Your ultimate guide to online courses

by Rachel Smith
22 May 2020

Updated Feb 2024

Got some time on your hands and thinking about upskilling? The good news is, there are millions of online courses out there to suit. And whether you want to do an hour-long seminar, a part-time intensive course or a full university degree, you’ll find all of that and more online.

We’ve searched high and low for the best resources, courses and e-learning platforms to get you started. Feel free to contact us if there’s a great course we should add to this list.

Writing / copywriting

Editing

SEO

Digital marketing

Lead generation, running a business

  • Ed Gandia’s Hidden Gold: 39 Proven (yet overlooked!) ideas for landing profitable work quickly is super affordable. Ed’s podcast is a great one to subscribe to, as well.
  • Paul Jarvis’ runs Creative Class which is all about running your freelance business better. You currently have to join the wait-list.
  • Blogging for Business is an intensive course run by Hustle + Heart that’ll teach you how to get found on Google, educate your prospects and illustrate your expertise.
  • The Freelance Jungle Patreon (costs from $3.50/month) includes a private jobs group and a heap of educational resources for running your own business – exclusive to Patreon members.

Content marketing

Online course platforms

  • Coursera is a great go-to learning platform, with many of the units and modules offered for free.
  • Future Learn offers a  whole gamut of subjects, all online, including science writing, digital marketing and podcasting.
  • LinkedIn Learning has an almost endless list of courses relating to writing, SEO and marketing. You may find it’s free if you have a membership to your local library – check with yours to find out.
  • EdEx offer a range of online courses from around the world.
  • Open Universities offers the opportunity to study stand-alone subjects.
  • The Great Courses is a platform offering university-level short courses of almost any academic subject.
  • Poynter’s News University offers free and low cost programs including Journalism Fundamentals, Advanced Editing and Interviewing. A really great resource with hundreds of courses and subjects. 

Many of the listed resources are paid courses, however you will find several low cost and even free gems in the options above.

Rachel’s List masterclasses

And if you’re wanting to hone your current skills and aren’t sure where to start, check out our video masterclasses:

Or, come along to this year’s bonanza content event for writers, copywriters and content producers – The Content Byte Summit 2024.

Got a recommendation for an awesome online course? Let us know about it in the comments, as we’ll be updating this resource regularly.

Rachel Smith

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