Student Handbook March 6, 2017 Version 0.5

Table of Contents Click on a section to view it directly. All links in this handbook will be in bold, underlined red

letters (example).

Introduction 3 1.1 What is Kiron? 3 1.2 Study Track Overview 4 1.3 How to change your study track? 5

Studying the Kiron Way 5 2.1 MOOCs and External platforms explained 6 2.2 Kiron Prep Courses explained 8 2.3 Kiron Study Planner explained 8

2.3.1 Kiron Modules 9 2.3.2 Recommended Courses 10

2.4 Double sign in and sign out 10 2.5 Registering on partner platforms 13 2.6 Register with Coursera for Refugees 14 2.7 Unsubscribing from MOOC newsletters 17 2.8 Study Plan for all 5 study tracks 18 2.9 Direct Academics 19 2.10 Use the Forum 20

How do we support our students 22 3.1 Kiron Services in focus countries 23

3.1.1 Help Desk 23 3.1.2 Forum 24 3.1.3 Welcome Sessions 24 3.1.4 Language Services 25 Required language levels 25 3.1.5 Buddy Program 27 3.1.6 Counselling Services 28 3.1.7 Mentoring in Germany 28 3.1.8 Study Centers & Regional Groups 30

3.2 Kiron Services in non-focus countries 32 3.2.1 Overall Support: Help Desk, Forum, Welcome Sessions, Language (online) 32

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3.2.2 Empower: Buddy (online) and Counselling (online) 32 3.2.3 Offline services: Regional Groups 32

Transfer Information 32 4.1 How to get credit points recognized 33 4.2 Learning Agreements vs. Memorandum of Understanding 35 4.3 List of Partner Universities 35

FAQs and Support at a Glance 37 5.1 Link to the Knowledge Base 37 5.2 All email addresses at a glance 37

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1. Introduction

Welcome to Kiron! You have completed the application process, have gone through the whole onboarding and now you are browsing around the Kiron Campus. This student handbook is designed to help guide you as you begin your Kiron journey. It will inform you about our platform, study programs, services we offer, and self-help tools. We are glad to have you onboard! Who are we and why are we doing this? Kiron Open Higher Education is an international non-profit organisation whose vision is a world in which everyone has equal chances to access and be successful in higher education. Our mission is to enable this access and successful learning for refugees through digital solutions.

1.1 What is Kiron? Kiron is not a University and Kiron does not offer Masters programs. How does it work? Kiron believes that the future of higher education is blended learning, the mixture of online and offline education. During the first part of the Kiron experience (suggested 1-2 years), you will participate in so-called Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs): high-quality courses, offered by universities such as Harvard or Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The MOOCs consist of short videos, readings, quizzes and peer reviewed assignments; they are located on our partner platforms such as Coursera or EdX. The courses you take can be either self-paced (start at any time) or live courses (fixed start dates), so you have to pay attention to the class deadlines, if there are any. There is no strict 1-2 year requirement for Kiron, students can take less or more depending on their current circumstances. Kiron is based in four focus countries: Germany, France, Jordan and Turkey but our students can start learning from everywhere in the world. The second part of the Kiron experience is the transfer process. Throughout the time you are on the Kiron Campus taking our online courses, you gather Credit Points (CP) on the Kiron Campus. When you are ready to transfer to one of our partner universities, you can complete the remaining credits for your Bachelor’s degree there, in an offline setting. Once you have been accepted at a partner university, the credits from your online courses (CP) will be analyzed and the partner university will try to figure out how many credits (ECTS) can be successfully recognized and added towards your Bachelor degree. Throughout the time that

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you are completing Kiron courses, you also have to focus on learning English and the language of the partner university where you want to transfer to. German level B2 (or even C1, depending on the university) for example will be required to enter a partner university in Germany. General Kiron Model

Kiron is not an official university - as you can see in the illustration above, we connect the universally available MOOCs with local universities to give you the chance of university-level studies for free, completed anywhere, without bureaucratic hurdles and at your own pace. For this reason, according to the government, you are not officially a student. However, we can give you a certificate of enrollment confirming your participation in Kiron and also a transcript of records, showing your courses taken at Kiron.

1.2 Study Track Overview

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At the moment, Kiron offers five study tracks (and four Departments):

1. Business & Economics (Business & Economics) 2. Computer Science (Computer Science) 3. Mechanical Engineering (Engineering) 4. Political Science (Social Sciences) 5. Social Work (Social Sciences)

As an overview of the Kiron study tracks, check out our website: Study Track Overview

1.3 How to change your study track? It is possible to change your study track online, and you can do so yourself. Log in to the Kiron Campus platform and go to Account & Settings at the top, click on the arrow and select Profile . Scroll down to Study Program, and then click on the study track you want. Make sure to click on "Update profile" at the bottom in order to save the changes.

2. Studying the Kiron Way As an introduction to familiarize you with Kiron terms, here are some abbreviations you will find in the Kiron Platform.

● MOOCs. Massive Open Online Courses which are the online classes you take in our external platforms

● ECTS: European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System is the standardized measure of higher education across the European Union and other collaborating European countries. A Bachelor degree is a total of 180 ECTS.

● Kiron CPs: Kiron Credit Points. This is a measure of workload completed, which is similar to the ECTS Credits that European universities use. ● Every Kiron CP symbolises around 25 hours of work that you have to put into your

studies. So it doesn't really matter how many courses there are in one module, but rather, what is the workload of the courses.

● Let's say one course lasts for 5 weeks and has a workload of 10 hours per week, then that would account for 50 hours in total, so 2 CP.

● Study Department. At Kiron there are four departments and five study tracks. The four departments are: Business & Economics, Computer Science, Engineering, and Social Sciences

● Kiron Campus: the online platform for students where you can find the study planner, prep courses, forum, and the rest of the student services.

