If you could refine your professional skills by simply learning online, would you do it? More institutions have created robust online learning platforms in the past 3 years than in the 31 years that the internet has been in existence. Why? Learning online overcomes the top three barriers to education which are: location, access, and cost.
Online learning gives you convenience, ease, and access to quality education without ever leaving your home. Often you can find free, recognized, and relevant courses to add to your arsenal of skills for personal development or the job market.
Today, if you can code to build a website, a software application, or any digital tool that receives information and processes it according to preset instructions, you will hardly lack a job.
You can check the site for the following:
EdX was founded by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT) which are top universities globally. As such, the credibility of the courses is above board and recognition by employers goes without saying. There are free courses available in most academic fields.
Courses and programs vary widely in almost every field of study. The site has one downside, you need to pay to earn a certificate.
Coursera offers a wide array of courses to its learners: Data science to business courses to humanities and the arts. It collaborates with over 200 universities and global companies to provide learning material that is needed in the job marketplace.
LinkedIn Learning gives you over 16,000 professionally curated courses that are highly specific to a niche. The courses themselves are written and presented by professionals with great experiential insights. As such, there are some free courses but the majority require you to pay or have a paid LinkedIn subscription.
LinkedIn learning has some of the most sought-after courses by professionals today. You will need to sign up on LinkedIn to access the courses.
Skillshare has a trove of over 26,000 videos of successful professionals who share their secrets through courses revealing what has worked for them in their respective fields. This is similar to LinkedIn Learning in that it is professionals teaching fellow professionals. Learning institutions do not have it all and sometimes even don’t have the most current knowledge. The working people are teachers too!
Skillshare offers a free 7-day trial for new sign-ups. After that, you have to pay to access learning videos.
Udemy has leading experts teaching courses on the site. There are a bunch of free courses on topics like “Instagram marketing for beginners” and related content but you have to pay for most.
It offers a broad range of professional courses in virtually every field.
The Khan Academy offers learning material for both children and adults. Resources for children are vast compared to the college and graduate section.
The site is unique in offering pre-school, high school, and college education. All learning on the site is totally free and the quality of education is top-notch.
Other great online learning sites are:
Online learning enables you to study at your own learning pace, set your own timings, and gain from institutions and professionals you would never meet physically.
So, go on and try these reliable online learning sites. Try the free courses relevant to you and see how you like them. This could be the start of an exciting, new learning experience!