online courses

Best Money Tips: The Best Sites for Online Courses

Amy Lu — Wed, 14 Feb 2018 09:30:09 +0000

Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips Roundup! Today we found articles on the best sites for online courses, how having a roommate may (or may not) save you money, and how to pack light for winter travel.

8 Tips for Going Back to School as an Adult

Carrie Kirby — Mon, 27 Nov 2017 09:30:10 +0000

Whether you have never been to college, have some college credits from many years ago, or simply need to retool your education for a career change, there is much to be gained from going back to school. However, adult learners face a lot of risk factors that lead to dropping out before finishing a degree; things such as family obligations, financial shortcomings, and a tendency to attend school part time.

With college costs steadily growing, the stakes are high; attending school without finishing a degree program could mean dealing with a mountain of debt and no job to help pay it off. Before diving into a degree or certificate program, do your homework to give yourself the best chance of success as an adult learner.

1. Choose a school that accommodates adult learners

One challenge adult learners face is feeling like they don't fit in with the much younger students on campus. Some find that the counseling services the school offers do not make sense for their situation in life. To avoid this problem, seek out a school that actively recruits older students.

LendEdu ranks the 25 best colleges for adult learners, taking into account factors such as on-campus child care, weekend classes and flexibility, and affordability. Its most recent list gives the top-ranking position to Delaware's Wilmington University, a private college that offers a wide range of professional certificate programs in addition to degrees.

2. Consider credit transferability when choosing a school

Another way the best schools accommodate nontraditional students is by accepting credits from other institutions. If you have earned prior credits from an educational institution, get an idea of how many would be accepted toward your new degree. Figure this out before enrolling, because the more credits that will transfer, the faster and cheaper your degree will be.

3. Choose a major that will help you reach your goals

Some 18-year-olds are OK with spending a couple of years in college finding themselves before focusing on a major that will lead to a specific career. Adults, not so much.

A recent report from the University of Texas showed that the choice of academic major was the biggest factor in determining how much graduates from UT earned. In fact, your major appears to matter more than how good a school you get into, the report says.

"[G]raduates who majored in architecture and engineering at a UT System open-access college have median earnings that are higher than 61 percent of all UT System graduates at selective colleges," the report reads. After architecture and engineering, the highest earning major categories for UT students were computers, statistics, and mathematics; followed by health, then business. The lowest-earning majors were in the arts, psychology and social work, and biology and life sciences.

Of course, you can't just blindly choose a major based on how much money graduates make. It also has to be a good match for you. Take an online assessment or work with a career consultant to figure out what field best matches your strengths.

4. Tap a range of funding sources

Don't assume that because you're an adult, you won't qualify for aid. In fact, there is no age limit for receiving federal student aid in the form of grants, loans, and work-study programs. There are also scholarships for adult learners, such as the Jeannette Rankin Foundation Scholarship, reserved for students age 35 or older. If you are or have been in the military, there are a host of student financial aid programs for veterans and military personnel. Also, find out if your employer pays for continuing education; many workplaces will fund entire degrees for employees. (See also: These 17 Companies Will Help You Repay Your Student Loan)

Once you have exhausted every avenue for funds you don't have to pay back, look into using your own assets for school as well. Although you should always proceed with caution when tapping into retirement accounts, it is possible in some circumstances to withdraw money from retirement accounts to pay educational expenses penalty free. (See also: Yes, You Can Pay for Education With an IRA)

5. Investigate online or hybrid programs

Going to school around a busy schedule of work and family makes online college a popular choice. You can often watch lectures on your own schedule and avoid wasting time traveling to and from a campus. You can try many online courses for free — usually without credit — to see if online learning works for you. Check the courses listed at edX, for example.

A growing program type that appeals to many nontraditional students is the hybrid model, which combines online lectures with some classroom time for discussion. For instance, Northwestern University offers hybrid graduate programs aimed at professionals, which combines online lectures with a limited number of on-campus seminars.

6. Take your exams early

If you need to take the LSAT for law school, the GRE for graduate school, the GMAT for business school, or even the SAT, sit for it well in advance of school application deadlines. This takes a bit of the pressure off; when you know you have time to retake the test if necessary, you can relax and do your best.

