WIPO Academy Offers New Courses in 2005
Geneva, February 18, 2005
Press Updates UPD/2005/240
Geneva, February 18, 2005
WIPO ACADEMY OFFERS NEW COURSES IN 2005
Students and professionals will be able to take advantage of a new and expanded range of intellectual property (IP) courses offered by the Academy of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 2005. The Academy's 2005 program features a number of enhancements to its distance learning program as well as the WIPO Summer School which offers students and young professionals an opportunity to acquire more in-depth knowledge of IP. Some 38,000 students, professionals and government officials from over 180 countries have benefited from the courses offered by the WIPO Academy since it was set up in 1998 in response to rising global demand for intellectual property training and education.
WIPO's Distance Learning Program aims to increase the educational opportunities of a broad spectrum of beneficiaries worldwide using a website as a delivery platform. The greatest advantage of distance learning as a study methodology is that its reach is not confined by such constraints as geographical location and time. Thus, any registered student, anywhere in the world, can benefit from the WIPO Worldwide Academy's distance learning program at a time and place convenient to him/her.
Since the launch of its General Course on Intellectual Property (DL 101), in 1999, some 33,000 participants from 180 countries have registered for the course. In 2003, an interactive learning management system was deployed by the Academy which provided on-line learning resources for participants and a live discussion forum. The Academy's tutorial faculty includes some 80 experienced IP teachers and experts from across the globe who tutor in 7 languages. The next General Course on Intellectual Property (DL 101) will start on March 1, 2005. The course is available in 7 languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and Russian) and is free-of-charge. To register for the course, please go to (http://academy.wipo.int). Since 2003, completion of this course has been a requirement to participate in other training programs offered by the Academy and other institutions.
New advanced courses on different aspects of intellectual property will also be available this year. These include the Advanced Course on Copyright and Related Rights (DL 201) in English, French and Spanish. This course covers a range of issues including WIPO's role in this area as well as recent developments and trends in the area of international copyright law. The course will run from May 1 to July 10, 2005.
The Advanced course on Electronic Commerce and Intellectual Property (DL202) will also be available in English. This course covers IP aspects of e-commerce in three main areas, namely copyright, trademarks and patents. This course will run from May 1 to June 15, 2005.
Registration dates for both courses run from March 1 to 15, 2005.
Three additional courses: Traditional Knowledge and Intellectual Property (DL 203), Biotechnology and Intellectual Property (DL 204) and the International Protection of Plant Varieties (DL-205) are expected to be launched later this year.
These courses will be offered on a fee basis with reduced charges for participants from certain countries. Further information about fees is available from the Academy website (http://academy.wipo.int).
The WIPO Summer School will also resume this year. This is a four-week program in English held in Geneva from July 4 to 29, 2005. The program consists of lectures and individual or group research on assigned topics. The program is open to candidates from all regions of the world and from all academic backgrounds. Details of how to apply for the WIPO Summer School are available at https://www.wipo.int/academy.
For further details about all courses offered by the WIPO Academy, please consult https://www.wipo.int/academy or contact the Media Relations and Public Affairs Section at WIPO:
Tel: + 41 22 338 8161 or 338 95 47;
e-mail: publicinf@wipo.int.