Have you ever thought about how much apples and oranges have in common? We usually refer to comparisons of the two types of fruit to emphasize that two dissimilar objects shouldn’t be grouped together.

We would contend that apples and oranges are more alike than they are different. Both grow on trees, they’re edible, and they contain important vitamins.

What’s more, a study by NASA’s Scott A. Sandford published in the Journal of Improbable Research in the mid 1990's challenged the common comparison of apples and oranges. Sandford’s paper found that the fruit are not very dissimilar when their underlying components are analysed by infrared spectroscopy.

Though that may be taking the argument to the extreme, his work emphasizes the importance of looking beyond superficial differences in search of profound similarities.

At ODEM, creator of the world’s first On-Demand Education Marketplace, we believe the field of education has much to gain by fostering greater understanding of what people and academic institutions have in common rather than what separates them.

By understanding the common elements of a high-quality education on an apples-to-apples basis, we can improve access to education and learning outcomes.

Working with key stakeholders, ODEM’s will use its Independent Credentialing Verification (ICV) process and artificial intelligence to compare similarities and differences between academic degree programs across cultures, borders, and education systems. Our aim is to remove barriers to the recognition of valid educational credentials from one country to another to allow workers to gain maximum benefit from their education.

Improving the portability of education is a highly complex problem because of the large number of variables that influence the validity and interchangeability of academic achievements. Still, we’re committed to bringing countries, educational institutions, professional associations and workers together to solve the challenge of portability.

ODEM’s goal is to be the best resource for measuring and comparing degree programs regardless of origin.

Stay tuned for more ODEM developments.

Rich Maaghul,

CEO

ODEM