What are the Best Sites for Free Online Courses? – We are living in a world where everything is going digital. The smartphone empowered with an internet connection has changed the way we communicate, conduct business, perform various tasks, consume content, and more. The education system isn’t an exception; our learning that was limited within the four walls of a classroom has gone global with the introduction of online learning. The increasing use of smartphones coupled with affordable data packs already led to the growth of the edtech industry. But the COVID-19 pandemic was the reason this sector saw exponential growth in a matter of a few months.
If you consider the stats, the global education technology market size was worth USD 89.49 billion in 2020 and is predicted to reach USD 377.85 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 19.9% from 2021 to 2028. As evident, online education has reached millions of learners across the world and is poised for significant growth. So, now is the right time to luxuriate the content offered by online training providers and gain new skills from the comfort of your home.
With online courses, you don’t need to worry about the tuition fee. Compared to academic courses, online courses are quite affordable. Some sites even offer Free Course Download on a variety of subjects. But, are you aware of the most reliable platforms where you get high-quality courses for no cost? If you are new to the edtech industry, you might not be familiar with any platform yet. So, go through this article and know the best websites that provide free online courses.
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Top Edtech Platforms Offering Free Courses
Listed below are some of the top websites offering free online courses.
SkillUp by Simplilearn
Simplilearn is the world’s number one online Bootcamp and a leading certification training provider. Its recent initiative SkillUp is specifically designed for professionals seeking free online courses. From digital marketing, data science, big data analytics to cloud computing, project management, and ITSM, SkillUp offers a wide range of in-depth courses. Even if you are preparing for TOGAF certification or an AWS certification, SkillUp is the platform you can trust. The courses are designed by industry experts and help you build a strong foundation in any subject. Moreover, you get a certificate for completing any free course on SkillUp.
Codecademy
This platform aims to create a new, interactive way of learning, making it engaging, flexible, and accessible for as many learners as possible. As the name suggests, the platform is dedicated to courses related to coding. In other words, you will find courses related to subjects that involve coding like software development, data science, mobile app development, game development, machine learning, web design, and developer tools. Codecademy also supports challenge projects where learners can code in the real world by trying a programming project with minimal guidance.
Alison
Alison is one of the world’s largest free learning platforms for skills and education training. The trainers at Alison are experts in the field of online education and are rigorous in delivering high-quality study materials, services, and experiences. Alison has a presence in over 195 countries with over 21 million learners and is changing how the world learns and upskills. You can explore free online courses on the platform based on these categories – IT, Language, Sales and Marketing, Management, Health, Business, Engineering and Construction, Personal Development, and Teaching and Academics, among others.
Coursera
Coursera can be considered a marketplace of online courses. There are many universities and educational institutes that offer their courses on this platform. Though you will mostly find paid online courses on Coursera, you can audit the course for free sometimes or go for the ‘7 day free trial’ option. You will find courses designed by many popular universities like the University of California, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, University of London, and the University of Michigan. There are short-term courses as well as Specialization programs that involve four or five graduate-level courses in various categories that you can explore.
Open Culture
This platform brings together high-quality cultural and educational media for the worldwide learning community. Founded in 2006, Open Culture hosts 1700 free online courses from top universities, 1000 free audiobooks, 800 free eBooks for Kindle, iPad, and other devices, and MOOCs from Great Universities (many with certificates as well). The online courses you will find here are from top universities like Yale, MIT, Oxford, Harvard, and more. The categories include Humanities and Social Sciences, Architecture, Art and History, Classic, Communication, Demography, Design, Economics and Finance, among others.
Bottom Line
Now that you are familiar with the top detach platforms, explore their course catalogs and decide which course you want to enroll in. These self-paced courses are quite flexible and involve byte-sized videos to keep you engaged throughout. Moreover, your learning isn’t limited to the knowledge of a local trainer, you can learn a subject even from a Harvard faculty sitting at your home. So why not make the most of this opportunity and gain 21st-century skills through these in-depth courses.
