With many people around the world stuck at home, unsure of the future of their jobs and careers, is there anything they can do to put themselves in a better position to succeed?
The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has left many workers in a perpetual state of limbo when it comes to their career. Many have been able to work from home, waiting for the day they can return to the office, while countless others have been furloughed or are without work all together, without the opportunity to find new employment.
Is there anything that can be done to help their future employment potential?
Luckily for them, and you, there is. There are many companies that offer extensive selections of free or inexpensive courses that have been specially designed to be completed completely online. Many of these courses are taught by experts and professors who are renowned in a variety of fields.
Udemy
Established in 2010, Udemy is one the most famous sites that offers online courses. Boasting over 150,000 courses offered by over 57,000 instructors, Udemy covers a multitude of areas from programming and IT to business and finance. There are many free courses offered for your personal and professional progression, with a large selection of paid courses as well, which offer a certificate of completion.
edX
Founded in 2012 by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, edX is an online non-profit organization that offers free courses from 140 higher education institutions around the world. Backed by these universities, edX also offers paid courses that count for college credit as part of their MicroBachelors and MicroMasters programs. Full Bachelors and Masters degrees are also available, as well as professional certifications.
Coursera
Not to be outdone by their East Coast counterparts, computer science professors Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller at Stanford University launched Coursera in 2012. Like edX, Coursera offers courses from top Ivy League universities like Yale and Penn, while also partnering with companies like IBM and Google. Coursera has many free courses to offer, as well as paid degree and certificate programs through its partners.
Udacity
Focused more on computer sciences and programming, Udacity courses have been designed by tech companies like Amazon Web Services and Lyft. Udacity sets itself apart from other online learning companies and organizations by specializing in a certain field, allowing partner companies to help shape curriculum so that students can learn skills that fill their needs.
Skillshare
Shying away from the purely academic, Skillshare is a platform designed to connect learners with experienced professionals and creators in a variety of fields. Based more on projects and interaction, Skillshare favors a creative approach to learning for people wanting to expand their skills in areas like graphic design and marketing, to name a few. Many courses are available for free, with the option for a premium subscription.