7. Make a plan to balance life, work, and school

It could be that many adult learners end up dropping out because they mistakenly assumed they would somehow "find time" for coursework. Even if you start slow, going to school is like a part-time job, and you must allocate the hours to make it happen. Finding the hours might mean cutting back on work, eliminating a pleasurable activity such as watching TV, or dropping out of organized activities such as a sports team. One activity you cannot borrow hours from without negative consequences is sleep.

It's also important to make sure family members, friends, and even coworkers and bosses know and respect that you need time and space to complete your coursework. You may have to say no when someone asks you to work overtime or pass up on volunteering for organizations you may have helped in the past.

Research shows that when we work with interruptions, not only does it take time to get back on task, but we feel more stressed and frustrated. To avoid wanting to quit, it's important to carve out space for yourself to work uninterrupted. Build child care costs into your college budget if necessary, and make sure you have a quiet place to work away from the bustle of household life.

8. Know the tax benefits

Make sure you don't miss out on tax breaks available for returning students, such as the American Opportunity Tax Credit, the Lifetime Learning Credit, and tax deductions on interest on student loans. (See also: Don't Skip These 8 Tax Breaks for Students)

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This article is from Carrie Kirby of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Get Smart About Money With These 18 Free Online Courses

Dr Penny Pincher — Tue, 03 Oct 2017 08:30:11 +0000

A growing number of leading business schools and universities are offering free personal finance courses online. Why not take advantage of these sophisticated resources to grow your knowledge and take your finances to the next level? (See also: 10 Places to Get Free Personal Finance Classes)

These free online courses are sometimes known as Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Many are either based on university courses, or actually are the same university courses that have been offered to paying students on campus. Although you will not get credit toward a degree for taking a free class, you can certainly learn a thing or two that will help you manage your finances and become a better negotiator, entrepreneur, and investor. (See also: 8 Cheap Ways to Continue Your Education Without Going Back to School)

1. Finance for Everyone: Smart Tools for Decision-Making

This introductory personal finance course through the University of Michigan covers the basics of personal finance, teaching frameworks and methods that will better equip you to make sound everyday financial decisions.

Time commitment: 6 weeks, 5–6 hours per week.

2. Behavioral Economics in Action

Offered through the University of Toronto, Behavioral Economics in Action teaches students how economics drives consumer decisions and how to develop tools that lead to better financial decisions.

Time commitment: 6 weeks, 4–5 hours per week.

3. Personal Finance

Purdue University offers Personal Finance; Improve your money management by improving your understanding of key personal finance concepts such as investments, credit, and insurance.

Time commitment: 5 weeks, 3–4 hours per week.

4. Analyzing Global Trends for Business and Society

The Wharton University of Pennsylvania offers an online course on learning to understand global trends, including how you can use that knowledge to make better financial decisions and investments.

Time commitment: 7 weeks, 3–4 hours per week.

5. How to Start a Startup

With Stanford University's video course How to Start a Startup, you'll learn the fundamentals of launching a new business; including how to develop product ideas, make sales, market products, and hire your first employees.

Time commitment: 1,000 minutes of video.

6. Stocks and Bonds: Risks and Returns

Another Stanford video course, Stocks and Bonds: Risks and Returns covers the basics of stocks and bonds, including how value is established, what affects market prices, and what you actually get when you buy a stock or a bond.

Time commitment: Self-paced.

7. Finance Theory I

Finance Theory I, offered by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, teaches you how the economy and capital markets work, including an introduction to complex investment instruments such as derivatives and options.

Time commitment: Semester-length course.

8. Retail Fundamentals

Learning how retail works can give you an advantage as a consumer. This course from Dartmouth covers the basics of how businesses select inventory and set prices to maximize profit.

Time commitment: 4 weeks, 3–4 hours per week.

9. Economics of Money and Banking

This course from Columbia University teaches the basics of banking and monetary policy and offers insight into the financial crisis of 2007–2009 from the perspective of financial institutions.

Time commitment: 13 weeks, 5 hours per week.

10. Introduction to Negotiation: A Strategic Playbook for Becoming a Principled and Persuasive Negotiator

Negotiating effectively is one of the most effective ways to get ahead financially. This course from Yale promises to "help you be a better negotiator" by teaching tactics and tools to reach a better deal.

