Virtual labs are often compared directly to physical ones, as though the goal would be to recreate the same experience as closely as possible in an online format. But what makes a virtual lab effective, and where can they fall short? Rather than positioning physical and virtual labs in opposition, it is more useful to consider how each contributes to effective learning. This blog explores three essential elements that we believe must be present for virtual labs to succeed.

We’ve worked with instructors teaching at serious scale: think courses with around 4,000 students per year! With classes this size, it becomes increasingly difficult to give every student a meaningful lab experience, week after week. That’s where virtual labs can help.

We offer an “infinite” virtual biology course to help with problems like these, but what does that really mean?

Everything required to teach and learn is in place from the start with UniVirtual. That’s because our courses are built and maintained in close partnership with educators and shaped through processes that relieve pressure from entire departments, something we’ve been passionate about since we co-designed the first virtual degree in 2012. This blog shares the groundwork we’ve done to make our courses reliable, engaging, and ready the moment you need them.