BUSINESS, FINANCE & MANAGEMENT
F L E S R U O Y N I INVEST rs
E
ntrepreneurs and small business owners are never truly done learning, and continually gaining new knowledge and skills is vital for your professional growth. Thanks to the arrival of massive open online courses (MOOCs), which offer free online courses available to anyone, you can now access these resources from the comfort of your own home or workplace and at your own pace. These online courses provide an affordable and flexible way to learn new skills and advance yourself and your business. From basic accounting skills to new marketing strategies, these courses will help you invest in yourself and, in turn, take your business to the next level. Online education can offer you a wealth of information so go on, give yourself an edge.
Three Institutions Offering Free Online Courses Wits University – www.edx.org The University of Witwatersrand offers MOOCs through non-profit online learning provider edX.
How it works Go to the edX website and start browsing through the long list of courses by selecting the subject you’re interested in. Make use of the “Availability” option to refine your search. Read through the course prerequisites and time commitment before selecting your choice. Then, register for the course and start studying. Everything is done online, including classes, quizzes and exams.
Free courses All edX courses are free; however, a verified certificate does require a small fee and you’ll need to verify your identity by submitting a copy of your official ID.
What you’ll learn The outcomes of each course are dependent on their degree of difficulty: introductory, intermediate and advanced. For example, the Introduction to Project Management course is at the introductory level and outcomes include gaining core knowledge and applied skills, and understanding why today’s projects are more complex.
Time investment The length of time a course requires is dependent on your choice of course. The average course length is eight to ten weeks, with a study commitment of at least eight hours a week.
internationally accredited qualifications and has worldclass resources. Unisa now offers free online courses in African languages, giving learners the opportunity to improve their communication skills by removing language barriers. As an entrepreneur and business owner, understanding and speaking different African languages can be very beneficial.
Image: Shutterstock
r small business owne
ifications fo Short courses and qual
How it works Go to Unisa’s free online courses and select the African language you would like to learn first. The course systematically takes you through the vocabulary of a particular theme, showing a video clip at the end of each theme, in which the context of the given vocabulary is demonstrated. These are not certified courses, but a means to better understand the African people. The free language courses include Sesotho sa Leboa (Sepedi), Sesotho, Setswana, isiXhosa and isiZulu.
Time investment Go online and learn at your own pace.
Alison – www.alison.com Alison is a strong online learning community, filled with free, high-quality courses. Alison aims to empower users to improve their economic and personal circumstances through knowledge and skills development.
How it works You start by deciding what it is you want to learn, then browse Alison’s courses and find the one you’re interested in. Once you’ve found your course, you have to register your free account and click on the “start course” button. Alison offers 750 free certificate or diploma courses.
Time investment The length of time a course requires is dependent on your choice of course. The effort for further education can seem impossible to achieve, but you can open yourself up to new ways of thinking and keep ahead of the latest business trends through online learning.
Unisa – www.unisa.ac.za Unisa is a flexible open distance learning institution, motivated by the digital age. It offers www.spotongmag.co.za
19