Time commitment: 9-week course.

11. Personal & Family Financial Planning

Personal & Family Financial Planning from the University of Florida teaches the fundamentals of personal finance and money management including budgeting, credit, and taxes.

Time commitment: 9-week course.

12. Investment Vehicles, Insurance, and Retirement

Khan University's Investment Vehicles, Insurance, and Retirement course teaches the basic principles that will allow you to grow your money through investments and protect your money through insurance.

Time commitment: Self-paced.

13. Securing Investment Returns in the Long Run

In the course Securing Investment Returns in the Long Run through the University of Geneva, you'll learn about active vs. passive investing and how to evaluate the performance of your investments to achieve good long-term returns.

Time commitment: 4 weeks, 1–3 hours per week.

14. Fundamentals of Personal Financial Planning

Fundamentals of Personal Financial Planning from UC Irvine aims to teach you how to set and reach your financial goals by improving your knowledge of personal finance.

Time commitment: 30 hours.

15. Free Online Personal Finance Course

This personal finance primer from the University of Arizona will teach you how to navigate the perils of today's consumer economy by mastering personal finance principles.

Time commitment: 15 hours.

16. Econ 252: Financial Markets

Become a smarter investor with this economics course from Yale, which aims to help you understand the inner workings of financial institutions such as banks, insurance companies, and securities markets.

Time commitment: Semester-length course.

17. New Venture Finance: Startup Funding for Entrepreneurs

If you are thinking about starting a business, New Venture Finance: Startup Funding for Entrepreneurs from the University of Maryland will help you figure out how to fund your venture.

Time commitment: 3–5 hours per week.

18. Marketing in a Digital World

Marketing in a Digital World, from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will teach you how digital tools are revolutionizing the way products are bought and sold, and how this is providing unprecedented advantages for consumers.

Time commitment: 4 weeks, 6–8 hours per week.

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This article is from Dr Penny Pincher of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

5 Ways to Make Passive Income Online

Anum Yoon — Wed, 27 Sep 2017 08:30:11 +0000

The internet is responsible for many wonderful things, from letting you shop whenever and wherever you want, to the ability to view unlimited cat videos. And if you're savvy, the internet can also be a great place to develop income-producing assets for yourself.

Income-producing assets are products you create or invest in that earn passive income. In essence, passive income allows you to earn money without having to do additional work after creating the asset. There are several ways you can do this online. (See also: 7 Surprising Ways to Earn Money Online)

1. Sell a course or ebook

Everyone's an expert on something, right? And the world is full of people looking to learn. One income-producing idea is to develop an online course. People will pay to learn what you know about the best travel spots in Europe, how to be a better public speaker, and everything in between. There are multiple online platforms where you can host an e-course (though you will have to pay for most of them), or you can host the course through your own blog or social media channels. (See also: Can You Really Make a Living as an Ebook Writer?)

There are plenty of tutorial, video course, and ebook content creators out there generating a steady monthly income. How you design, develop, and create your course or ebook will be very dependent on what you teach, how you teach, and the best way for your readers to learn. This all requires some legwork upfront, but if you can get the ball rolling, your online book or course can continue generating passive income well into the future. (See also: How I Made $400 in 10 Days by Selling an Online Course I Created)

2. Earn interest on a loan

If you have some cash to spare, you could earn a nice return by investing in peer to peer lending. Peer to peer lending removes financial institutions from the equation. With sites like Prosper or Lending Club, you can put up a sum of money — whether it's a few hundred dollars or a few thousand — to fund a personal or business loan yourself. Just like if they had worked with a bank, borrowers then pay the loan back with interest, which acts as a passive income stream for you. Most sites report lenders see a return of between six and seven percent. Note that each peer to peer lending site will have its own qualifications and terms and conditions, so do some research to find the best option for you. (See also: Everything You Need to Know About Peer-to-Peer Investing With Lending Club)

3. Become an affiliate

Affiliate programs pay you in exchange for sending them customers via your website, blog, or social media channels. The best-known example of a popular affiliate program is Amazon, which pays "Associates" commissions of up to 10 percent.

