20 Online Courses Platforms to Substitute Going to College
It’s no secret that offline education is losing its popularity. In the modern world, no one has 3 to 5 years of time to get additional education. People want results faster and with a maximum effectiveness. The rise of online study is giving more opportunities to everyone regardless of their upbringing and financial state to get the education of their dream.
The advantages of online studying are obvious: to enroll in a certain course or specialization, you do not need to apply for a scholarship, write essays or go through interviews - now you can simply press a few buttons and get started. Moreover, online courses are predominantly free with some rare exceptions. However, if you want to get a certificate proving that you have successfully passed the online course, you may need to buy it.
Online education covers various fields of study- from computer sciences, linguistics, biology, mathematics, physics, finance, law (both regional and international), to education techniques. Today, most of the online courses platforms also provide the additional option of subtitles in different languages for every course making online education available to everyone regardless of the language a person speak.
Can Online Courses Substitute College?
There are still some controversies concerning the status of online education in comparison to traditional education. Some say that online education has no deep background and you can only find some basic information in certain fields. Many even go as far as saying that higher education is pointless since you can learn pretty much everything on the Internet these days.
Most of the universities and colleges that provide online courses, develop curriculum in the way to cover the most important aspects. Besides, complicated courses usually have several levels (e.g.: introduction, for beginners, for advanced students, etc.)
Of course, online education cannot fully substitute college for students who have problems with time management and self-control. Online education requires total dedication and a permanent desire to study without the additional support of the professor or the classmates. Besides, an online student also needs to complete home assignments, communicate with other students on forums, and study additional literature.
Where to Study Online?
There are multiple platforms providing opportunities for online education. They have different courses and specializations that you can opt for. You just need to have an Internet access and the desire to study online to enroll and complete any of the courses. Below you can see a collection of 20 most popular online platforms for accessible online education.
1. Coursera
One of the biggest platforms with over 2000 courses available. The platform features courses from the best universities and colleges including Stanford University, University of Barcelona, Duke University, UC San Diego, University of Michigan, etc. Subtitles in different languages available for most courses.
2. edX
Over 1200 courses are available here. It features courses from the universities and colleges from all around the world including MITx, HarvardX, BerkeleyX, UTx, Sorbonne Universités, TU Delft, University of Queensland, Australian National University, etc.
3. FutureLearn
450 available courses. Cooperates with University of Bath, Deakin University, University of Cape Town, University of Auckland, University of Bergen, Cardiff University, City University of Hong Kong, etc.
4. Dave Conservatoire
Online platform for studying music and musical arts.
5. Drawspace
Online platform for studying drawing (more than 480 lessons).
6. Codecademy
One of the most popular online platforms for code learning. Provides courses for beginners and advanced users.
7. Stanford Engineering Everywhere
Online platform with computer science, artificial intelligence, and Linear Systems and Optimization courses.
8. Big Data University
Online platform for analytics, big data, and data science courses.
9. HOW Design University
Online platform for studying web design, graphic design, UI/UX design, etc.
10. HTML Dog
Platform for studying HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
11. Skillcrush
Platform providing online coding and web design classes for users of different levels.
12. Udemy
One of the popular platforms featuring courses that cover different fields including marketing, design, programming, etc.
13. Memrise
One of the best platforms to study languages and boost memory.
14. MIT Open Courseware
Provides about 50 real MIT courses with online access.
15. Harvard Extension School: Open Learning Initiative
Offers free Harvard courses for students from all over the world. The courses include ancient history, poetry, computer science, etc.
16. Udacity
Platform proving courses for studying software development.
17. Open Yale Courses
Another world-famous university providing its own courses for free.
18. Howcast
Provides educational videos for different spheres of social life.
19. UC San Diego Podcast Lectures
Audio courses for different fields of studies including biology, ecology, genetics, biochemistry, etc.
20. Canvas Network
Offers an impressive selection of courses in different fields of study.
Each of the above-mentioned online courses platforms reveals huge possibilities for a person who wants to get some complimentary education without the necessity of going to college. One of the best advantages of these courses is that you can enroll to any of them for free and learn it at your own pace. It’s definitely worth to give a try to online education since it’s not really a commitment compared to traditional offline education.
