Today we’re happy to announce that the University of Chicago is joining Coursera’s network of 80 national and international educational partners currently offering free online courses to millions of Courserians. The University of Chicago shares with Coursera a commitment to providing faculty with the best resources to serve students in the classroom and across the world, and we’re delighted to work with them as they experiment with our platform and digital learning tools to improve on-campus teaching as well as reach a new audience of learners.

The University of Chicago will offer an initial two courses on Coursera’s platform, with plans to expand their offerings based on faculty interest. The following courses, taught by renowned professors in their fields, will build out Coursera’s catalog in the areas of science and business:

Global Warming , taught by David Archer: Professor in Geophysical Sciences and a fellow of the American Geophysical Union. This course is one of the University of Chicago’s most popular, and will introduce students to theories, views and studies around global warming, climate change and human involvement.

, taught by David Archer: Professor in Geophysical Sciences and a fellow of the American Geophysical Union. This course is one of the University of Chicago’s most popular, and will introduce students to theories, views and studies around global warming, climate change and human involvement. Asset Pricing Theory, taught by John Cochrane: AQR Capital Management Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the Booth School of Business. This advanced course, designed for doctoral students in economics and finance, will now be available to anyone around the world working within the finance industry who wishes to continue their studies and learn from one of the top experts in asset pricing.

“This class is a unique, high-level class, offering a view and integration of the material that you can’t easily get anywhere else,” Cochrane said, “I hope it will thus advertise the university’s special strengths as well as be a useful resource in itself.”

“We’re delighted to welcome the University of Chicago, with its tremendous strengths in a broad range of disciplines, into the Coursera network. We look forward to working with the University as its faculty members explore the benefits of online education within their own classrooms, and share their knowledge with the world beyond,” said Daphne Koller of Coursera.

To find out more about the University of Chicago’s course offerings on Coursera, and to sign up today, visit Coursera.org/Chicago.