The self development journey with MOOCs
MOOCs → Massive Open Online Courses
I love the opportunities that technology and the internet afford us, the connections that are made possible. I have found myself away from home for a longer part of my life (18 years and counting). And I sometimes imagine what life would look like if we still had to rely on mailing letters to communicate with loved ones 😧. Thank God for instant messages, calls and especially video calls 💃!!!
Another aspect of life that has been revolutionized by the internet is education and learning. It is mind-blowing the amount and wealth of information that is available on the internet, and it also, without a doubt, can be overwhelming.
So in this article, I will share three of my favourite platforms for learning new things and how to apply for financial aid on one of these platforms.
1. edX
edX is a platform founded by Harvard and MIT. It is home to 3,000+ courses, and I particularly appreciate the diversity of courses made available on this platform. From accounting, creative arts and entrepreneurship to data science, engineering and mathematics courses. Access the platform here.
I know, like me, you might not have the resources to pay for all these platforms. Thankfully there is a free (audit) option available. For edX, this enrollment option is for a limited time. So if you decide to audit a course on edX, ensure you go through it before your access expires and you loose learning progress made.
2. Udacity
Udacity is my second favourite MOOC platform, mainly offering tech courses such as programming, data science, product management, etc. A unique offering from Udacity are the nanodegrees, which are which are a pack of courses towards becoming specialized in a topic.. For instance, they have the Data Engineer or Product Manager nanodegrees.
These nanodegrees are usually paid for. However, you can apply for various scholarships to gain sponsored access to them.
There are, however, a lot of free individual courses that you can explore here on Udacity. Also, free career courses are available focused on topics like writing a resume, cover letter or optimizing your LinkedIn network.
3. Coursera
The last and my favourite is Coursera 💃. It offers courses in diverse fields, from computer science to nutrition to writing. It has 2,584 free courses available; you can access them here. These free courses come with no expiration on the access ⬆️. So, for example, you are interested in enrolling on the Writing in the Sciences course.
The first step is to click the Enroll for Free button, as shown above. Next, select the Full Course, No Certificate option and continue as shown in the image below.
And there you are, ready to begin learning.
But I know you want to obtain a certificate to communicate your learning on LinkedIn or just in your resume. This is where the financial aid granted by Coursera comes in handy. To enroll for a course and get a certificate of learning for free, click on Financial aid available instead of Enroll for Free as shown below.
Follow the prompts and fill in the application form; it is easy and straightforward. Take note of the number of words (150) required and ensure you have up to that. The application usually takes about 15–21 days to be granted. Once it’s granted, you can begin learning and obtain a certificate at the end.
Are you a student? Coursera has a special offer for you called Coursera for students. Check it out here.
Now that we’ve come to the end of this article, I especially thank you for taking out time to read it. I hope you found it helpful. I also encourage you to explore these platforms. Find a course to help you advance your career or learn something new, and start your self-development journey with MOOCs.
Cheers 🎉