The Wharton School is feeling bullish about its MOOC efforts. Associated Press
Nearly two years into its grand experiment with massive open online courses, University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School is feeling bullish.
The school introduced its first MOOC, as they are known, in 2012, setting out on an ambitious plan to reach millions of new students. The free classes, in subjects like financial accounting and marketing, don't carry any credit toward a Wharton degree, but they have given about 1.1 million participants a taste of academic life at the elite institution and a chance to learn basic business skills.
It's perhaps the most coordinated effort at any business school. Wharton will have 15 MOOCs on the Coursera Inc. education-technology platform by year-end, including four "Foundation Series" courses introduced last fall and modeled on sections of its first-year M.B.A. curriculum.

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The school is still learning how best to translate its on-campus offerings to the Web, but officials say the venture has already strengthened the brand and delivered an edge over competitors in an area that could ultimately upend traditional M.B.A. programs.