Subjects / fields of study: A fairly wide range of subjects are covered (arts, humanities, social science, languages, personal development, economics, business, basic computer, data and physical science, biology, health etc.).
Level: Introductory to intermediate level.
Presenters: Initiated and owned by the well known Open University (Britain’s version of Unisa) and courses are developed by a variety of universities, mainly in the UK. This platform has a strong UK feel, but courses are strongly globally orientated.
Mode of study: Fully online. No need to travel to any venue to attend classes or write tests. You can study from home, work or wherever you like.
Study media: Most courses are completely video based, but many rely heavily on reading material.
Scheduling of classes: Training material can be accessed or downloaded at any time. Lectures are not streamed live. Most courses are open for registration at regular intervals, usually a few months apart although some can be a few years apart or presented only once.
Course duration:
Total study time per week required:
Can course material be accessed for free?: Yes
Can online excercises and assessment be accessed for free?: Yes, completely
Can I receive a certificate for free: No
Cost if I do wish to register for the paid option so that I can be assessed and receive a certificate: US$ 49 per course for most courses.
Can some individual courses be grouped to form a larger qualification, building greater knowledge of the particular topic? Yes, it is called a "program" on this platform. Although the individual courses that it is comprised of can be taken for free, the larger qualification or certificate is not free. Note that we provide suggestions on how free online courses from the different online course platforms can be grouped together, or rather taken into sequance to gradually build your knowledge - see our section on learning paths.
Main strengths:
Main weaknesses:
Website: https://www.futurelearn.com
Mobile app: This platform does not have a mobile app at present, but their website is mobile friendly.
Note: The above course information are generalisations, or estimations for an "average" or "typical" course, and differ from course to course. Make certain about the details of your specific course of interest.