Here's how it works: Say you run a food blog where you showcase your favorite recipes. People who read your blog are likely interested in all things cooking: cookware, cookbooks, kitchen remodeling — you get the picture. If you include an Amazon affiliate link to a mixer you're using, for example, you'll earn money any time a visitor clicks through from your blog and makes that purchase. (See also: 5 Easy Ways to Make Extra Money Blogging)

If you want to expand your affiliate partnerships beyond Amazon, you can join networks that connect you to companies looking for affiliates — ShareASale can help you do this. Also, if there is a particular company you would like to work with, check out their website. Usually at the very bottom of the page, in the footer bar, you'll find a link to learn about any affiliate program they might offer.

4. Use AdSense

AdSense, an advertising service run by Google, operates in a similar fashion to an affiliate program. To use AdSense, you'll also need to have a content site, YouTube channel, or blog with views. But rather than letting you promote or link to a specific item or brand, AdSense automatically places relevant ads on your site for readers to click through. These ads won't be random; they'll relate in some way to the type of content you normally post. You'll automatically earn money for views and clicks on your ad. The more views you get, the more money you can make. (See also: Can You Really Make Money by Starting a Blog?)

5. Sell your photos

Do you have a good eye for photography? Are friends and family always commenting how much they'd love one of your photos hanging on their wall? Take the hint! Build a portfolio storefront with sites like SmugMug or Zenfolio where fans of your photography can purchase prints. Many gallery sites do require paying for a monthly "plan" and may take a small commission, but their bottom tier packages are often fairly affordable at a few bucks per month. Many also have plugins that allow you to process print orders with high-quality photo labs and drop-ship directly to your customers. (See also: Earn Extra Income With Your Smartphone Camera)

You could also sell your own photography to be used as stock photos. While there are many big-name stock photo agencies out there, such as Getty Images and Shutterstock, becoming a contributor often involves a lot of competition and a lengthy application process. Selling your stock photography on your own website allows you to set your own prices, licenses, and keep 100 percent of the earnings for yourself.

The internet has opened up a world of opportunity for anyone to earn a little extra money. Think of what you're passionate about, what skills you have that someone might be willing to pay for, and create a revenue generating asset that will keep extra cash flowing into your budget. (See also: 13 Ways to Make Money Online That Aren't Scams)

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This article is from Anum Yoon of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

How I Made $400 in 10 Days by Selling an Online Course I Created

Annie Mueller — Mon, 21 Aug 2017 08:31:06 +0000

I've been a freelance writer for over 13 years. Recently, I decided to create something I wish I'd had when I first started out: a course on prolific nonfiction writing called Write More Words, Faster. In the first 10 days of offering the course, with minimal marketing, I made almost $400. Here's what I did, and some tips on how you can do the same (or better!).

1. Figure out the topic

Something that's helped me turn writing from a hobby into a career is my ability to write fast. When I started freelancing, I was churning out five to 10 articles a day for content mills. I wouldn't recommend reading any of those articles — if they're even still around — and I didn't love writing them. But I did learn how to quickly assess the content, organize material, write solid main points, and bring it all together with transitions. Doing so quickly was key to keeping up with my writing schedule.

It seems that most people who want to write have to do so in the edges of their schedule. Even full-time writers such as myself have to be quick and focused; we have families and responsibilities, and we like to sleep sometimes, too. So, I decided to focus my course on prolific nonfiction writing.

The take-away

Your course material should grow out of a skill, or set of skills, that you already possess. The most obvious starting point is what you currently do for a living; however, don't stop there. Look at your hobbies, side interests, and particular strengths, as well. Try combining two of these elements for a course that's more unique and valuable. (See also: How to Sell Yourself to Potential Employers)

2. Develop a course outline

Developing a course outline was the easiest part for me, because (as anyone who's taken my course will tell you) I am obsessed with outlines. They make my writing workflow easier and thus, more prolific. (See also: Achieve More With Goal Sequencing)

I like 30-day courses — something I can work on every day for a month is long enough to feel substantial, but short enough to feel doable. I divided my course into four units, then divided each unit into seven lessons. I added a course introduction and a big, wrap-it-all-up course conclusion to hit that 30-day target.

I used a spreadsheet to start organizing my thoughts for the course outline. First, I created a column with the titles of every post I'd already written about writing. Then, I created a column for each unit. Lastly, I started brainstorming lessons for each unit, and decided which of my already-written posts I could use for each lesson.

