Open Universiteit Nederland
Open Universiteit Nederland, which welcomed its first students in September 1984, is an independent government-funded institute for distance learning at university level. The Dutch government's purpose in founding Open Universiteit Nederland was to make higher education accessible to anyone with the necessary aptitudes and interests, regardless of formal qualifications.
Open Universiteit Nederland identifies four further aims:
To create a cost-effective form of higher education, to encourage innovation in Dutch higher education, in terms of both curriculum and teaching methods, to reduce the teacher shortage in Dutch primary and secondary schools, and to be a recognized player in (commercial) distance and e-learning training programmes and consultancy.