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2.1 MOOCs and External platforms explained

Let’s begin with the basics: Where do the courses we offer come from? MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) and online courses are terms often used to mean the same thing at Kiron. MOOCs are hosted on platforms that offer thousands of interesting courses on various topics. We are cooperating with MOOC platforms including Coursera, EdX, Saylor Academy, FutureLearn, BeeUp, Rwaq, Openclassrooms, FUN, Sharing Perspectives Foundation, and Udacity.

For each study track, Kiron reviews hundreds of MOOCs to find the most suitable ones. MOOCs themselves will not necessarily be accepted by a university, this is where Kiron comes in. The Kiron Curriculum team has selected specific courses from all of those external platforms into your study planner because we want to make sure that you are fulfilling certain learning outcomes.

These MOOCs are then clustered into so-called 'modules', which you can find in your study planner on the Kiron Campus platform. When you open your Study Planner in the Kiron platform, you will find all courses available and specific courses recommended for you at the moment. Consider this information as the study plan for your online education. If you follow our recommendations, you will be well-prepared to apply at a partner university. That partner university is also the institution from which you can ultimately graduate with an accredited degree.

Students can apply to a partner university at any point in time. The more courses completed at Kiron, the higher the chances of getting credits recognized later on. Modules are put together in a way that they have the highest likelihood of being recognized.

● Please try to follow those that show in the Kiron Campus and go to each individual course from there.

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● Also, try to only follow those in the Kiron Campus and not those recommended by the external platforms.

The problem with taking courses outside of the study planner, is that we can't guarantee that they will be recognized when you transfer. For this reason, please concentrate on taking the courses shown in the Kiron study planner.

Kiron students should only take courses that are listed on the Kiron campus Study Planner. If a course is not offered on our platform, recognition from the partner university is very unlikely. 2.1.1 MOOCs are offered as self-paced or live courses. A live course has a fixed start date and regular live sessions, allowing for more interaction with other students and the professor. Although the sessions can often be repeated later, you should try to start on or shortly after the official start date. Also, you cannot study ahead of the scheduled sessions. This means you progress more slowly, but have a steady amount of work every week. You can also take self-paced courses at the same time. A self-paced course can be started at any time you want because you work through the given material on your own schedule. Sometimes it has a start date, but you can still start this course months after the date. You can manage your study time for this course as you want, which gives you the flexibility to work on the side as there are no weekly exams, and you can take as much time as you need. Take Breaks if needed: The great thing about Kiron is that you are studying with online courses in the beginning and have the flexibility to take breaks when needed. You have to pay attention to those live courses, but you can always take a break and resume your studies at a later point in time when you have better internet access, or more time to study for example.

Carefully consider the Kiron Campus courses you want to complete in the upcoming month. Organize the dates of the live courses and plan which self-paced courses you want to take at the same time.

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2.2 Kiron Prep Courses explained

It can be difficult to start right away with the Kiron courses in the Study Planner, especially if you haven’t taken any online courses before, or if it’s the first time learning in English. Prep courses can help you reinforce study material, help you refresh your memory on certain topics, and give you the foundations for other courses in the Study Planner. For this reason, you will be able to participate in pre-college level preparatory courses. Use the preparation courses we offer to improve your methods for academic work and learn important basics that you need to succeed in our core curriculum courses. Get to know academic research and writing, refresh your math skills or learn some basic facts about European institutions. By the time you take your first university-level courses, you will be glad to have completed these prep courses. You can always come back to the prep courses at any point in time, if you want to refresh on a topic or feel like you need some further training on a specific skill. They will not count as Kiron Credit Points, but they can help you succeed. If you take a prep course and feel that you already have those skills, you can skip them - they are not mandatory.

Prep courses are not mandatory and you do not receive CPs. They are always an option throughout your study time on the Kiron Campus. They help reinforce learning material and practice key skills before taking other courses in the Study Planner.

2.3 Kiron Study Planner explained The Kiron Study Planner can seem confusing at first, so we hope this will help clear up some of your questions.

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2.3.1 Kiron Modules

The figure above is taken from Kiron Campus Study Planner. It shows the courses found in the Software Engineering module for the Computer Science Study Track. Below the module name you can find a link to the topic-specific channel of the Student Forum as well as the amount of CPs associated with the module and your progress. In the course boxes you can find details about the course and its current status in the study planner (e.g. "In Progress"). As you can see, you can find details about each course by clicking on “Course Details” and see your progress as you work through each of these courses. Kiron modules have been developed by the Kiron Curriculum Team in an effort to accomplish certain learning outcomes. Some modules consist of different number of courses, that should all be taken to satisfy the entire Module learning outcome. We recommend that students finish entire modules before moving on to the next ones, and to go in order from top to bottom and left to right. You can of course skip around, and feel free to take more than one course at a certain time. Completing the modules is key because universities compare modules completed instead of single courses.

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2.3.2 Recommended Courses

The recommendation system at the top of the Kiron Study Planner (see image above) can help you decide which specific course to take next, based on your progress and course start dates. You are free to choose other courses from your study planner if you feel more comfortable with them, or take many at the same time. What about other recommended courses in external platforms? Please only enroll in courses available on the Kiron Campus, and specifically the recommended courses above the modules in your Study Planner. The courses on the Kiron Campus have passed a strict selection process in order to guarantee that the content resembles the study plan of partner universities and are therefore most likely to be recognized. You will be recommended other courses on external platforms such as Coursera or EdX but please stick to your study planner. We recommend you unsubscribe from all newsletters sent by the MOOC platforms (see section 2.7)

Whether you stick with our course recommendations or follow your own, you should only take courses that are listed on Kiron campus. If a course is not offered on our platform, recognition from the partner university is very unlikely. MOOC platforms often offer course recommendations, but we advise that you ignore them and just stick to the Study Planner.

