Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the popularity of MOOCs has continued to grow.
With so many courses covering the same subjects, though, choosing the right one can become a bit of a hassle.
What should you look for in an online course? How do employers view online certificates? And how do you know whether a course is worth your time and money?
That’s what this blog post is about.
Reason for the Widespread Popularity of Online Certification Courses
Accessibility
Because these courses are offered online, they are accessible to a much wider audience compared to traditional classroom courses.
To take an online certification course, all you need is an internet connection and a computer, tablet, or a phone.
Also, this makes the learning process less stressful. You don’t have to sit through a lecture, write everything down, and constantly worry about the things you might have missed while taking notes.
If something is unclear, you can usually go back to the content and review it.
University Associations
The academic credibility of MOOCs has increased since they began to partner with different universities across the globe.
Faculty members at these universities are now developing these courses. Most of the certificates offered by these courses come directly from the universities, not from the MOOC platforms. This is a tremendous advantage for many students.
Cost-Effective
Online certification courses, unlike traditional classroom courses, do not require the same investment in both physical infrastructure and maintenance.
This means that MOOCs are more cost-effective to offer at scale.
So, for learners, the cost of taking a class online is much lower than the cost of attending a traditional class. On top of this, some online platforms offer financial aid to students.
Benefits of Online Certification Courses
Here are some of the benefits of taking online certification courses.
Skills Enhancement
Online courses might not yet have reached the same status as traditional degrees, but they serve as an excellent means of developing and sharpening your skills as you progress in a chosen industry.
Self-Paced
Since many online courses are designed to be self-paced, you can continue your education on your own schedule. In case you miss some lectures and cannot complete quizzes or take exams, you may be able to adjust your schedule and complete them at a later time. This flexibility is a great advantage when taking a part-time course.
University Credit
Some online courses offer university credits that may count toward your degree. For some, this is a huge advantage.
For example, taking credit-bearing MOOCs from an accredited college and transferring the credits to your primary college is hugely beneficial for students who want to attend summer classes but live too far away from their college or summer workplace. Students can earn college credit while still enjoying their vacation or doing a summer job.
Customized Learning
Online courses afford you the means of customizing your learning. You can choose what you want to study.
There are specialization programs that include a specific number of courses. Some of the courses included in one specialization may also be included in another specialization.
So, if you decide to earn a certificate in another specialization, you do not have to take all the courses over again. This is extremely practical and logical. And at the end of the day, it will make things easier and reduce the time it takes to learn something new and earn another certificate.
Perception of Online Courses and MOOCs Among Employers
Before 2010, hiring managers used to prefer job candidates with traditional degrees over those with online ones. One reason for this was that online certification courses were generally seen as “skill-gap-filling” courses. They were not always seriously considered during recruitment. But with the growing popularity of online courses since then, the overall quality and recognition of these courses have improved dramatically.
So now, there is a tendency to consider online courses valuable additions both in industry recruitment and in academia. MicroMasters programs offered through edX are a good example of this. Also, MOOCs targeting narrow areas of study, such as Python programming, data visualization, and cybersecurity risk management, are more likely to attract the attention of employers.
How to choose the best MOOC for you?
Choose the right provider
Choosing the right provider influences the value and reputation of the certificate you earn from a MOOC. Some online platforms provide verified certificates upon successful completion. Coursera and edX are two of the best-known choices for earning an online certificate. That said, earning a certificate should not be the ultimate goal of taking an online course.
There are extremely good courses on online platforms that do not provide a certificate at the end, including courses from MIT OpenCourseWare and Open Yale Courses. Taking these courses is also worth the effort and time.
At the end of the day, the skills you gain and your ability to demonstrate them matter more than the number of certificates you earn from MOOCs.
Choose the right industry
Since MOOCs are on average affordable and easy to follow, with flexible deadlines, students tend to take courses that are not relevant to their field of study or industry. This is not to say that taking non-relevant courses is not worth the effort.
But they may not be worth the time and money. As an example, if you are taking two courses that are extremely relevant to your field of study or industry, it would be fine to take a short course, perhaps four to six hours long, alongside them.
But if you have an extremely tight schedule, even avoiding these types of courses altogether might be a good idea. Doing your research before starting a MOOC is extremely important.
Choose the right course
Even if you are focused on a specific area of study and have chosen it wisely, choosing the right course can still be a bit of a challenge. As an example, if you want to take a course in data science and are completely new to the field, you should first get a basic idea of the programming languages and software used in data science.
Most data science courses offered by top online platforms focus on a specific programming language or software package. The most common choices are (1) R, with RStudio, and (2) Python. The fundamentals of data science can be learned through courses based on either, but the question is: which one is the better choice for you, considering your future goals?
If you are planning to follow an academic path, data science courses focused on R might be the right choice, particularly for fields that rely heavily on statistics. But if you are planning to work in industry, Python-based data science courses might be the better choice.
This goes to show that doing your research before starting a MOOC is as important as completing the course itself.
