MOOCs, short courses & micro-credentials
Courses at the University that are limited to our (internal) students may be able to rely on the educational statutory licence in the Copyright Act 1968 for reuse of content (see the tab above). However, where enrolments in MOOCs, micro-credentials, or short/certificate courses do not contribute to the University’s EFTSL reporting, this exception in the Act should not be applied. You will therefore need to rely on open-licensed materials and/or 'free' resources, link to online content, or seek permission from the copyright owner/s.
Best practice
- Link to open / publicly-accessible material wherever possible (or embed for YouTube/etc. ). Be careful not to link to, or embed, infringing content.
- Use of Creative Commons-licensed materials and 'free' resources can make it easier to populate learning materials for short courses.
- Before using any of your own publications (articles, chapters, etc.), in a short course , check your publishing agreement to ensure that you have the ability to do so, and whether a particular version is required (e.g., author manuscript).
- Keep detailed notes of where you sourced material from – this will help with attribution, licensing/reuse statements, and/or any permissions needed. Our Copyright Checker spreadsheet can assist with this.
- Allow plenty of time to request permissions – while some approvals can be relatively quick, others can take months.
- Make sure to follow any directions or conditions set out in the permissions/licensing you identify or receive.
- For assistance with permissions or understanding open or educational licensing contact the Copyright Advisor.
To learn more, access the MOOCs and Short courses copyright guide (PDF).
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.