Noodle reported on last week’s two-day Gulf Education Conference Exposition where educators from around the world gathered to discuss the tops trends that will transform the way we look at education by 2020.

Here are the top three reasons why this conference was super important:

1. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) allow people to learn important skills without the heavy financial costs of a formal education. This won’t wipe away college degrees, but it will help a ton of people learn new skills like coding, digital marketing, or accounting at their own time. This is a highly customizable way to get educated in ways that meet immediate needs to boost professional and academic potential.

2. Private sectors are teaming up with universities to help international students get ready for college. For instance, if you are a high school student living in India and you want to go to a university in the U.K., a partnership like Study Group can help prepare you for success in college by giving you the resources you need to be academically prepared to handle the work load of that school. This will help create a bridge between underprivileged international students and renown colleges.

3. Transnational education will allow students to get high quality international education without needing to leave their native countries. In return, these students can then graduate and contribute to the economy of their countries instead of needing to immigrate to another location in order to fully utilize their degrees. This is big news since transnational education will be a huge incentive for students to stay in their countries to positively impact its economy.

Education is transforming because we’re no longer looking at it from a traditional standpoint of needing formalized education to achieve professional success. Although traditional education is important and won’t be diminished, alternative programs and resources will help add to the educational experience. Education will be about helping individuals become their best selves and using that for the betterment of nations and economies.