Massive open online courses as an attribute and a factor of competitiveness of leading universities
The article deals with characteristics of MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses) - high-quality distance education resources with free access published by leading universities in the world - as an attribute and a factor of their competitiveness. Trends in the world of higher education will definitely show that the widespread use of modern information technology in education and research is an important factor in ensuring and improving the competitiveness of the leading universities, in particular the introduction of massive open online courses. Today the leading universities in the world de facto made MOOC an integral part of its educational system. To create such courses one should solve a number of complex problems ranging from creating a modern industrial and technological base up to organization of educational process guaranteeing high quality of education within specific conditions of distance learning designed for the mass consumer. Consequently, MOOC become a factor increasing the competitiveness of the university through the effective use of modern information technologies for expanding the market of educational services without losing the quality of education, which is characteristic for the world-class university. World's leading universities develop and publish MOOC, both independently and as part of prestigious international projects. Thus, MOOC is an attribute of world-class university.