The take-away

If you don't love planning and outlining as much as I do, you may not like this step! But seriously, take the time to do it. The more detailed your outline, the easier it will be to create the course content. If you're already writing regularly about something, build a course from what you have; you can add more material as needed to round it out.

3. Create a sales and delivery plan

How you deliver your content will affect what your content needs to look like. So before you start creating, choose how you'll deliver it.

I had a few requirements for a delivery system:

Something I was already familiar with.
Something that would work with PayPal.
Something that could be automated.

MailChimp met my requirements, and I didn't have a lot of time to shop around. (I gave myself a deadline to course launch — and then went around announcing it — so I had a little less than a month.) Decision made.

My sales plan was very basic:

Set up a landing page.
Put a PayPal button at the bottom.
Automate adding all PayPal purchasers to a specifically created mailing list in MailChimp.

I decided to give purchasers an option of three price points. All but one subscriber paid the lowest price point for the course. I've since simplified the pricing.

The take-away

Your sales and delivery systems do not have to be complex, nor do they have to be perfect. You can spend more time tweaking and automating after you've launched, marketed, and received feedback.

4. Create your course content

Course content was the most time-consuming step. Using a detailed outline, and using content I'd already written, made the process faster. As I finished writing a lesson, or a batch of lessons, I would edit and schedule them in MailChimp.

The take-away

Trying to create a perfect course of any kind will keep you from ever creating a course at all. Your skill is valuable, and you can ask for feedback to learn how to improve your content and your delivery. You can always get better; but you can't improve something that doesn't exist.

Remember, too, that your course can be the length you choose. You can create a 10-lesson course, a one-week course, or a one-hour course.

5. Market to the right crowd

The more time you give yourself to market your course, the more effective it will be. I, however, did minimal marketing, and didn't start it until 10 days before I the course launch date.

Here's what I did:

Created a couple of rudimentary promo graphics for Twitter and Facebook.
Paid for two short ad runs on both Facebook and Twitter, keeping it under $20 for each.
Shared a post about my course on LinkedIn.
Posted about my course on Twitter.
Posted about my course on Facebook.

I don't have a huge follower count on Twitter (around 1,200 people); they're mostly bloggers, writers, and folks with shared interests (such as productivity). You know who's interested in prolific writing? Bloggers, writers, and productivity people. Cool, huh?

All of my course subscribers came through Twitter, which I found very interesting. I know a lot of people on Facebook, but they're mostly personal connections: friends, family, extended family, neighbors, etc.

My minimal marketing showed me that my personal network, while lovely and supportive, was not interested in prolific writing courses. In my peer and professional network, however, my course content was a match for their interests. That's targeted marketing.

The take-away

No matter what kind of marketing you do, find the right crowd. A connection doesn't guarantee an interest. Think about the interests that overlap with the skill you'll teach. You can do low-cost ads on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn using keywords and filters to target people whose interests align with your course. You can also ask people in your networks to share with others they know who might be interested.

My results

I developed the course idea in early June and set the launch date for July 1. I first mentioned it on Twitter on June 19, and got my first two subscribers within two days. I ran ads on Twitter and Facebook for the last week of June. All my remaining first-run subscribers bought the course in that last week, netting me just under $400 within 10 days.

Of course, I spent more than 10 days putting the course together, and I'll continue to spend more time improving it.

Still, I'm happy with the results. It was scary to commit and launch something, but so far, the feedback has been positive. The first-run students have already helped me improve the course (we changed the mailing schedule, for example, after a quick poll showed that 80 percent of the students preferred to receive lessons two days apart rather than daily).

The take-away

Create a course by collecting the insights you already have for a skill you're already using. The content is right there, in your head! It takes work to create a course, but the initial return can be quick and significant. And you can continue to market and sell your course as long as the skill is relevant. The more you market, the more subscribers you can gain. By creating a course now, you're establishing a potential source of income for a long time.

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This article is from Annie Mueller of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Don't Go to College to Learn

Philip Brewer — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:00:08 +0000

There are good reasons to go to college. And, if you do go to college, you will no doubt learn a lot. But you can learn anywhere — and probably learn more, better, and faster if you do so on your own. If you choose to go to college, make sure you know what you're paying for.

