Working from home means no commute and a little extra time to brush up on professional development. But with several great services out there, it can be difficult to choose the one that’ll suit you best. With that in mind, here’s a look at five of the most popular options.
LINKEDIN LEARNING: NEXT-GEN BUSINESS WITH A DASH OF CREATIVITY
LinkedIn Learning started out as a popular independent site called Lynda.com. Its three main course categories are business, technology, and creative. There are more than 15,000 courses on offer here, all taught by “instructors with real-world experience,” according to the site’s tagline. There’s a definite tech vibe throughout, so look here first if you’re already in the industry and want to level up a bit or perhaps change roles within your company. There are a handful of free courses available, with unlimited access starting at $30 per month.
EDX: UNIVERSITY LEARNING WITHOUT THE TUITION
If you long for the halcyon days of college life (well, minus all the fun social stuff), then edX is a great first stop. A joint effort from 140 top colleges, universities, and companies around the globe, the site offers thousands of free courses covering just about every subject imaginable. Courses can be searched by subject, provider, program type, level, language, and more, with popular offerings spanning everything from computer science to humanities. There are full, for-pay programs and degrees available as well, but if you’re looking for free, self-paced, and high-quality schooling, there’s plenty of it right here.
UDEMY: À LA CARTE LEARNING
Maybe you’re not ready to jump headfirst into a monthly professional development subscription or grind your way through an entire college course. That’s okay: Udemy is here for you, with more than 100,000 courses that can be purchased one by one. Classes are offered across business, design, photography, development, marketing, IT, software, and professional development, and start at around $11 a pop. Best of all, each class is offered with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
CODECADEMY: LEARN TO PROGRAM LINE BY LINE
Seasoned software developers know what Codecademy has to offer. But if you’re looking to get into the backbone of information technology, then this is a great place to learn. There are several foundation classes, such as ones on HTML, Java, C++, and other languages, and basic courses are free. Once you’re hooked, the Pro version runs $240 per year and serves up additional content, exercises, quizzes, and real-world projects the likes of which you might find while on the job.
KHAN ACADEMY: A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING FOR A WHOLE LOT OF NOTHING
So we’ve gotten to the end of the list and you still haven’t quite figured out what you want to learn. Perfect: Khan Academy could be the place for you. Yes, this site definitely skews to school-aged learners, but there’s plenty to keep grown-ups engaged as well: courses in economics, history, science, entrepreneurship, programming, finance, and a whole lot more—all for free. Whether you coasted through school without really applying yourself, you want to learn something new, or you’re looking to freshen up on your favorite subjects, you’ll probably find something here worth exploring.
