What are the Best Online Learning Classes for Adults?

Online schooling is not just for kids! One of the trends that emerged early in the coronavirus pandemic lockdown was adult learners seeking out ways to educate and enrich themselves while working and sheltering in place at home. It’s a phenomenon that seems to have staying power.  But what are the best online learning platforms for adults? Our correspondent Julie Chang Murphy has curated a list of the 10 best online learning classes, platforms and educational websites for adults, including art class, music instruction, academic lectures and more. Time to get smart, dear reader.

What are the Best Online Learning Platforms for Adults?

In the honeymoon stage of the coronavirus lockdowns households across America, including mine, imagined cooking gourmet meals, learning a new instrument, starting novels, or at least, getting to the chores that had never taken priority. We’ve learned a lot about ourselves during this time and some habits- like weekly zoom social hours with far-flung relatives or baking homemade focaccia, just might stick around as we enter the latter phases of re-opening.

Although I personally would not wish homeschooling children and remote learning upon my worst enemy, it’s a different story for independent and dexterous adults who can actually type and manipulate a touch pad or mouse. While some of us were patting ourselves on the back for catching up on reading, others decided to be a little extra and take a course or two. One course that captured the zeitgeist was The Science of Well-Being taught by Yale psychology professor, Laurie Santos. The original in-person class attracted more than 1,200 students the first year it was offered and the free, online course on Coursera had a whopping 300,000 people sign up.

It made us wonder what are the best sites and online platforms out there for adults who want to continue learning. Instead of another movie night, consider a filmmaking class from Martin Scorcese on Masterclass. Instead of cooking the same old casserole, consider a class on how to to source, prepare, cook and serve seafood on Rouxbe. You get the idea. And best of all? There are no grades this time around. Ahead, check out our list of the top 10 online learning sites for lifelong learners.

What are the Best Online Learning Platforms for Adults?

1- Masterclass

Masterclass outshines the competition in at least one arena- they have the most famous celebrities turned teachers out of any other platform. Whether you choose to learn about conservation from Dr. Jane Goodall, acting from Natalie Portman, or basketball skills from Stephen Curry, complete access to all classes is available for $15/month. The classes are in the form of sequential video lectures that total anywhere from two to five hours. Think a cross between TED Talk and documentary style confessional.

2- Coursera

Coursera offers nearly 2,000 free adult education courses from some of the world’s most respected and prestigious universities. It is the place to go if you might be interested in a degree or advancing your career. But there’s also plenty to satisfy the person who always regretted not taking art history or philosophy in college. Choose from “What is Contemporary Art?” taught by curators from the Museum of Modern Art or study Game Theory from economics and computer science professors at Stanford. Because all the classes are pre-recorded, you can start whenever it is convenient and go at your own pace. Did we mention that most of the classes are free??

3- Udemy

At 100,000 online video courses, Udemy claims to have the world’s largest library with new additions every month. The content is taught by experts in the field and in addition to catering to individual learners, the site has also been tapped by businesses such as Adidas, Kaiser Permamente, and General Mills to provide educational services to their employees. The interface is one of the easiest and cleanest to navigate which keeps you inspired to take another class- from personal development to photography to coding. Fees are based per course and new students can take a class for as low as $12.99.

4-  Skillshare

For the creatively minded, Skillshare touts teachers who are icons and experts in the visual arts, publishing and design with the added benefit of a community for support and networking. Members can share their work with one another and get instant feedback through likes and comments. And they can also join medium specific groups – for example, the “Watercolor Enthusiasts” has 5,384 members while the group, Creative Business Owners has 10,857 members. Expand your network while learning at the same time. Membership starts at $15 a month or $99 for an annual plan.

5-  Creative Live

Creative Live differentiates itself from the competition by offering free live classes daily. There are usually 8 classes every morning ranging from newborn photography to drum tuning to lessons on how to “end your financial self-sabotage.” Otherwise you can purchase class by class or get a monthly or annual pass. You will be able to access 1500+ lessons taught by Pulitzer Prize winners, best-selling authors and handpicked experts.

6- The Great Courses 

The Great Courses produces college-level classes taught by college professors and came to our attention after reading that it is one of Bill Gates’ favorite sources for great lectures. The courses are available in multiple formats- streaming video or DVD. And apart from videos, you can also listen on Audible at your own leisure or on a long road trip. Each course also includes a printed guidebook with photos and illustrations, suggestion readings and questions to consider. Choose from relevant topics like America’s Long Struggle Against Slavery or The Economics of Uncertainty.

7-  Harvard Extension

If you’ve always wanted to say you went to Harvard, consider the Harvard Extension School. It was founded with the mission to create an affordable way for any motivated student to take courses at Harvard. There are a collection of free videotaped lectures from illustrious Harvard professors on American poetry, Abstract Algebra, and Buddhism, amongst others. There is also an option in some classes to obtain a certificate of completion for an affordable fee. Courses can run anywhere from a 2 to 8 weeks time commitment.

8-  Open Yale Courses 

Open Yale Courses provides lectures and other materials from selected Yale College courses to the public free of charge. Courses span the full range of liberal arts disciplines, including humanities, social sciences, and physical and biological sciences. Each course includes a full set of class lectures produced in high-quality video accompanied by such other course materials as syllabi, suggested readings, exams, and problem sets. The lectures are available as downloadable videos, and an audio-only version is also offered. In addition, searchable transcripts of each lecture are provided. While the breadth of courses may not be as large as some of the other sites, we found it to be one of the most comprehensive, resembling a true undergraduate college course.

9- TED-Ed

The TED-Talk empire hardly needs an introduction and the TED-Ed initiative makes short video lessons worth sharing, aimed at life long learners, young and old. Within TED-Ed’s growing library of lessons, you will find carefully curated educational videos, many of which are collaborations between educators and animators. You won’t get a fully immersive and in-depth class here but it’s perfect for sparking your curiosity about thousands of things you’ve always wondered about like “How does alcohol make you drunk?”, “Why do American’s Vote on Tuesdays?” , or “How to Build an Antiracist World”.

10-  Duolingo 

There is a lot of competition out there for online foreign language learning platforms. We chose Duolingo as our preferred site because quite simply, it makes learning fun. Users first choose between 30+ languages and decide on how many minutes a day they are willing to commit. After taking a short placement test, the attractive and intuitive interface prompts learners to play games, earn coins and unlock new levels by mastering skills. Imagine ditching your addictive iPhone game and replacing it with a new language for the price of a two lattes.

What are the Best Online Learning Platforms for Adults?

Back to school is not only for the month of September or for the kiddos. If you’re up for it, these 10 adult learning platforms make an enriching activity for those long, lazy days of summer, whether you’re taking an online art class for adults, or music instruction, or listening to an academic lecture.

Which one are you going to take first?

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Crediting her training as a cultural anthropologist at Wellesley College, Julie has immersed herself in various industries in the last 15 years including fashion design, event planning, and fitness. Julie lives in New York where she loves trying every ramen and dumpling restaurant with her husband and three children. She finds joy in bold prints, biographies of fierce women, kickboxing. And spending way too long finding the perfect polish color to express her mood.

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