2.4 Double sign in and sign out What does this mean? When you take a course as a Kiron student you need to enroll two times: in the Kiron Campus and on the external platform. Once you complete the course, you also need to sign out on both platforms again: once on the external platform and remember to mark the course as complete in the Kiron Campus as well.

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Follow these steps:

1. Please always start by going to your Study Planner in the Kiron Campus.

2. Select a course and click on “course details”.

3. Click on "Enroll Now”.

4. You will be redirected to an external platform such as Coursera, EdX or Saylor. Please

login with your Kiron student email address (@students.kiron.ngo) at all times and complete the registration process.

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5. The course will now appear in your Kiron Study Planner under the "In Progress" tab, so you can always go there to continue working on the course. Continue to work on the course until you have finished it.

6. Once you have completed the course in the external platform, PLEASE remember to go

back to the Kiron Campus and mark the course as "Finished!". Once this happens, a new tab will open asking you to complete a survey.

7. The course will appear under the "Completed" Courses in the Kiron Campus.

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This process makes sure that both Kiron and the MOOC platform know you’re taking the course (double sign-in) , and both know when you have completed the course (double sign-out) . If you accidentally mark a course as complete and don’t intend on completing it, please email student-support@kiron.ngo and let them know so they can erase the course as “complete” for you. It is important that you mark those courses as complete in the Kiron Campus so that we can keep track of your progress.

Make sure to successfully follow the double-sign in and double-sign out procedure when taking courses. Remember to always sign into external platforms with your Kiron student email address @students.kiron.ngo at all times.

2.5 Registering on partner platforms When you completed the onboarding, the video (section 3) walked you through the registration process on some of our partner platforms: Coursera, EdX, Saylor, Future Learn, Bee Up, and Udacity. Follow the steps of registering on the partner platforms as shown in the videos in the following ones: 3.1 Coursera for refugees 3.2 EdX 3.3. Saylor For the other ones, make sure to always register with your Kiron Student email address (@students.kiron.ngo) and complete your respective profiles with the right information. You can always consult to Student Forum for questions, or email (student-support@kiron.ngo).

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All courses that you take through Kiron are free for you, and you should never pay for a course. But not all courses offer free certificates. Currently, we can only give you free certificates on the Coursera platform with the "Coursera for refugees" program. Please make sure to sign in with your Kiron student email address and accept the invitation. In order to get the free courses offered by Kiron on the other online platforms, you have to follow these steps: 1. You have to log in to your Study Planner in the Kiron Campus and click on "Take Course" and then "Go to Course" where you can see the external online platform. 2. Sign in with your Kiron email address, which you find in Campus in 'Account and Profile'. 3. When you are asked, you have to choose the options "audit course for free" or "no certificate".

Make sure to successfully register to the partner platforms with your Kiron student email address @students.kiron.ngo at all times. Never pay for a course, all courses are FREE but we only offer free certificates for Coursera courses. If you are asked to pay make sure to “audit” or choose “no certificate” option.

2.6 Register with Coursera for Refugees Coursera recently launched the program “Coursera for Refugees“, making it easier for you to get official certificates for free. This means you don’t have to apply for financial aid anymore within Coursera, and will be able to get all Coursera certificates for free. Here is the video to follow the steps. Make sure you are logged in at Coursera with your @students.kiron.ngo account. Afterwards you only have to accept our invitation by clicking this link and following the steps below: https://coursera.org/groups/kiron-coursera-for-refugees/invitation 1. You will then see the following screen where you have to click on “Accept Invitation”:

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2. Click on “Continue”

3. This is it! Welcome to “Coursera for Refugees”.

Also, please be aware that if you encounter more problems with the sign-up process you can always connect with the Coursera Support team. You should now see that the certificates are free. 2.6.1 Verifying your identity with Coursera You should start verifying your identity immediately. You only need to fill in your verification profile once as it applies to all your courses. How do you verify your identity?

1. Log in to your Coursera account. 2. Click Accomplishments on the left side of the page.

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3. Then, click Complete your profile:

4. Follow the steps on screen to fill out your Verification Profile.

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Your Verification Profile includes: ● Your full name ● A photo ID you need to show in front of your webcam (e.g. driver’s license, passport,

student ID card, …) See their requirements for a valid photo ID on the following webpage: https://learner.coursera.help/hc/en-us/articles/208280126 )

● A typing sample ● A clear photo of your face taken with your computer's webcam.

Please note: The photos will be taken during this verification process. If there is a problem with your Verification Profile, you will get an email with instructions from Coursera to help you complete the process. Done! Congratulations! You got through the whole process! For more information or if you encounter any problems, please contact our team: student-support@kiron.ngo or visit the Forum and ask your fellow peers.

You have to complete your Verification Profile and successfully register for Coursera for Refugees.

2.7 Unsubscribing from MOOC newsletters You may receive many emails from the MOOC platforms and it is possible to reduce them. If you unsubscribe directly from all the newsletters sent by the MOOC platforms, you will not be swamped by unnecessary emails later on and can focus on your core studies. The process for unsubscribing from partner platforms is simple, and can be found in the settings of the partner platform. Here are some screenshots of the email settings of edX, Cousera and Saylor, some of our MOOC partners:

How to unsubscribe from MOOC newsletters on…

edX You can avoid getting e-mails from them during the enrollment process. Just uncheck the box under the “Enroll Now” button. A support article to

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help you (EdX Support article)

Coursera Go to “Settings” and search “Email Preferences.” We recommend you unsubscribe from all emails listed. A support article to help you (Coursera Support article)

saylor Go to dashboard -> preferences -> user account -> edit profile.

