Announcing Fractal University
We're building an affordable, community university with friends in NYC
The best online classes in the world, in-person, with your friends
📚 Applications are now OPEN (!) Students apply here
👨🏻🏫 If you would like to offer a class as a TA or Instructor, apply here
🗓️ Add the Fall Calendar to your schedule, click here
Fractal University
Fractal University offers in-person, community sections of the best online courses in the world. We offer the classes at low cost, to anyone in New York City. Our first semester includes courses in AI, community-building, NYC government, and computer science.
We aim to democratize enjoyable, community education and public research culture by creating an easily replicable model for a decentralized university — and the economic, social, and creative opportunities they create.
The intellectual + cultural commons is something we create together, whether it’s on twitter or over the dinner table. We want to help students become public writers, researchers, scientists, artists, and engineers, all collaborating together in public.
How It Works
Course Selection: Select your Fall ‘23 courses by signing up here
In-person Learning: While many courses are from MIT or Stanford, learning happens in person. Students attend class at one of our locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan. We watch online lectures together, with a live teaching assistant. Class sizes are under 10 students.
A Written Culture: To create a public culture of learning and practice, students and faculty are publish their work often — an abundance of essays, projects, research, events, or just blog posts.
Teaching Assistance: Each class is facilitated by a TA who guides discussion, answers questions, and helps with assignments when needed.
Community: School-wide events will be organized — look forward to orientation, socials, clubs, dinners, and… prom?!
Schedule: Courses begin the week of 9/5/23 and end 11/19/23. Courses typically have two 2-3 hour sessions each week, scheduled between 5:30 PM and 10:00 PM (weekends are sometime between 11:00 am- 10:00 pm).
Fee Structure:
Courses have accessible, sliding-scale fees (often $30-300), though fees vary.
For any MOOCs (open, online courses), TAs set fees to cover expenses and location, but not to profit. Keep in mind, all course material is open, online for free.
For courses designed by instructors, they may set fees however they like. Fractal University is intentionally decentralized so instructors can develop and teach their own courses.
The Team
Andrew Rose, Founder Prev: Co-founder of Qrono, first engineer at Culdesac, and Interim Head of School at Guidepost Montessori at Museum Mile
Madhu Sriram, Founder Prev: medical and AI research, nonprofit, DE
Priya Rose, Founder Prev: Co-founder of Qrono and first engineer at AirGarage
Fractal Collective, Volunteer Team Fractal is an assortment of writers, designers, musicians, entrepreneurs, artists, coders, and scientists. We launch pro-social projects in NYC and have fun doing it.