If you’re trying to choose an online course, here are eight criteria you can use to make sure you’re making the right choice,
Thanks to online courses, you can learn almost anything from anywhere. But considering the sheer number of online courses available, deciding which course you should enroll in can be challenging.
To make the selection process simpler for you, here are the eight criteria you should consider when choosing an online course.
Nearly every platform displays reviews and ratings of the course. These reviews, along with the number of students enrolled, can provide a good indication of the course's quality.
Similarly, instructor reviews or introductory videos can also help you learn more about the instructor’s experience and teaching style. An instructor with practical experience and a hands-on approach can help you learn better.
But beware of fake reviews and manipulated ratings, especially if you’re buying a course directly from its website or a lesser-known platform. If you don’t have a knack for spotting fake reviews, the best way to find honest reviews is to make a Google search.
The credibility of the platform or institution matters, especially if you’re enrolling in an academic or a professional course. A quick Google search can help you check the reputation and credibility of any platform.
For institutions or universities, it’s best to check their accreditations, affiliations, and their rankings. Also, prefer institutions that specialize in the subject or the field of your interest.
Before enrolling in any course, make sure that you can devote enough time to it. Mostly, you’ll find the time expectation of any online course in its description.
A key choice is whether you’re interested in instructor-led courses or self-paced ones. Self-paced courses are better for busy people as you can fit them in your schedule rather than planning your day around them. So if you’re disciplined enough to complete the self-paced course, it may work better for you.
On the other hand, instructor-led courses offer much more interaction, as the instructor is usually live and takes real-time comments. But you’ve to follow a set schedule and have to keep those hours free.
Every course is designed for a different audience. For example, you can teach the same programming course to a non-coder and a seasoned programmer.
To see if the course is for you, view the course prerequisites and make sure you meet them. If you enroll in a course unsuitable for your level, you’ll either waste your time watching beginner-level videos or won’t understand the advanced concepts.
Most online learning platforms have filters for the course difficulty level such as, beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Every course description mentions the prerequisites and the potential beneficiaries. Furthermore, don't forget to check the language of the course and if it has subtitles.
Course content will help you understand the learning outcomes and whether they align with your personal and professional goals.
Most online courses show the module-wise and lecture-wise breakdown, which can help you understand exactly what you'll learn. Knowing the learning outcomes makes it easier to compare different courses and choose the one suitable for you.
Moreover, consider the resources that the course provides to you. These can be anything from practice exercises and library resources to career advice.
Professional certificates can open more opportunities for you in your career. So if you’re taking an online course for your career, it’s vital to check if you will receive any certification or accreditation after completing the course.
Mostly, all paid courses offer some sort of certification. But you should see if the certificate can help you land your dream job, or at least help you stand out from others. For this reason, it’s better to enroll in a course from a reputed institution.
But if you’re pursuing a course for recreational purposes, a certificate won’t be of much value to you.
An online course should not feel like a boring college lecture. Thanks to the latest web technologies, it’s simple to provide an active learning experience to students. So, a good online course should offer you a chance to interact with the instructor and the content.
Quizzes and exercises are common in most courses and can be useful for gauging your proficiency and recalling information.
Another thing that matters is the interaction you get to have with your fellow learners. Reputed open universities usually have a forum on their websites where students have discussions and share their learnings.
The price of online courses varies significantly. So, the only way to check if the course is reasonably priced is to see the value it offers to you and how does its price compare with the other similar courses.
If you’re taking a professional course, these three questions can help to figure out if the course is worth your money:
However, if you’re enrolling in a course for your personal endeavors or hobby, you should figure out how much you can spend on your interests.
Whatever the price, make sure you compare the cost of different courses before choosing one. Moreover, you can use tools like the Honey Chrome extension to find coupons and save a few bucks. If you’re enrolling in beginner-level courses, chances are you can find a good one for free or nominal charges.
With so many choices available, selecting the right online course for you isn’t a simple task. There are multiple things to consider like reviews, platforms, flexibility, price, and certifications.
So, whenever you decide to buy your next online course, either for your career goals or your hobby, make sure to choose it wisely. There are some online tools that you can use to speed up your hunt for your next online course.
You should never stop learning. Start learning new skills with the help of the right online courses and study partners.
Born and based in Pakistan, Syed Hammad Mahmood is a writer at MakeUseOf. Since his childhood, he has been surfing the web, finding tools and tricks to make the most out of the latest technologies. Besides tech, he loves football and is a proud Culer.
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