2.8 Study Plan for all 5 study tracks The Kiron blended learning model has two components, an online and an offline one. The Kiron Campus study planner tries to capture your first year at a university (60-90 ECTS) and then after the transfer to the partner university you have two more years (120 ECTS). A Bachelor’s degree in the European Framework consists of 180 ECTS credits total. With that being said, the Kiron model is very flexible and you can study more or less than 60 CPs in each study track, since the recognition process varies depending on each partner university. As you can imagine, the study plan for each student varies because students are flexible to pursue the courses in their own structure, according to their own schedule. We wanted to give you some sort of overview or tips depending on your study track about how to get started, and how to continue your studies.

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OVERVIEW: Your classes are online, and you can choose which courses you want to follow based on our course recommendations. Therefore the start date of your lessons depends on you and which courses you have selected. You can have both self-paced (start at any time) and live courses (fixed start dates), so you have to pay attention to the class deadlines, if there are any. There are also many prep courses that you can take before exploring those on the Kiron Campus, these are not for credits but rather for practice. We suggest that you start with the order of courses you see in your Study Planner recommendation, and try and complete entire modules before moving on to other ones. Courses are already sorted in a recommended order, so you can start learning from the basics in that field towards more intermediate and advanced subjects. When you are done with some courses and looking for new courses to take, you can always use the recommendation from your Study Planner, found at the top of your study planner. Please make sure to refer to the Forum for course related questions, as there are many tools (online instructors, study groups, tutorials, language school) for you as students. The Study Track Coordinators, who creating the curriculum for your studies at Kiron, are active in the forum and provide updates for each study track.

● Business and Economics: @thomas.rieke ● Computer Science: @cornelia.gamst ● Engineering: @mehmet.kose ● Political Science: @thomas.winter ● Social Work: @thomas.winter

2.9 Direct Academics The Direct Academics (DA) team provides two types of live-online-sessions: DA tutorials and DA courses, both done online via "online conference technology" like Google Hangouts. They are an important part of your curriculum and also give you the chance to learn in an interactive, small group environment. DA tutorials are fixed, usually weekly, online meetings led by a knowledgeable volunteer instructor who goes in depth on what you are learning in a specific online course (MOOC) or module in your study planner. DA courses are similar to DA tutorials in format and also take place online via Google Hangout. The difference with DA courses is that it is not tied to a specific MOOC, but rather works on a specific skill - like academic writing - that helps you succeed in your other courses. They both play a crucial role in Kiron online studies by supporting our students in successfully

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reaching their study goals. All of our Direct Academics instructors are volunteers, and out of respect for them, frequent attendance after registration is required. To discuss with fellow students currently taking the same Tutorial, or other MOOCs, please check the “Direct Academics” thread in your Study Track on the Forum at https://forum.kiron.ngo. For each tutorial or module you can find a chat, contribute with your questions and input, as well as tag an instructor to clarify MOOC content. We also have some DA instructors in the forum who can answer your questions for a particular subject or MOOC. Please be aware that they are available to support you. You can find those tutorials that we offer in your Study Planner labeled as Tutorial inside the modules.

2.10 Use the Forum Where is the Forum? The first time you access the Kiron Forum is by invitation. As a Kiron Student, you received an email to your @students.kiron.ngo email address with an invitation link to the forum. You have to click on this link and then you are redirected to the Forum website inside the Kiron Campus. Please check your inbox/spam folder for the invitation link, and if you still can’t find it, send an email to student-support@kiron.ngo for another invitation. What is the Forum?

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The Kiron Forum is an interactive online community for students to connect with one another from anywhere in the world. There are different channels where you can find everything from updates on new Kiron features to advice from Kiron experts and fellow students in your study track. Besides that, there are invitations to local events taking place in your city if a regional group is near you and updates about new language offers. You can also provide feedback to Kiron via the Forum, ask questions to the Kiron staff, and even join a study group. More information about study groups coming soon.

Follow these simple steps to get started:

1. Create your profile within the student forum. 2. Read the Forum guide. 3. Follow the channels of interest to you. 4. Turn off unnecessary notifications so you aren’t overwhelmed with emails. 5. Finally, introduce yourself in the general section to get to know your classmates.

The Kiron Student Forum is intended to be a two way stream of information between Kiron students and Kiron staff. We both need to be in touch! In case you need further guidance, you can watch the onboarding video again or read the Forum Guide.

Website for the Forum: (https://forum.kiron.ngo/) You can check out the different “Regional Groups” in the Forum to help you integrate with a community locally. This is the list of the current ones:

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Germany France Turkey Jordan

1. Aachen

2. Berlin

3. Bremen

4. Bielefeld

5. Cologne

6. Munich

1. Paris 1. Istanbul 1. Amman

3. How do we support our students

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Availability of Kiron Services Kiron is constantly improving to create the best study experience possible for its students. One of the lessons learned from the pilot semester (October 2015) was the importance of accompanying online learning with a broader range of supporting services, since online studying can be challenging and we need motivation to stay on track. You are highly motivated, and you want to succeed; however, there might be some questions or obstacles that keep you from reaching your goal. Coming to a new country, pioneering in e-learning and a variety of experiences make an arrival at Kiron difficult. We want you to succeed as well, so that is why we are here to support you in every step of your journey to a university degree. You can begin one, two or all of the programs at the start or at any point during your studies. You may choose those that best fit your needs or you may use all of them at the same time. It is up to you! Building up these services is a step by step process for us. Most services involve a high number of resources which, unfortunately, are not yet available everywhere. For now, Kiron can only focus on specific countries for certain services. Our focus countries (Germany, France, Turkey and Jordan) have most services up and running. Our ultimate goal is to make all services and transfers to partner universities possible world-wide. But as we are pioneering a completely new way of studying, we have to start on a smaller scale to prove what is possible.

