price was too high. Then I began working at Cramster.com and discovered the strength of online study communities. Witnessing first-hand the power of technology to advance education, I knew there was the potential to adapt these principles to create a high-quality, low-cost and global pedagogical model—so I did with University of the People.
Quality of education is not synonymous with its cost. Applied to a tuition-free model, long distance learning has the enormous potential to make education an equalizer by providing the opportunity to those otherwise excluded. By incorporating multiple educational strategies that are virtually free—such as peer-to-peer learning, open courseware and volunteer instructors—UoPeople effectively functions on a limited budget.
Currently, students may attend UoPeople entirely free of charge. As the University expands, the sustainability model requires that nominal admission and examination processing fees ($15-$50 and $10-$100 respectively) will be levied to cover operating expenses. These fees will be adjusted on a sliding scale based on the economic situation in the student’s country of residency. Students will never be charged for applying, taking classes or accessing study materials.
Rahul- What are some of the strategic priorities for the institution and how do you see the university evolving in next 3-5 years?
Shai- In the next 3-5 years, we hope to see our first students graduate from UoPeople, equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary to create a better life, community and world. We also hope to expand our reach to serve an even greater number of students. By giving students with diverse backgrounds the opportunity to teach and learn from one another, we hope to bring the world a step closer to peace.
Rahul- You have substantial entrepreneurial experiences in for-profit corporate world. How is institution building and leadership in education domain different or similar with the for-profit world?
Shai- After 20 years in for-profit education, I decided that it’s time to give back by establishing a non-profit, tuition-free university. Nonprofits with the greatest impact are run like businesses—and that is how I’ve built UoPeople. While operating expenses are minimal and the cost to our students is nominal, UoPeople is nonetheless results oriented: we have a clear goal to democratize higher education.
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