A really good teacher who moved the class along at just the right pace for you might let you learn faster than simply studying the topic on your own. But any large class will go too slowly for most of the students, while even so going too quickly for a few. There's also a community aspect to learning — other students will ask questions that you should have asked, except that you hadn't realized that you didn't understand — that you won't have if you study on your own. But you can get that other ways, such as with a study group.

College gives you two things that are harder to get on your own: a chance to network with your peers and a degree.

Networking

Working with other people is inherently valuable. Five people trying to solve the same problem can much more quickly think of and try out different solutions than one person working alone. Participating in such an activity can teach you things that you won't learn from a book, and teach you some of the things that you will learn from a book more quickly. Going to college isn't the only way to do that, but going to college does put you in the position of working with a lot of other people.

If you go to a prestigious college or university, the main thing that you're paying for is a chance to spend four years with the people of your generation who will be movers and shakers. Depending on how you want to spend your life, that may be hugely valuable.

If you want to be a politician, for example, or a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, it helps a lot to know the other people who are going to be politicians and CEOs. At a prestigious college, they're right there attending your classes and living in your dorm.

If that's why you're there, make the most of it. Pay attention to your classmates, with an eye to spotting the ones that are going places. Get to know them. Whenever possible, work with them. Especially then, but also when working on your own, do great work. The point here is not to get a good grade (although there's nothing wrong with that). The point is to make sure that your peers know that you do great work. Soon enough they're going to be hiring people. You want them to remember you as someone who'll make them look good.

Don't focus entirely on your fellow students — their parents and your professors will be hiring people even sooner than your peers will. But they'll also be retiring just when your career will be peaking, so make your fellow students your top priority.

Here's the key point: If you're going to an Ivy League or other prestigious college and you're not seriously applying yourself to the job of demonstrating to your fellow students that you're a can-do guy — the sort of guy that they'll want on their team when they're trying to get something done — you're just wasting your money.

Similarly, if your career path won't get much of a boost out of having made those contacts — if your plan is to come back to your home town and be a school teacher or a farmer — then, again, you're just wasting your money.

Certification

The other thing a college provides is certification in the form of a degree. For certain kinds of jobs, a certification from a top college can give you a big leg up. For most jobs, though, a degree from Podunk College is every bit as good.

A degree from a top college can also make it easier to get into grad school, but it isn't essential. Much more important will be good grades, good GRE scores, an impressive body of work, and networking with the professors at the grad schools that you're considering.

For certification purposes, it's really only the school that provides your last degree that matters, so you might as well go with the lowest-cost undergraduate option. A graduate degree from a top school is worth no more combined with an undergraduate degree from an Ivy League undergraduate degree then it is combined with an undergraduate degree from Northern Your-State-Name-Here University. This suggests that, once you know what your terminal degree will be, you should consider other factors than reputation — like cost and location — when choosing where to go for earlier degrees.

Exceptions

There are exceptions of course, which mostly boil down to opportunity and safety — two ideas that are often linked.

Learning how to defuse bombs, for example, would be hard to do on your own. First, because bombs to practice on are hard to come by, and second because you'd probably kill yourself before you developed the basic skills. Learning how to perform surgery is much the same, although you'd probably kill somebody else rather than yourself if you tried to learn that on your own. (Of course for surgery there's also the certification issue.)

If your studies depend on access to specialized equipment that you can't afford, or that would be illegal for you to own, or that simply would be difficult to arrange on your own (like a team and opponents for learning a sport), colleges and universities are one structure for getting access.

What else you get

I'm not saying that you get nothing out of attending a college besides certification and networking opportunities — far from it.

You get:

An educational path which has been designed by someone who's an expert in the field and has some understanding of pedagogy.
Some degree of supervision by people who will make an effort to keep you on track and learning at a reasonable pace.
Immersion in a community of people who are (to greater or lesser extents) focused on learning.
A position in society — student.
A structure for daily living and a protected environment within which to make mistakes — a dorm room and a meal plan are a welcome safety net for someone who has never had to pay bills and a good first step toward learning how to run your own household.

My point is that none of those things have much to do with learning the course material.

