Henry Ford once said, “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” The message still holds ground, maybe more today than in the past. Even the learning resources available today are much more aligned towards the thought. The courses available today are on such a wide-ranging skill set that they can come in handy even for a career change. We have put together a list of seven of the best home learning courses that you may like to choose from if you want to try something new.
Digital Marketing
A major shift started some time back in the way companies promote themselves and engage with their customers. Digital marketing is at the core of this shift that lets companies reach their prospects through numerous channels and track almost every aspect of their marketing efforts. Gaining knowledge in digital marketing is not just for the marketing professionals; almost anyone can benefit from the opportunities that open up with this skill set.
Digital marketing is a broad term and includes several specialized skills that can be pursued further separately if you are keen on a career in that area. Fundamentals of digital marketing offered by Google will give you a head start in learning about the field. The course starts with a brief on the online opportunity and takes you through building a web presence to promote it through paid advertising.
It gives you exposure in search engine marketing, display advertisements, and search engine optimization. Local SEO is also discussed and highlights the power of reaching people based near your business location. There are sections on social media marketing, mobile web, content marketing, and email marketing. You also get to know about data analytics and its use in understanding your customers.
There are many more sections that collectively give you a good understanding of the digital marketing landscape. These courses are modular and allow you to take them up in any order you like. At the end of a module, you can appear for a test and qualify to get a certificate.
Requirement: The course is open to everyone, and there are no prerequisites.
Data Science
Data science careers are very highly paid, and one of the most in-demand, but those should not be the only reasons to learn data science. The skills acquired by learning data science are useful for anyone who wants to make a data-driven decision in almost any industry. Data science is being used in the healthcare industry to get insight from imaging data and improve the accuracy of diagnosis. In the business environment, data science has found applications in gaining better customer insight, financial fraud management, prediction of market trends and more.
Data science is a vast field, but if you want to get some foundation knowledge, there is a free course on Great Learning. However, the Post Graduate Program in Data Science and Engineering from Great Lakes Executive Learning and Great Learning is better suited if you are keen on a career in data science. The comprehensive contents of the course are compelling enough for us to include it in our list of seven of the best home learning courses.
The course is completely online, covering almost everything you would need to start in the role of a data scientist. You get to learn the basics of Python to advanced skills in machine learning and applications of data science. At the end of the course, you employ the techniques you learned in the capstone project. The course includes career preparation and campus placement opportunities.
Requirement: If you are in the final semester or a graduate with up to 3years of experience, then you can apply for the admission process.
Software Development
If you like the idea of solving real-world problems through software solutions, then your interest may land you in a very lucrative career. Software development has been in demand for a long time and there is no sign of that demand slowing down in the future. From voice recognition to self-driven cars, software is at the core of a product’s functionality and their use is only going to increase. You cannot go wrong with software development skills under your belt.
To get started with software development, you can start with one of the languages like Python, Java, C++, or Javascript. Any one of them that draws your interest is good but based on the demand and ease of learning, Python checks all the boxes. It has been used in web development as well in data science.
Software Development course by Great Learning, makes you familiar with programming, data types, operators, control flow, functions, and scripting. If you like your initial experience with programming and wish to advance in the field, you can take professional courses to enhance your skills.
Requirement: There is no requirement, but you can get some background information on programming here.
Project Management
We may not realize it, but our life is filled with projects in which we invest time, energy, money, and other resources. Projects in the business world also need similar input but on a much larger scale. Project management professionals manage a variety of projects like those related to software development, construction, events, manufacturing, to name a few.
Project management as a skill is also highly desirable in most professionals as it helps them improve productivity through proper resource utilization. Learning project management hones your skills in optimizing the use of available resources in your area of work.
There are several project management courses, and you can even get certified by the Project Management Institute to highlight your proficiency in the domain. However, if you wish to understand the basics to see if you have the aptitude for it, then you may consider the Free Project Management Course by Great Learning. The course has several modules including team management, project communication, stakeholder management, budgeting, project performance, and so on.
Requirement: The course is open to everyone
Cybersecurity
Cyber attacks are real and affect several businesses regularly. It’s a challenging task to monitor the threats and eliminate the possibility of cyber-attacks. The industry needs more professionals than currently available, and the demand is bound to grow as cyber warfare gains traction worldwide.
Even at the individual level, it’s important to understand cybersecurity to be able to protect your personal devices and network. The need for each of us to learn at least the minimum required to know our vulnerabilities cannot be overstated. That is one reason we included this in our list of seven of the best home learning courses. Great Learning has several free courses on the topic, but you can start with Introduction to Cyber Security that acquaints you with the initial knowledge you need.
Requirement: Open to everyone.
Graphic Designing
Most of us respond extremely well to visual stimuli and that is one reason why we see graphic designs all around us. Packaging designs, branding, social media posts all incorporate elements of graphic designing to communicate with their audience. Even business presentations have evolved from their dry look to being creative. Data insights are not just numbers and graphs anymore as they get presented in the form of infographics.
You may or may not want to be a graphic designer, but a little creativity is helpful in any line of work. Unlike popular belief, creativity doesn’t have to be a natural talent, and anyone can learn the graphic design principles for their work. The free course offered by Alison will not make you a star designer but is good to start your journey. You get to explore design elements and principles, drawing systems, the visual communication process that will lead you into using the skill in your work or for a hobby.
Requirement: The course is open to everyone.
Blogging
Over 5 million new blogs were created in Q1 of 2021 on WordPress alone, as per Worldometers. Blogging is a powerful tool that has consistently improved the ROI for businesses that incorporate it. Apart from empowering businesses, it is an excellent way to express your thoughts and creativity. In addition to improving your communications skills, it may become a source of additional income. The Internet is full of success stories of people who started a blog as a hobby and made it into a full-time business. That takes time, but it’s best to start now.
Great Learning offers blogging course free on blogging which will teach you to create a blogging strategies and quality content that pulls in your audience. These courses are full of lessons, videos, and quizzes that will guide you to progress in the popular world of blogging.
Requirement: Just an interest in blogging is enough.