3.1 Kiron Services in focus countries Overall Support: Help Desk, Forum, Welcome Sessions, Language

3.1.1 Help Desk

The Help Desk is the global support tool for our students. No matter where you are in the world, you can write us at student-support@kiron.ngo and our team will answer within 2 business days.

Please try to add details to describe your problem such as the site on which the problem occurred, the error message that popped up, a screenshot of the issue, your current location, etc. The more details you use to describe your problem, the easier and faster we can help you solve it.

All frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding your studies, or Kiron in general can be found on the Kiron Campus platform in the lower right corner via the blue button labeled “Student

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Services and FAQ”. It is accessible from any page on the platform. If you have any questions that are not answered in the FAQs, you can also contact us from there directly.

3.1.2 Forum

As mentioned in section 2.10 the Forum is the Kiron online community where students can ask questions and interact with other students/Kironistas.

3.1.3 Welcome Sessions

Welcome sessions are available to all full students at Kiron. We send out an email to those who have just become full students, but all older students are still welcome. If you are still confused about what Kiron is and want to know what it has to offer, or if you are still unsure about how to take courses, then the welcome session might be something for you. We know that it can be difficult to navigate the Kiron Campus, and that is why we created “Welcome Sessions” as a way to give you some extra information and show you the Kiron Campus via Google Hangouts in a video call. The session lasts about an hour, and a Kironista is there to show you everything and answer your questions. It is also a chance to get to know other fellow students in the call and maybe meet someone from your own Study Track who you can study with. In the Welcome session you will also receive an overview of the Student Services at Kiron, and one of our Kiron Staff will be happy to answer any questions you have. If you are interested please sign up for our March Sessions via the Google Form.

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The overall support of the Help Desk, Forum, and Welcome Sessions are available for Focus country and non-Focus country students. They are a great resource to answer questions and the Forum is the online student community of Kiron.

3.1.4 Language Services

At the same time as you complete your subject-specific studies, you should also focus on improving your language skills. When you begin studying with Kiron, achieving the necessary level of English Language proficiency is the top priority. This is because the majority of the course material we offer is taught in English. Required language levels A suggested starting language level in English at Kiron is B2 upper intermediate

Language ability is measured through a system of levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2. An A1 level is a beginner speaker with a basic understanding. A2 is considered pre-intermediate with some ability to have a conversation. A person with a B1 level is able to understand main points of clear text and can speak simple sentences about familiar topics. B2 is upper-intermediate and can understand more complex text. C1 and C2 are both advanced levels, and C2 is native-speakers or near native-speakers. Please keep in mind that, while attending a university, you may be asked to write papers, complete exams, and discuss ideas in a higher level of English than B2. So it is important to continually work on and improve your language skills as much as possible. Achieving and proving a certain language level will be required for admission to the partner universities. We highly recommend that you begin your language learning early as this will give you the best chance of successfully reaching the required level. In order to achieve your goal of enrolling at a German university, for example, it is important that you also attain a high level of German Language proficiency in addition to English. Most German universities require that their students have a minimum of C1 German, and foreign students are required to prove this with an officially recognised certificate from a provider such as TestDaF, Goethe-Institut or DSH. Similar language requirements are needed in France, although you don’t need to provide a specific certificate but a B1 level in French is recommended. In Turkey and Jordan we are still trying to pilot our programs and do not have an overview of language requirements there yet. Kiron Language School Kiron has established partnerships and gathered information about available resources to help you learn the languages you need, in order to reach your goals and succeed at your future partner university. You will be offered a selection of online and offline courses taught in different formats, by professional teachers and qualified language institutions. Please always

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refer to “Language School” under Kiron Services on the Kiron Campus AND the “Language School” category in the student Forum for specific information regarding language services. Online Courses As an online study platform our language courses are available on different digital formats such as virtual classrooms, online live-teaching sessions, etc. For those courses, a good internet connection, a computer, smart phone and sometimes headphones and microphone will be required. Offline Courses Offline language courses will be offered mostly in big cities, such as Berlin or Paris, where students and teachers will meet in person in a classroom environment. The teacher will be able to teach topics most important to the students and also share cultural aspects of the host country. These offline courses will be organised by Kiron in cooperation with partner institutions. Blended Learning Blended learning is a combination of online and offline teaching methods. As a learner, you will have, for example, access to virtual classrooms and chat rooms alongside your self study and/or face- to-face teaching where teacher and student meet in person. Self Learning Independent study is that which you do on your own, for example, by using online or app-based language resources. With this learning method you can independently manage your speed and time of learning. Kiron will keep updating the language section on Kiron Campus to inform you about additional language learning resources offered by other institutions that you can use. Therefore, we recommend checking the language platform regularly and getting registered in one of the courses. When a new course or program is available on the platform, an email with the important information will be sent to students from Language at Kiron. After you have successfully completed a course at one of our Language teaching partners, usually you will receive a certificate of participation, which states your language level. We also encourage students to use the Student Forum and follow the language categories in their respective interests. Feel free to post language advice or recommendations in the Forum.

On the Student Platform for the Kiron Campus, you will find more information about additional language learning resources under “Kiron Services”> “Language School” AND in the Forum category “Language School”. We work with other institutions to help you improve your language knowledge; these include language apps, online dictionaries, and topic-related websites.

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Empower: Mentoring, Buddy, Counselling 3.1.5 Buddy Program

The buddy program helps Kiron students to connect with local learners both online and offline. Being mostly local university students, the buddies can support you in your studies and receive valuable insights and support from you as well.