If you want to learn, as I said at the beginning, you can probably learn more, better, and faster on your own. Get a text book and work your way through it, doing the exercises. Look at the bibliography and read the books that the textbook author recommends. Go to a university library (or the internet) and get the latest papers by people doing cutting-edge work in your field. Plenty of universities have been putting lectures on the internet (in case you think you learn better from a lecture than from a book) and plenty are providing outlines for whole courses of study on-line.

A lot of people go to college simply because it's the next thing to do after graduating from high school. And I'm certainly not suggesting that you shouldn't go to college. I'm just suggesting that you understand what you're paying for if you do, especially if you choose an expensive school. If you pay all that money, be sure to get your money's worth.

This article is from Philip Brewer of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

A BBC Production America Hasn't Ripped Off Yet

Tannaz Sassooni — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 04:44:59 +0000

The BBC is so selfless. They offer us Americans the addictively hapless crew at The Office, and never complain when we totally rip it off. They give us the deliciously candid fashion criticism of What Not to Wear, even though we copy it outright. (Not that we didn't have a history of this behavior: Three's Company, that beloved American classic, comes straight from Britain's Man About the House.) But there's one wildly successful project BBC's putting out there that is theirs and theirs alone.

BBC Languages is the BBC's extensive set of online resources for learning a number of languages. It's amazing to me that all of these materials are just sitting there, for the taking. To start, if French, German, Spanish, or Italian is your language of choice, take a quiz to measure what level you should begin with. Then jump into a wide variety of language learning tools: interactive courses, often with video and audio, TV shows with related activities, audio guides, and more. It doesn't stop at these four languages, either: Portuguese, Greek, Urdu, and Mandarin Chinese are broadly covered, and you can even learn crucial phrases like "Where's the toilet, please?" in Belarusian and Luxembourgish — come on, you know you've always wanted to.

What's impressive about this set is that it's not just basic grammar and vocab. There are slang guides, info on using the languages in the workplace, and monthly audio magazines with articles on the various countries' culture and news.

Granted, taking these courses over the computer is not going to make you a fluent speaker. But to get the basics of a whole slew of languages, free is a lot cheaper than taking a class or hopping on a plane. There is a lot of learning to be had on these pages. And, of course, you can put all this learning to use on their site, too. After all, they do offer the BBC news in 33 languages. And if English is the language you're trying to learn, they've got that covered thoroughly, too, in their Learning English pages. See? Boundless generosity.

This article is from Tannaz Sassooni of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

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Other Essential Reading

8 Tips for Going Back to School as an Adult

1. Choose a school that accommodates adult learners

2. Consider credit transferability when choosing a school

3. Choose a major that will help you reach your goals

4. Tap a range of funding sources

5. Investigate online or hybrid programs

6. Take your exams early

7. Make a plan to balance life, work, and school

8. Know the tax benefits

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Get Smart About Money With These 18 Free Online Courses

1. Finance for Everyone: Smart Tools for Decision-Making

2. Behavioral Economics in Action

3. Personal Finance

4. Analyzing Global Trends for Business and Society

5. How to Start a Startup

6. Stocks and Bonds: Risks and Returns

7. Finance Theory I

8. Retail Fundamentals

9. Economics of Money and Banking

10. Introduction to Negotiation: A Strategic Playbook for Becoming a Principled and Persuasive Negotiator

11. Personal & Family Financial Planning

12. Investment Vehicles, Insurance, and Retirement

13. Securing Investment Returns in the Long Run

14. Fundamentals of Personal Financial Planning

15. Free Online Personal Finance Course

16. Econ 252: Financial Markets

17. New Venture Finance: Startup Funding for Entrepreneurs

18. Marketing in a Digital World

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5 Ways to Make Passive Income Online

1. Sell a course or ebook

2. Earn interest on a loan

3. Become an affiliate

4. Use AdSense

5. Sell your photos

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How I Made $400 in 10 Days by Selling an Online Course I Created

1. Figure out the topic

The take-away

2. Develop a course outline

The take-away

3. Create a sales and delivery plan

The take-away

4. Create your course content

The take-away

5. Market to the right crowd

The take-away

My results

The take-away

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Don't Go to College to Learn

Networking

Certification

Exceptions

What else you get

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