If you are just starting out in your career and beginning a job search or maybe looking to switch fields, you are probably looking for ways to enhance your resume and to improve upon your professional experience and education to make yourself a more attractive job candidate. However, if you are in the process of debt management, going back to school or enrolling in a pricey online course may not be the best option. Instead of making a financial commitment, check these resources first for free online courses, certifications and educational materials.
Check out American Consumer Credit Counseling’s list of resources!
Online Resources
These are just a small selection of many, many free educational resources available online. They’re perfect for continuing your education without getting into credit card debt. Check them out!
- Khan Academy – All of the site’s resources are available to anyone for free. It doesn’t matter if you are a student, teacher, home-schooler, principal, or an adult returning to the classroom after 20 years. The Khan Academy’s library of content includes math, science topics such as biology, chemistry, and physics, economics and finance, arts and humanities, computing, and test prep.
- Coursera – Coursera is an education platform that partners with top universities and organizations worldwide, to offer courses online for anyone to take, for free. They offer courses you can take at your own pace as well as classes that last anywhere from 4 to 12 weeks. Topics include everything from cooking to calculus to languages like Chinese, Spanish, French, and more.
- Open Culture – Similar to Coursera, this website provides access to 1,000 online courses from the world’s leading universities including Stanford, Yale, MIT, Harvard, and more. You can download these audio and video courses straight to your computer. Topics include everything from history to language lessons to economics, architecture, and literature.
- TED-Ed – Most famous for its “TED Talks,”TED-Ed’s award-winning original lessons represent collaborations between expert educators, screenwriters and animators. Each collaboration aims to capture and amplify a great lesson ideas suggested by the TED community.
Resources in Your Local Community
- Visit your local library and check out their educational offerings. Many libraries host workshops and classes for free or at a very low price.
- If you live near a college, you may be able to sit in on college classes (by simply asking the professor or auditing the course for a small fee) that can help you learn a new skill or explore a new subject without having to take out a student loan or further your credit problems.
- Visit your local career center and see if they offer any workshops or training sessions. They often offer services to help you develop your resume and write cover letters.
- Do some research to find free certifications in your specific field. For example, you can take the Google AdWords certification exam for free as well as many others.
If you’re struggling to pay off debt, ACCC can help. Schedule a free credit counseling session with us today.