The primary focus of the program is to increase study motivation and success - ideally for both partners - and at the same time to facilitate an exchange between you and the local community. Core elements of the program are goal-setting, studying together and/or regular exchange about content and organizational matters of studying with Kiron and studying at a university.

In order to join the buddy program, apply at Kiron Campus > Kiron Services > Get a Buddy and enter your information.

When you have signed up for the program, we will try to find an "offline" buddy for you in your city if possible or an "online" buddy that you can connect with online via messaging and video chat. After signing up, it usually takes us several weeks to find your buddy.

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In order to register, go to Kiron Campus, click on Kiron Services , click on Get a Buddy and fill out the form. Usually it will take several weeks for us to find a buddy for you. If you have any questions about the Buddy Program, please contact buddy@kiron.ngo or check out the Forum.

3.1.6 Counselling Services

The Kiron Counselling Service will support you when you are confronted with personal challenges or stressful situations during your studies. To study also means facing a lot of demands in all parts of life. Not everything works out smoothly. Sometimes, there are problems and difficulties that are too hard to overcome on your own or you just feel like talking to someone about your current situation. If this is the case, please contact us! We can help you e.g. in situations where you have:

● Difficulties with your studies (concentration problems, self organization, loss of motivation, fear of exams, ...)

● Difficulties in dealing with the memories of your past ● Current crisis, anxiety, depressive mood, sleep problems ● Stressful family or social situations ● Problems in contact with others ● Specific problems with being in a foreign country ● Problems in personal relationships ● Addiction issues

With our team of professionals we offer free counselling via video chat, email or if possible in person (currently in Germany in Berlin & Hamburg). We offer up to five counselling sessions and can also help you to find a long-term support as therapy if needed. Of course the counselling sessions are confidential.

We offer confidential counselling that is free of charge with the possibility to connect you with local institutions or therapists if needed. If you are interested, please send an email to counselling@kiron.ngo and our team will provide you with more information.

3.1.7 Mentoring in Germany We currently offer two mentoring programs to our students based in Germany. In our mentoring programs you get paired up with an employee from one of our partner companies, who will act as your personal mentor and will share their expertise with you. 1. Online Study Mentoring Program (for all students based in Germany)

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Our partner Volunteer Vision offers an Online Study Mentoring Program that is tailor-made for our students based in Germany. Together with your mentor you will work on defining and achieving personal and academic goals within your Kiron education. You will learn how to create a good learning environment, how to best plan and organize your studies and how to overcome individual challenges that might occur in online learning. No matter where in Germany you live you can sign up for our online mentoring program. You will video chat with your mentor regularly on our online mentoring platform. WHEN

● You and your mentor will schedule the sessions individually ● You will meet your mentor for 10 online sessions (~1 hour) every 1 to 2 weeks ● Start in January 2017 with the first cohorts. We take in students on an ongoing basis.

Subject to availability WHO Sign up, if you:

● Are based in Germany ● Commit to participate 1 hour per week over the course of approx. 3 months ● Have a laptop or tablet with a camera and microphone and a stable internet

connection (a mobile phone is not enough)

In order to register for the online mentoring program, please follow this link https://kiron.volunteer-vision.com/register/kiron.html Check out Kiron Campus> Kiron Services> Get a Mentor for more information. 2. Offline Career Mentoring Program (for students based in Berlin) In this one-on-one mentoring program, offered by our partner Rock Your Company! You get paired with an employer of a Berlin-based company. You will discuss individual topics and

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your career development in one-on-one meetings with your mentor in Berlin. You need to be able to come to Berlin for the meetings. Additionally to the regular personal meeting with your mentor, the program consists of three full days of trainings:

● 1st training: get to know potential mentors and get started with one of them after the matching process

● 2nd + 3rd training: get to know your strengths, capabilities and talents & develop an understanding of the job market, occupational profiles and the work culture in Germany.

WHEN

You will meet your mentor every 2 to 3 weeks over the course of 6 months. Start: earliest February 2017 with the first cohorts. We take in students on an ongoing basis. Subject to availability.

WHO Sign up, if you...

● ...are based in Berlin (+radius of 50km) ● ...are committed to participate in the three training days ● ...agree to meet your mentor every 2-3 weeks over the course of 6 months

Check out the Kiron Campus> Kiron Services > Get a Mentor for more information. If you have any questions on our mentoring programs please send an email to mentoring@kiron.ngo.

Offline services: Study Centers and Regional Groups

3.1.8 Study Centers & Regional Groups

Our Vision

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Students are at the center of a community that is built collaboratively with the local community members, partners, and Kironistas. Together, they are integrating off and online experiences and services and are both promoting and enhancing Kiron student activity and success.

What is a Study Center? Study Centers are of major importance for the success of the Kiron study program and address Kiron students as well as refugees who are in the process of becoming university or Kiron students. These centers facilitate learning with online resources by providing access to internet and computers. In cooperation with partner universities, local initiatives and volunteers, these spaces ideally do not solely provide a place to visit online courses, but also a room for study program such as language lessons, tutoring, buddy events, and peer-to-peer coaching. Moreover, this kind of offline support fosters the student community and strengthens the motivation of Kiron students through supportive direct interaction.

Why should I go there? By offering these Study Centers, we hope to achieve four main goals:

1. Provide you with necessary equipment. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) provide access to excellent, evaluated academic content. However, we are well aware you need computers, headsets, internet and a calm but social space to learn. You will find all this in our Kiron Study Centers!

2. Integrate you into a Kiron community. Coming together in Study Centers enables mutual support and experience-sharing between you and other students. We will try to organise frequent student events and workshops in order to create a sense of community and belonging.

