If you’ve reached a cap on where you are in your career but you want to keep moving up, you will need some new skills. Most of us can’t just go back to school, so we have to find other ways to gain education and add to our resumes.
Luckily, we live in a digital age. We can find pretty much anything we need online, including training for a new career.
Whether you want to climb the ladder or find a whole new field of work, online training platforms are where it’s at.
Top 11 Online Training Platforms
These eleven training platforms are the ones worth looking at. Some are free, some are paid, and some come with free trials and an upgrade option.
Whatever the price, it’s always good to invest in yourself. Check these out and see which might help you advance in your career.
1. Coursera
Coursera is like an online university, technical college, and career training school in one. Whether you’re just trying to brush up on the new developments in your field or you need a whole new degree, you can do it on Coursera.
They also offer many resume-worthy certifications. Most courses take about four to twelve weeks to complete, but you complete them at your own pace so you can take as long as you need.
Of course, most classes are billed monthly, so you’ll want to complete them as fast as you can to save some money. Since many classes are free for the first fourteen days, you may be able to complete certification at no cost!
Coursera offers certifications that would bolster the resume of anyone looking to climb the corporate ladder.
2. EdX
This online platform was co-founded by Harvard and MIT, so you know their courses are top-notch. Many of them are free but they don’t come with certification.
If you are looking to get something measurable from your training, EdX offers affordable accreditations for those looking to improve their career.
They understand that most people taking their courses will be working a full-time job, so they allow you to work at your own pace. They want to take the excuse, “I just don’t have the time” off the table.
This online training platform partners with top universities to offer a variety of classes to the online public. Their patented MicroBachelors and MicroMasters programs cut through the excess of traditional schools and focus on providing actionable education.
3. General Assembly
If you are the type that likes to try things out before you buy, you’ll love General Assembly. They offer free introductory courses to many of their online certification programs, so you can decide if it’s right for you before committing.
There are several General Assembly locations that offer face-to-face classes, too.
General Assembly was created to help digital professionals learn and develop new skills. Some of their most popular courses include UX design, digital marketing, and project management.
This online platform offers workshops that are as short as a couple of hours for the uber-busy person. This little snippet of education can still be useful when you need to stay informed or are curious about evolving technology.
4. Udemy
From musical instruments to oil painting to succulent planting, Udemy teaches it all!
This online learning platform isn’t just for professionals looking for career education. They offer a wide variety of classes that cover just about any topic.
For instance, they offer one course called 2020 Career Hacking, which is especially pertinent to this article since its whole purpose is to help you find the best job for your skillset.
Unlike many of its competitors, when you buy a course from Udemy, you have access to the course and all of its contents for the rest of your life. No time limits here!
5. Skillshop by Google
Google certainly isn’t left out of the digital learning loop. In fact, to help professionals use their business suite and all of their online tools, they have created their own online workshops.
They also offer certifications for many of their tools, and having a Google certification on your resume is a big plus for any job seeker.
Looking for an app that will help you learn things on the go? The Google Primer app will help you learn business tools and online marketing from the palm of your hand!
6. LinkedIn Learning
Anyone who wants to be known as an expert in their field should have a strong LinkedIn profile.
But did you know that this popular site has an online learning division that offers courses from some of the very professionals who market themselves on LinkedIn?
If you would like to check it out, you can try it for free for 30 days. After that, you can choose to pay a monthly fee, annual fee, or just decline to continue.
Many of their courses, especially those that come with an official certification, are only available for paid members. However, there are still plenty of free ones for everyone else.
7. Alison.com
If you know that you need more training but are unsure where to start, Alison.com is your best bet. They’ll assess your career and goals to help you find the courses that’ll benefit you most.
They have free courses in many different fields, but they also offer diplomas and certifications free of charge. Of course, these aren’t university diplomas but professional nonetheless.
Alison.com offers guidance for those at every career development stage, whether you are just starting out or reaching for the top of the ladder.
8. Skillshare
Skillshare is all about sharing your strengths and helping others grow in their careers. This platform is broken down into three main categories: Create, Build, and Thrive.
Courses in the “Create” category include things like photography, creative writing, and graphic design. The “Build” category contains courses on marketing and business skills. The “Thrive” category is meant to help you increase your productivity and achieve your personal goals.
You can join for a free seven-day trial and then pay about $100 per year for unlimited learning. They even offer team plans for business owners who want to offer courses to their employees.
9. Pluralsight
Pluralsight is dedicated to teaching others about everything technology-based. They offer courses in:
- Software development
- IT
- Creative & marketing
- Business
- Data
- Architecture, engineering, & construction
- Product design & manufacturing
- Films, games, & VFX
- Information & cybersecurity
Their curriculum is structured in a series of learning paths. Some courses lead to learning new skills while others will earn you a certification. If you’ve wanted to up your digital skills, this online learning platform is for you.
They have hours upon hours of courses, allowing you to dive deep into the technology programs you want to learn.
Their most useful feature is called the Role-IQ, which guides you toward courses that’ll help you in your specific job role. It suggests courses that’ll push you to the next level in your career to help you reach your professional goals.
Pluralsight offers two plans to choose from: Skills and Flow.
The Skills plan is built to help you master new skills and show off the ones you have. Flow is made to help teams maximize productivity. Both come with a free 10-day trial.
10. Future Learn
This flexible online learning platform offers courses, certifications, and degrees from top universities and industry experts.
You have three choices in how you learn with this platform:
- You can learn for free by taking as it is being offered (and for two weeks after)
- You can upgrade to get access to that course for as long as it stays on Future Learn, then get a certificate of completion when you are done.
- If you want complete access to all courses, you can purchase an Unlimited Plan, which will give you access to multiple courses for as long as you like, and you will get certificates for each that you pass.
Future Learn also partners with universities across the globe so you can earn a degree online. Each degree has its own tuition cost and length of study.
11. Masterclass
If you take a class with this online platform, you just might see someone you recognize. Many of their courses are taught by celebrities!
Would you like to learn about film direction from Ron Howard? Or to learn about the basics of cooking from Gordon Ramsay? Hopefully, he doesn’t call you an “idiot sandwich” on the course!
These are available on Masterclass, and all for just $15 per month.
Conclusion
Accessibility and convenience are two things that all eleven of these online training platforms have in common. Most of them are also either free or very affordable.
In this digital world, if you are driven enough, there’s nothing that can stop you from gaining the knowledge and skills you need to get the job of your dreams.
Check out these online training platforms and see which ones fit into your budget and time constraints, then sign up today. You’re just a few courses away from improving your career by Sycamore Education
Caitlin Sinclair is the Property Manager at Harmony 3900, a community of luxury apartments in Salt Lake City, UT.