Mapúa University Partners with Coursera and Rises to Top 6% of Universities in the World

Mapúa University, founded in 1925 and located in Manila, Philippines, is the premier engineering and technological school of the Philippines. The university is committed to graduating students who can compete in the global arena by offering a curriculum that prepares students through industry-specific learning for in-demand jobs. Mapúa also wanted to provide faculty with ongoing opportunities to advance their skills and pursue more challenging research and innovation.

In pre-pandemic 2019, Mapúa partnered with Coursera to prepare students for what they perceived to be a seismic shift in education and employer demands, giving their students the skills and knowledge to make them more competitive in a global economy. Post-pandemic, Coursera is now deeply embedded across the curriculum and offered to students as for-credit learning. The content enables students to gain valuable skills and earn school credits through coursework created by other world-class universities and industry leaders, improving student employability outcomes. As Coursera supports curriculum development, faculty can now focus more on research and publishing while also upskilling within their disciplines.

Challenge

Mapúa leadership outlined a primary goal to become a top global university, improving its ranking on the world stage. As part of this mission, they wanted to offer life-long learning, faculty upskilling and research opportunities, and improve graduate employability. They saw the need for a digital transformation supported by a proven partner that could enable hybrid and online learning, alongside traditional, in-person learning.

Mapúa sought a partner to support the high standards of its curriculum, which aligns with the standards of the Washington Accord – an international agreement providing mutual recognition among accredited engineering degree programs.

At the same time, the breadth of courses had to support cutting-edge, industry-specific skills development. “We were looking to attain world-class university status,” says Dr. Reynaldo B. Vea, iPeople Chairman and CEO and President of Mapúa University. “This means we needed a learning partner that brought global expertise to many areas, including faculty development, industry-specific preparation, research, and more.”

Supported by its partnership with Coursera, Mapúa University is a high performer in teaching, research, and industry-specific coursework with a global perspective. Mapúa’s estimates now show that it ranks among the global top six percent of universities in the world and it has broken into the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings for 2023. Notably, Mapúa is only one of four universities in the Philippines to achieve World University Rankings from THE.

As a result of these accolades, Mapúa enrollments are up, graduate employability rates are on the rise, and the university commands a space on the international stage for higher education.

With 80 percent of the Mapúa curriculum supported by Coursera content, faculty has more time to dedicate to research. According to THE World University Rankings, Mapúa ranks second among Philippine universities in the area of research.

Moving forward

Mapúa wants to deepen student skills within the Philippines by expanding online academic options while broadening Coursera access to all students, faculty, and alumni. There are also plans to implement Coursera SkillSets and role-based learning.

With its digital transformation, Mapúa aims to become the first university in the Philippines to author projects and assessments on Coursera.

“Through our teams’ outcomes-based approach, commitment, and support by our partnership with Coursera, Mapúa University has broken into the Times Higher Education (THE), World University Rankings for 2023,” says Dr. Vea. “As we achieve these critical milestones, we’re eager to further explore the full potential of our partnership with Coursera.”