5 free online courses with qualifications to boost your CV
Finding yourself with free time between classes and hoping to use it productively? We’ve found some free online courses that will broaden your skillset and boost your CV.
Trying your hand at some free online courses with qualifications is a brilliant way to keep your brain going during the holidays or between graduation and landing that dream job everyone keeps talking about.
Distance learning can also introduce you to subjects you’ve not had the chance to cover at uni. Plus, taking the initiative to learn something new in your free time is incredible CV material.
And it doesn’t matter if the course doesn’t directly relate to your career plans. Just showing you’re happy to time to something extracurricular to learn a new skill will look great on your CV and impress future employers.
What are the best free online courses?
Here are some of the best online courses that you can do for free:
1. Inbound marketing course with free certification
- Course by – Hubspot Academy
- Duration – Three to four hours
- Qualification – Hubspot Academy’s own certification
- Cost of certificate – Free.
Inbound marketing is something that every business is prioritizing in at least some shape or form. As such, a course in inbound marketing is probably one of the best to complete to get a job shortly after graduation.
Inbound marketing is when businesses use blogs, podcasts, social media, and other off-site methods to direct people to their websites. Essentially, it’s about using innovative methods of getting more traffic onto their website in the hope they’ll attract new customers.
2. Learn basic HTML from home
- Course by – Codecademy
- Duration – Ongoing
- Qualification – Codecademy’s own certification
- Cost of certificate – Around £15/month for annual Pro access, which allows you to get a certificate (eligible students get over 35% off).
Learning code might sound super complicated but, in reality, it’s more about knowing a fairly simple system. We’re talking basic code here.
Everyone from fashion bloggers to journalists and even eBay sellers are coding regularly these days. In fact, we had to use HTML to write this article!
So, it makes sense that you’d want to learn at least the basics of HTML coding before entering the job market. Luckily, free home study courses are available and you can start a course as soon as you find the time.
3. Free software development courses
- Course by – FreeCodeCamp
- Duration – Ongoing (more than 3,000+ hours of courses available)
- Qualification – FreeCodeCamp certificates
- Cost of certificate – Free.
If you enjoy learning basic HTML and want to dive into the world of software development, FreeCodeCamp is the place for you. This non-profit organization has free courses available in almost anything coding-related, from web design and Javascript to front- and back-end development, Python, and more.
In total, there are more than 3,000 hours of courses available. And, best of all, they’re completely free to do. You don’t even have to pay for the certificate after completing the courses and challenges.
4. A course on starting your own business
- Course by – FutureLearn
- Duration – Two weeks (two hours per week)
- Qualification – FutureLearn’s own certification
- Cost of certificate – £34 (to upgrade the course and receive a certificate) or £19.99/month on the Unlimited subscription (but you only get a digital certificate).
This course is offered by the University of Leeds via FutureLearn – a really neat site owned and established by The Open University.
Their ‘Starting a Business program is an online learning course aimed at preparing young people for the business world. It’s technically considered an online taster course for prospective uni students, but it’s open to anyone.
It takes two weeks, and you’re only expected to spend two hours per week on them.
5. A certified course on social media strategy
- Course by – Alison
- Duration – Two to three hours
- Qualification – Alison’s own certification
- Cost of certificate – From around £18.
Social media is now a crucial skill in business, so having a qualification in this will really help you stand out to potential employers.
A certificate in social media strategy will look amazing on your CV. Your knowledge of different online platforms as a young person is already invaluable to businesses, and something that many companies are desperate to tap into.
You’re in the unique position of being able to help businesses better understand younger markets (their future customers, if not their current ones), so use this to your advantage.