3. Offer offline support. Besides our online activities, we want to offer you the opportunity to talk with our Kironistas in real life! They will do their best to answer your questions and support you where and when you need it most.

4. Empowering you. Students can become involved in Study Center processes. For instance, you can organize peer-to-peer workshops or tutorials. We encourage you as our students to follow your interests, and we want to enable you to organize meetings with your buddy according to your availability. Some Study Centers may provide space for self-organized extra-curricular activities, enabling you to actively shape your study success and, at the same time, foster self-sufficiency, empowerment and integration.

You can find an overview of our existing and planned Study Centers on Kiron Campus and at the link below: https://campus.kiron.ngo/app/services/hubs-community

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3.2 Kiron Services in non-focus countries

3.2.1 Overall Support: Help Desk, Forum, Welcome Sessions, Language (online)

As a student in a non-focus country you also have access to the Help Desk, Forum, Welcome Sessions, and some of our language offers which are online. Please refer to the sections above which describe them for more information.

3.2.2 Empower: Buddy (online) and Counselling (online)

As a student in a non-focus country you can participate in the online versions of the Buddy and Counselling programs at Kiron. Please refer to the sections above which describe them for more information.

3.2.3 Offline services: Regional Groups

We are also building up our network of Regional Groups to help you integrate with a community locally. In case you want to get in touch, please have a look in the Forum Category called “Regional Groups”.

4. Transfer Information For all students All students have the possibility to apply at our partner universities, no matter where you are living. However, to gain admission, you need to fulfill the requirements of the university you have chosen to transfer to. Also, if you are applying to a university in a different country, you will have to fulfill the student visa requirements of that country. We are working on recruiting partner universities in Germany, France, Turkey and Jordan at the moment.

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Consequently, at the moment it is still easier to apply at a partner university for those Kiron students already living in one of the focus countries, since they don’t have to move between country borders. Please understand that our blended learning and online approach that is offering you access to Higher Education programs is still very new to the world. Therefore, it will take some time to become established. We are very confident, however, that together we can enter a new era of free Higher Education for refugees using the opportunities provided by open educational resources. Just like any other transformational innovation, this is a step-by-step process that initially begins with the focus of our resources in a few countries.

4.1 How to get credit points recognized Each and everyone of you has the possibility to apply with our partner universities, at any point in time during your studies at Kiron. To save as much time as possible at the partner university, we recommend you complete at least 60 "credit points" (CP) online with Kiron. However, you can also have less than 60 CPs or more, depending on your individual circumstances. Most of your credit points should be recognized by our partner universities and turned into ECTS, as the European measurement unit for workload of university courses is called. The awarding of ECTS will vary from student to student and is largely dependent on the courses you’ve completed and the partner university you transfer to. For a European Bachelor degree, you need to obtain at least 180 ECTS - so you will need to continue studying at the university in order to complete the remaining ECTS. Receiving 60 ECTS credits from your Kiron credit points is the equivalent of two semesters of study at a partner university. Non-partner universities, however, are less likely to give you recognized credits. In short:

1. Online Courses of your curriculum on Kiron Campus give you Kiron credit points. Make sure to try and complete entire modules, as this helps with the recognition process.

2. We aim to get as many Kiron credit points recognized as ECTS as possible. This depends, however, on the partner university after the transfer and no specific amount can be guaranteed.

3. For a European Bachelor degree you need to obtain at least 180 ECTS - so you continue studying at the university to finish the remaining ECTS.

One of our main goals is to offer you as many recognizable credits as possible. Therefore, we are working hard on enlarging the number of learning agreements we have with partner universities and improving the quality of our core curriculum.

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Before moving on to one of the partner universities, we will prepare a transcript with all your completed courses and general credits listed. This document is most important for the partner university, and you can also attach it to job applications. While applying to the partner university, you have to meet the same requirements as all other students. These include a higher education entrance qualification, credit points in the respective field of study, a certain minimum grade point average and language requirements, among others. You are responsible for checking and fulfilling the respective requirements of the partner universities to apply. → However, we will assist you by guiding you through this process and helping you find the best option for a partner university where you can continue your studies. When accepted at a partner university, that university may not only accept the courses you have finished online with us, but also the certificates you bring from your home university. This depends on each university, and we can neither promise nor check this for you. We are not responsible for this process. Please check the recognition of your other certificates with the respective university authority in charge.

In addition, we are in the process of creating partnerships with online universities, known as “distance e-learning universities.” Kiron students would then be able to complete their online bachelor's degree with our open distance e-learning university partners regardless of their location. Also, please visit our Student Forum and see what other students have talked about, or add your own knowledge. This post can also be helpful for you too see.

Recognizing previous education

● Since Kiron is not a university we can’t recognize previous education which you might have already done. The recognition of previous education will take place after the transfer by the partner university. Having previous education is useful no matter what, and this can help you as you complete the MOOCs on your Kiron Study Planner.

Specific questions about Germany

● For some more specific questions about transferring to a German university please visit the Knowledge Base (https://kiron.groovehq.com/knowledge_base/categories/germany).

● If you are intending to apply to a university in Germany within the next year, we would like you to get in touch with our Student Support team (student-support@kiron.ngo) in order to support you on your next steps.

Transferring to a Public French University

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● If you are intending to apply to a university in France within the next year, we would like

you to get in touch with our Student Support team (student-support@kiron.ngo) in order to support you on your next steps.

