Free Online Classes to Improve Your Career

New year resolutions aside, there has never been a better time to fine-tune your skills.

Beside looking flipping awesome on your resume, it can even get you a neat little bump in salary. Take cloud certification for example, Global Knowledge Survey revealed a certificate was found to boost the salaries of such professionals by an incredible 25.9%.

With such an abundance of online courses to choose from, and some only take one hour, there are no excuses.

All of the classes below are free, and accessible online only so you can do it on your lunch, on the train or even from your bed if you so wish.

Learn to Code

Where: HTML and CSS by Codecademy

Oh and if you want to go one step further, check out the JavaScript, Codecademy.

These courses all start with a free introduction level that will give a great insight into the basics to see if it’s for you.  From CSS Setup essentials to a beginners guide to HTML, they are wildly popular as a great place to start.

Duration: 8 Lessons over 5 Weeks

Become a better writer

Where: Make Your Writing Stand Out in 8 Easy Steps by Udemy

Learn the fundamentals of being an engaging, persuasive, and professional writer—no matter what you’re writing—from a true writing expert. Plus, you can finish this short class easily in a day.

Duration: 2 hours / 23 lectures

Nail the Art of Selling

Where: Inbound Sales Certification Course by Hubspot

Even if you don’t work in sales, learning methodology can help with marketing, communication and relationship building. Understand what the inbound sales movement is all about, using a four-stage process. From identifying a lead to advising customers. Plus you’ll walk away with a shiny certificate.

Duration: 3 hours / 5 classes

Learn Photoshop from Scratch

Where: Learn Adobe Photoshop From Scratch, Udemy

This introductory course covers the basics involved with using Photoshop. You’ll be up and running in no time, from the marquee tool in detail, feather a selection, or refine edge command – you’ll know it all by the time you leave. Great for social, front end and pasting your mate’s faces onto your favourite memes.

Duration: 8 hours/ 36 lectures

Become a Google Analytics Wizard

Where: Google Analytics, ALISON

There are lots of courses out there, so it’s important to find the right course for your stage. For beginners, this one covers all the fundamentals. From paid keywords to keywords that bring high traffic.  All you need to do is make sure you have a website to connect an account to practice with, and you’re good to go!

Duration: 1-2 hours

Make a Website

Where: Make a Website, Codecademy

Everything you see on a website is a result of the combination of HTML and CSS. With these two languages, you will have the skills you need to bring your website design to life.  You’ll also learn the fundamentals of web development in the process. We can’t guarantee your site will be the next Amazon though.

Duration: 4 Modules to complete

Learn the Skills of an Entrepreneur

Where: Becoming an Entrepreneur, edX

Is there a side project you’ve been meaning to kick off? Or just enjoy learning the lay of the startup land? This class will give you all the tools you need to get started, from planning your goals to designing and testing your product idea.

Duration: 6 weeks/ 2 hours a week

Design Super Slick Pages

Where: Fundamental UI Design, InVision

These weekly courses will teach you how to make all your design projects awesome. You’ll cover design process mastery, hierarchy, designing user behaviours, information architecture, responsive design, navigation and control design, conversion, onboarding, and visual style.

It’s free to sign up, and the content is delivered weekly to consume in your own time.

Improve your Grammar

Where: Fundamentals of English Grammar, Alison

Whether you’re a blog post writer or a frequent email, you can’t get away with poor grammar. Start from the ground up with courses in grammar fundamentals, vocabulary, and more. This course examines spelling, grammar and punctuation including commas, colons, adverbs and prepositions, meaning you will be able to write English more confidently – enhancing both your personal and professional skills.

Duration: 2 – 3 hours