Acquiring new skills will not only help you upgrade your career but also boost your health. As studies showed, continuous learning is one of the most effective ways to protect your brain against aging. Developing new skills also helps us feel more confident about ourselves, increases our sense of well-being and opens doors to new or better professional opportunities.
With the advent of online platforms, mastering new skills and keeping your knowledge up-to-date has become much easier. And the best part is that now you can learn new things when and where it works best for you.
The following is the list of our favorite online learning platforms. Happy learning!
Coursera, coursera.org
Coursera partners with more than 200 world-class universities and companies to bring flexible, affordable, job-relevant online learning to individuals and organizations worldwide. They offer online courses, certifications, specializations and degree programs in a variety of subjects. You can audit many courses for free, but you will have to pay to gain access to graded assignments and earn a course certificate.
EdX, edx.org
Created by Harvard and MIT, edX brings together the majority of top-ranked universities in the world and industry-leading companies onto one online learning platform that supports learners at every stage. Unlike Coursera, which focuses more on IT and business training, edX offers more courses in the humanities and natural sciences. Every course on edX has an end date after which the course is “archived” – it means that you can still view the content of the course, but you can’t get support from the course staff or get a certificate. Most edX courses repeat usually once a year.
Udemy, udemy.com
Udemy offers video courses taught by expert instructors. The platform has more than 130,000 courses in over 2,000 topics available. You can choose among free and paid courses. This learning platform is a good fit for those who want to master new skills and advance their careers as well as pick up a new hobby. For companies, Udemy for Business offers an employee training and development platform with subscription access to 8,500+ courses, learning analytics, as well as the ability to host and distribute their own content. Udemy for Government is designed to upskill workers and prepare them for the jobs of tomorrow.
MasterClass, masterclass.com
MasterClass is the streaming platform where anyone can learn from today’s world-class instructors – Annie Leibovitz, Sara Blakely, Hans Zimmer, etc. With an annual membership, subscribers get unlimited access to instructors and classes across a wide range of subjects including arts & entertainment, writing, business, food, home & lifestyle, music, sports & gaming, and more. Each class features about 20 video lessons, at an average of 10 minutes per lesson. You can learn on your own terms — in bite-sized pieces or binge it all at once. Cinematic visuals and close-up, hands-on demonstrations make you feel one-on-one with the instructors, while the downloadable workbooks help reinforce your learning.
FutureLearn, futurelearn.com
FutureLearn is a leading social learning platform jointly owned by The Open University and The SEEK Group. FutureLearn partners with over a quarter of the world’s top universities and has over 14 million users taking short online courses, microcredentials, undergraduate and postgraduate degrees that improve their working lives. The platform offers two kinds of proof of participation in their courses: Certificates of Achievement and Statements of Participation.
Udacity, udacity.com
Udacity offers courses for individuals, companies and government in tech-related subjects like data science, programming, business, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, etc. Their quality curriculum is designed with top-tier industry partners, not academics, so you learn the high-impact skills that top companies want. The platform allows you to learn by doing with real-world projects and other hands-on exercises that lead to real skills mastery.
Codecademy, codecademy.com
Codecademy offers free coding classes in the most popular programming languages. The platform also offers a “Pro” plan for everyone who wants to gain access to personalized learning plans, quizzes, and realistic projects.
CreativeLive, creativelive.com
CreativeLive is the world’s leading live, online classroom for creative entrepreneurs. The platform offers 1,500+ online classes in such categories as photo and video, money and life, art and design, craft and maker, music and audio.
GoSkills, goskills.com
GoSkills is an online learning platform where you can learn the most in-demand business skills to reach your full potential. With a GoSkills subscription, members receive personalized courses consisting of high quality and to-the-point video tutorials, transcripts, cheat sheets, exercise files and short quizzes. You can earn a verified certificate of achievement for every course you complete.
360training, 360training.com
At 360training, you can easily find the training you need to get certified for your job. This platform offers over 6,000 regulated and non-regulated courses in the areas of instructional design, multimedia engineering, information technology, customer support, content development, environmental health and safety, food and beverage, real estate, human resources, insurance, and many more.
Babbel, babbel.com
Babbel is a platform built for language learners by language learning experts. At the core of Babbel is a world-class, empirically-proven method that enhances language learning with advanced technology. Babbel is the only product to offer courses tailored to your native language, building on grammar and vocabulary you already know. Audio examples and dialogues are recorded with real native speakers, not automated computers, empowering you to speak correctly and confidently. Time tested strategies, such as cognitive research and communicative didactics, optimize how new vocabulary and grammar is received, saved and recalled. Babbel trains your brain to learn constantly and efficiently, so you absorb more information while in the app and continue learning outside of it. You can easily fit language learning into your busy schedule with lessons that take only 10-15 minutes to complete.
Preply, preply.com
Preply is a global language learning marketplace, connecting 30,000+ certified private tutors and native speakers with hundreds of thousands of students from all over the world. The platform also offers a corporate language training program designed for teams and organizations.
About the Author
Natalie Myhalnytska is a founder and editor at Magazine MN, online media and marketing professional. Natalie holds BA in International Economic Relations and writes on topics related to personal development, psychology and wellness.
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