UArizona Launches Global Campus

Officials at the University of Arizona accelerated the Global Campus expansion when international travel restrictions and visa moratoriums were put in place due to COVID-19.

The University of Arizona is launching a Global Campus across five continents in 34 countries, partnering with top universities to provide an education to international students.  

Students can study at University of Arizona locations on international university campuses or live and study in residential communities through a partnership with Global Student Accommodations, a global leader in student housing.

The launch of the new Global Campus is timely given the international travel restrictions and student visa moratoriums put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The University of Arizona Global Campus offers 10 customized degree paths to more than 200 undergraduate majors, 10 graduate certificates and 60 fully online degrees at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. In more than 130 cities in countries including China, Ireland, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, India and Japan, the Global Campus will be within reach for millions of students.

“This program is tailored to meet the access needs of international students,” said Brent White, dean of Global Campus and vice provost of global affairs at the University of Arizona. “Many cannot afford to attend college in the United States; some do not have high-speed internet required to take classes online; and nearly all are unable to travel internationally, due the COVID-19 pandemic. Global Campus addresses all of these issues.”

Seventy-three Global Campus locations in 32 different countries are a part of partner university campuses, offering a full college experience to students wherever they are. 

Another 58 Global Campus locations are in purpose-built student accommodations that offer a safe and engaging community for students to live and study. These locations are available through partnerships with Uninest, The Student Housing Company and Nexo – with residential student communities in Spain, England, Germany, Ireland, Australia, China, Japan and Dubai.

The Global Campus concept has been in development for several years. The first University of Arizona microcampus launched at Ocean University of China in 2015, and the Global Campus concept was bolstered by the increasing array of online courses and degrees offered through University of Arizona Online, available to U.S. and international students. 

“The Global Campus is a long-term effort towards meeting the United Nations’ sustainable development goal of providing accessible quality education to the world,” said University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins. “We are truly making affordable, world-class education available to global citizens around the world and, in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has never been needed more.”

Officials at the University of Arizona accelerated the Global Campus expansion to provide an immediate option for international students everywhere whose plans were disrupted by the pandemic, and who are unable to begin their studies abroad. International students can choose to transition to the U.S. later, or earn their degrees from the University of Arizona entirely from their home country.

At partner universities – which include highly-ranked universities such as Amrita University and Jindal Global University in India and Monterey Institute of Technology in Mexico – students can take a mix of University of Arizona courses online and partner courses in person­­. Students who choose on-campus classes will have access to in-person academic support, access to partner school computer labs, study areas, libraries, recreational facilities, clubs and student activities.

The University of Arizona Global Campus is accepting applications from international students for fall 2020 at everywhere.arizona.edu. Students can select from several degree path options or work with an adviser to create a customized plan.

“This rapid implementation is possible because Global Campus builds on two existing strengths: our network of microcampus locations and our top-ranked Arizona Online,” said University of Arizona Provost Liesl Folks. “We want to help students achieve their dreams of a U.S. degree, whether it is from the University of Arizona or another U.S. university.”