FAQ

A MOOC (massive open online course) is a free, but non-credited university-level distance course, open to everyone on Internet.

For more information, click on the “What is a MOOC?” page.

Yes.

A MOOC offers a realistic overview of a university-level course. It is a unique opportunity to experience distance learning and discover an online learning environment used by students and professors.

No.

The learning content of a MOOC requires no prerequisite or any specific or prior knowledge.

Registration for a MOOC is free.

The access to the e-learning site, the educational material and the online examinations are free of charge.

Participants who have completed the course and obtained the pass mark for their examinations may choose to recieve by email for a small fee a certificate of achievement issued by the Université Laval.

A normal university semester lasts 15 weeks. A MOOC is usually shorter.

The duration of a MOOC can vary and is specified in the “Course Description” page.

The workload may vary from one MOOC to another, as specified on the “Course Description” page.

The estimate takes into account the complete achievement of the planned course activities (ex.: readings, watching videos and multimedia presentations, participating in discussion forum, and completing the examinations).

Yes.

Once you have registered for a MOOC and it has been activated, you can access the course site at any given time. The pedagogical material and formula used are designed so as to allow you to use an individual, self-learning approach. You can therefore manage your study time and training process on your own.

In order to spread out the workload all through the duration of the MOOC, it is strongly suggested to respect the proposed schedule, located in the section entitled: “Modules” of the course site.

Though assessments are not mandatory in this MOOC, deadlines must be respected if you choose to do them. No extension will be provided for any reason whatsoever. Please note that you must obtain a passing grade in order to get your certificate of achievement.

Upon request, participants having successfully completed the MOOC with a passing grade will be able to receive at a low cost an online version of an official Université Laval certificate of achievement.

No.

A MOOC is not a credited course and cannot be acknowledged as an equivalence for any academic process (credited courses, training activity substitution, program adjustment, pre-requisite course exemption).

However, the MOOC certificate of achievement could, as a proof of success, be part of a file presented for a request of acknowledgement of extra-curricular activities at Université Laval. To learn more, please visit: Politique reconnaissance des acquis scolaires et extrascolaires de l'Université Laval  or contact us at reconnaissanceacquis@reg.ulaval.ca.

The material available on the website may be viewed and printed for your personal use and non-commercial purposes without written approval, provided the following copyright notice appears: ©Université Laval 2024.

However, it is forbidden to:

• Sell or rent the material to anyone
• Use the material for commercial purposes
• Use the material in a way to cause prejudice to Université Laval, its employees and students
• Communicate the material to unauthorized third parties
• Share the material freely on the Internet

Anyone wishing to reproduce, download, store, translate, adapt, publish or present in public texts, sounds or images, in any means whatsoever, or to forward by telecommunications any document, data or other content originating from an online course must obtain prior approval from Université Laval. On the MOOC website, only audio files in MP3 format and PDF documents may be downloaded.

Moreover, when using these works, in the broad sense of the term, no one may remove the name of Université Laval from them or modify the content by adding, deleting or using other means, without adversely affecting Université Laval’s moral rights.

Yes.

Participants have access to the content of the learning site until one year after the end of the MOOC.

No.

You have free access to the course site and may go through the course material of interest to you without having to complete the learning activities.

However, to obtain the certificate of achievement, you must first complete the online examinations, and second obtain the pass mark determined for the course. Then you may choose to receive for a small fee your certificate of achievement.

Multiple choice questions automatically corrected are the most frequently used type of tests for assessment. Other methods of assessment may be used to evaluate participant learning.

The evaluation criteria of your MOOC are specified in the ''Evaluations and results'' section of the course site.

No.

The day and time deadlines to complete the evaluations are definitive. Under no circumstances will any extension be granted.

The passing grade of a MOOC can be different from one MOOC to another.

Please visit the section « Assessments and results » of the course website for more information on the assessments and passing grades of each MOOC.

Upon completing and submitting an examination, you can have instant access to your result for that examination. Upon the end of the given time period to do the examination, you will have access to a wide variety of information on your examination (i.e. your result for each question, the answers you have provided etc.).

After finishing and submitting an examination, you can immediately see your final grade. At the end of the examination period allowed to complete the examinations, you can get more information about your grade (e.g., your grade for each question, your answers, etc.).

No.

Final grades are definitive. No application for review will be accepted.

The discussion forum allows participants to interact with each other and the teacher. Sub-forums are created in order to guide the reader. It is strongly suggested that you write your message in the appropriate sub-forum so that everyone can easily refer to it. For example, if all questions regarding the final exam are in the “Final exam” sub-forum, it is much easier to navigate because all the questions on one same subject are found in one place.

The Honour Code to which you adhere by registering for a MOOC mentions the ways in which participants are encouraged to contribute.

Yes.

The teacher and the team responsible for supervising the participants read all the messages written in the forum and attempt to answer them as soon as possible. However, considering the large number of messages, the support team cannot reply to all messages individually.

We advise you to address your question to all the participants. Chances are that another MOOC participant will be able to answer.

Introduce yourself in the forum, "Presentation of participants”. If a participant in the course has interests similar to yours, you can communicate together through the forum.

Contact the teacher and his or her team.

They will determine if the message is in violation and they will follow up appropriately, if necessary.