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The University of Massachusetts has signed an agreement with Chinese education officials to become the first foreign university to offer approved online education courses and degree programs in China, according to the school.

UMass officials reached an agreement with China's Continuing Education Association and CerEDU Corp to offer distance classes and degree programs from all five UMass campuses. The school will offer 40 online course, four certificate programs, and one master's degree program within a year.

The plan has to be approved by China's Ministry of Education, which currently does not recognize credits from foreign universities. Both parties that signed the agreement have ties to Tsinghua University, which has a close relationship with the Chinese Ministry of Education. UMass officials expect the deal to be finalized by this fall.

"We are very proud to have been chosen by our partners in China to enter into this agreement," said University of Massachusetts President Jack M. Wilson. "We have developed one of the best online education programs in the world, and that is increasingly being recognized around the globe."

UmassOnline is one of the largest accredited distance learning programs, offering 1,5000 courses to around 33,000 students. All the online courses are taught by the same faculty who teach on campus.

Zhu Yidong, vice chairman of Cernet Education Corp., a distance learning company, said that within five years, the online course will" have paved the way for other foreign universities to enter the Chinas market."