The common procedures for applying to a university in France change according to your country of origin, among other things. If you are a refugee, a beneficiary of the subsidiary protection or a stateless person, you have to apply directly to the university. If not, you must generally follow an online procedure. Each university has its own academic admission criteria and they can ask you to fill in a “VAE” (Validation des acquis de l’expérience or accreditation of prior learning and/or working) file, where you record all your previous academic achievements. Here again, this depends on the university. However, you can also ask the ENIC-NARIC France to provide you a comparability statement (be careful: it’s not an equivalence in the French system of your previous qualifications). If you are a refugee, the procedure is offered free of charge and your request is considered a priority. Usually, you have to prove your proficiency in French at a B1 level (TCF). Refugees, beneficiaries of subsidiary protection and stateless persons don’t have to prove their proficiency, but they must show that they have a sufficient level of understanding. You can find further informations (in French) on the governmental website of campus france and the governmental website for studying at a French university.

4.2 Learning Agreements vs. Memorandum of Understanding In an effort to be more transparent and give you a better overview of the Kiron transfer process, it is important that you understand the difference between a Learning Agreement (LA) and a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Both are non-legally binding agreements and the partner universities ultimately decide whether the student will obtain admission or not.

1. A Learning Agreement is when a university agrees to collaborate on eventually recognizing Kiron Credits in case of a successful application. By signing the Learning Agreement, Kiron and the partner university, agree on the equivalence of Kiron’s modules and the partner’s study programs, so that recognition can later be granted by the Partner University.

2. A Memorandum of Understanding is when a university is interested in Kiron and is willing to pursue some sort of partnership, but nothing is defined yet.

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4.3 List of Partner Universities We have divided up the list of partner universities according to LA and MoU (see above for more clarification). This list is constantly being revised as we are always trying to find new partner universities to provide you with opportunities to complete your study program and get a Bachelor’s Degree. For some of the ones listed, you can also see the study program we have agreed to cooperate on. Here is the list of current partner universities we have signed Learning Agreements with:

● BAU Hochschule, Germany, http://www.bau.hm.edu/ [Learning Agreement in Business Administration]

● HNE Eberswalde, Germany, http://www.hnee.de/de/Startseite/HNE-Eberswalde-E1016.htm [Learning Agreement in Finanzmanagement, Unternehmensmanagement, and Regionalmanagement]

● Hochschule Heilbronn, Germany, https://www.hs-heilbronn.de/ [Learning Agreement in International Business - Intercultural Studies]

● Technische Hochschule Wildau, Germany, https://www.th-wildau.de/ [Learning Agreement in Eng. Telematik]

● Alanus Hochschule, Germany, http://www.alanus.edu/ [Learning Agreement in Business and Economics]

● Fachhochschule Bielefeld, Germany, https://www.fh-bielefeld.de/ [Learning Agreement in Business and Economics]

Here is the list of current partner universities we have signed Memorandum of Understandings with:

● Al al-Bayt University, Jordan, https://www.aabu.edu.jo/index.jsp/ ● Bard College Berlin, Germany, http://www.berlin.bard.edu/ ● BBW Hochschule, Germany, http://www.bbw-hochschule.de/ ● CNAM Paris, France, http://www.cnam.fr/ ● Fachhochschule Aachen, Germany, https://www.fh-aachen.de/en/ ● Fachhochschule Lübeck, Germany, https://www.fh-luebeck.de/ ● Fachhochschule Münster, Germany, https://www.fh-muenster.de/ ● Hashemite University, Jordan, https://hu.edu.jo/ ● Hochschule Fresenius, Germany, http://www.hs-fresenius.de/ ● Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Germany, http://www.ku-eichstaett.de/ ● Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Germany, http://www.leuphana.de/ ● Princess Sumaya University for Technology, Jordan, http://www.psut.edu.jo/ ● RWTH Aachen, Germany, https://www.rwth-aachen.de/ ● SciencesPo Paris, France, http://www.sciencespo.fr/ ● The Open University, UK, http://www.open.ac.uk/

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● TU Clausthal, Germany, http://www.tu-clausthal.de/ ● UniNettuno University, Italy, http://www.uninettunouniversity.net/ ● Universität Kassel, Germany, http://www.uni-kassel.de/uni/ ● Universität Witten/Herdecke, Germany, http://www.uni-wh.de/ ● University of Paderborn, Germany, https://www.uni-paderborn.de/en/university/ ● University of Rostock, Germany, http://www.uni-rostock.de/en/ ● Aydin University, Turkey,

http://www.aydin.edu.tr/en-us/international/int/Pages/index.aspx ● Yaşar University, Turkey, http://www.yasar.edu.tr/en/ ● Lebanese International University, Lebanon, http://www.liu.edu.lb/lb/index.php

5. FAQs and Support at a Glance

5.1 Link to the Knowledge Base For general questions, technical problems, study plan overview, and any other requests that you still might have, please have a look at the knowledge base. You can also find it in the support widget called “Student Services & FAQ” on the bottom right of the Kiron Campus. (https://kiron.groovehq.com/help_center)

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5.2 All email addresses at a glance Please try to consult the Knowledge Base, check out the student forum, and if you still have questions you can also write to our Kiron team.

All support mail addresses at a glance:

General Support student-support@kiron.ngo

Buddy Program General Questions buddy@kiron.ngo

Counselling Services counselling@kiron.ngo

Mentoring Program mentoring@kiron.ngo

Language Services language@kiron.ngo

Welcome Sessions welcome@kiron.ngo

Direct Academics

da-support@kiron.ngo

French Team students.france@kiron.ngo

Jordan Team students.jordan@kiron.ngo

Turkey Team students.turkey@kiron.ngo Visit us at the Kiron Office Berlin Am Festungsgraben 1 10117 Berlin get more information on www.kiron.ngo stay informed via facebook and twitter Kiron Open Higher Education gUG Amtsgericht Charlottenburg HRB 171400 B Board: Markus Kreßler, Vincent Zimmer Festungsgraben 1, 10117 Berlin

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