Brief Summary
This video is all about how you can get a top-notch education without spending a fortune on a traditional degree. It highlights 10 free online university courses that can give you skills that are actually valuable in today's job market. The video argues that many expensive degrees teach outdated skills, while these free courses offer current, practical knowledge.
- MIT's intro to computer science is like getting the keys to the tech kingdom for free.
- Open Source Society University's CS path is a complete, up-to-date computer science degree made of free courses.
- Yale's psychology course helps you understand why people do what they do, which is useful in any job.
Intro
The video kicks off by saying that spending big bucks and years on a degree might not be the smartest move today. It claims that higher education has become a bit of a scam, leaving students in debt with skills that aren't really in demand. But, there's a silver lining: some of the best universities in the world are offering their top courses for free. The video promises to break down 10 free university courses that are often better than paid degrees, explaining why they're so valuable.
$200K tech secret companies hide
MIT's Introduction to Computer Science, available through their Open Courseware platform, is discussed. MIT, which normally costs $50,000 a year, offers its course materials, lectures, and assignments online for free. This course provides foundational computer science knowledge, teaching algorithms, data structures, and computational thinking. Employers care more about what you can do than where you got your degree, so projects from this course can impress them. Understanding computational thinking is valuable in almost every industry, serving as a foundation for tech-related specializations like AI and game development. It gets a 9/10 opportunity score, only missing networking and a degree certificate.
Hidden degree killer that beats universities
The Open Source Society University (OSSU) Computer Science Path on GitHub is presented as a complete computer science degree curriculum built from the best free courses online. It covers everything from intro programming to advanced algorithms. This is better than many paid CS degrees because it's constantly updated by developers with real-world skills, unlike outdated university programs. OSSU allows you to skip general education requirements, focusing on directly relevant material. It earns a 9.5/10 opportunity score, valuable for those interested in computer science.
AI pioneer's $200K salary blueprint
Stanford's Machine Learning course, taught by Andrew Ng on YouTube, is highlighted. Andrew Ng, a founder of Coursera and a leading machine learning expert, provides insights into AI and machine learning. Unlike boot camps and university courses that skip the mathematical foundations, this course breaks down complex concepts, helping you understand the "why" behind machine learning. This deep understanding is what separates the higher-paying jobs from the lower-paying ones. It receives a 9/10 opportunity score, though it needs to be supplemented with recent developments in deep learning.
Nobel winner's market prediction method
Yale's Financial Markets course, available free on YouTube and taught by Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Shiller, is discussed. Shiller, who predicted the 2008 housing crisis, brings decades of market behavior study to the course. It gives a deep understanding of why markets behave the way they do, including the psychological element often missing from traditional finance education. Whether you want to work in finance or manage your own investments, this course offers an Ivy League-quality education. It gets an 8/10 score, solid but potentially less appealing to those not interested in finance careers.
Coding bootcamp killer exposed
Free Code Camp (FCC) is presented as a comprehensive, free coding education that covers everything from basic HTML to advanced machine learning. It's entirely project-based, allowing you to apply concepts by building real projects. By the end, you'll have a portfolio of over 30 projects. Most $10,000 boot camps just repackage the same information available for free on FCC. The built-in community offers forums, chat rooms, meetups, mentors, and job referrals. FCC has helped thousands land developer jobs at major companies. It's rated 10/10, considered better than many $100,000 computer science degrees.
Psychology hack for career advantage
Yale's Introduction to Psychology on YouTube is highlighted. Understanding human behavior is a superpower in any field, including marketing, management, design, and customer service. Yale's course covers cognitive development, brain structure, social psychology, and mental health, connecting concepts to real-world applications. It's better than paid alternatives because it provides one of the world's best psychology courses without the unnecessary fluff. It receives a 7.5/10 opportunity score, useful in almost any career field.
MIT's $140K MBA secret
MIT Sloan School of Management Lectures, available for free through MIT Open Courseware, are discussed. An MBA from MIT costs about $140,000 in tuition alone, but many of their best business courses are available free online. These lectures cover entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, and operations management, providing insights from top business school professors. MIT's open courseware allows you to focus on topics relevant to your career goals and apply what you're learning to real business situations immediately. It gets a 9/10 opportunity score, best for those in executive or management positions.
Gaming goldmine schools ignore
Harvard's CS50 curriculum, including game development, is highlighted. The gaming industry is bigger than the film and music industries combined, generating over $180 billion annually, yet most computer science programs barely touch on game development. Harvard's introduction to game development teaches fundamentals using industry-standard tools like Unity and Lua. You'll learn everything from basic 2D games to complex 3D environments. It's better than specialized game development schools because you learn fundamentals that transfer across platforms and engines. It gets a 9/10 score.
Zero unemployment skill employers desperately need
The Web Security Academy by Portswiger, creators of the Burp Suite, is presented. Cyber security is a field with basically zero unemployment, as companies are desperate for security professionals. Most university cyber security programs are outdated, but Port Swigger's Web Security Academy is created by security professionals on the front lines. The course includes interactive labs that simulate real-world scenarios, allowing you to practice identifying and exploiting security flaws. It earns a 9/10 opportunity score, providing practical skills that many degree programs lack.
OG platform that started it all
Khan Academy is mentioned as a long-standing resource for free online education. They cover mathematics, chemistry, biology, and computer science. Available for free on YouTube and their website, Khan Academy's teaching is engaging, using a blackboard with colored markers to explain concepts. It receives a score of 9.5/10.
