5 Cool Online Courses To Take This Summer

By Elana Goodwin on June 24, 2015

Just because it’s summer doesn’t mean you should stop learning; it just means you can. Taking some online courses over the summer can be great if you’re interested in learning something that you probably wouldn’t get a chance to during the year — plus there’s lots of great free options out there that are available for you to take during your time off from school.

Here are some cool online courses available through Coursera that are open for enrollment now and let you work at your own pace so you can start and stop at any time and work at whatever speed fits your schedule.

Photo Credit: cocc.edu

1. History of Rock, Part One. This cool music history class is taught by John Covach, Professor of Music at University of Rochester. It’s the first of two online courses offered (the second is called “History of Rock, Part Two”) and it looks at the history of rock in the U.S., from the pre-1955 era before rock to the end of the 1960s.

During the course, you’ll cover the music of Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry, and more, focusing on both the cultural context of the music and on the actual music itself.

If you’re not interested in learning about the broader history of rock, Covach also teaches an online course called “The Music of The Beatles” which may be more interesting to Beatle-lovers.

2. Plagues, Witches, and War: The Worlds of Historical Fiction. This online course about the genre and activity of historical fiction is taught by English professor Bruce Holsinger of the University of Virginia. If you’re a voracious reader, an aspiring writer, or just think historical fiction is super interesting, this course is for you.

You’ll read historical fiction classics, learn about bestselling writers of the genre, and discover your own personal historical archive while connecting with a worldwide community of readers who are interested in the genre, too.

3. Effective Altruism. This course is taught by Peter Singer, the Ira W. Decamp Professor of Bioethics at the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University; Singer is also a renowned author of many books exploring ethical issues.

The course will explore effective altruism, which is founded on the idea that living a completely ethical life involves doing the most good you can, and look at the philosophy behind the idea, how incredible people have built their lives around the concept, and spur you to think about how you can put the notion into action in your daily life.

The videos and assignments of the course will explore meta-ethics and normative ethical theories, poverty and affluence, and how much we should do to help others. The course sounds fascinating; plus it will probably end up making you a better person (hopefully) so there’s really no downside to taking it.

Photo Credit: cutedogcafe.com

4. Dog Emotion and Cognition. Do you ever wonder just what your canine friend is thinking? Well, you may be able to unlock some of the answers this summer. This online course on doggy psychology is taught by Duke University Associate Professor Brian Hare.

The course will cover some of the newest discoveries made about what dogs think and feel about us, and also give you knowledge and information that you can use to take your relationship with your four-legged companion to a deeper level. You’ll learn about evolutionary and cognitive theory, experimental methodology, how dogs compare to other species, and even get to put some of your learning to the test with some cognitive games you can play with your dog.

If you love dogs, are training a dog, or are interested in animal cognition or behavior, this course will be extremely interesting to you and worth your while.

5. Work Smarter, Not Harder: Time Management for Personal and Professional Productivity. The typical basic life of a college student consists of watching Netflix while you should be doing homework and then the night before a paper or assignment is due, scrambling to get the work done so we can turn it in the next day.

This online course, taught by University of California at Irvine instructor Margaret Meloni, MBA, PMP, will help you learn and apply your knowledge of personal and professional consciousness, organization, and dedication. By the end of the course, you’ll be able to use the various methods you learned to set goals for yourself, delegate and prioritize tasks, efficiently schedule your time, and be able to be more productive.

If you have problems with procrastinating, this course may be a great summer opportunity to help you learn some better time management skills before you head back to school in the fall.

So make the most of your summer and explore some cool online courses you can take at your own pace and for your own enjoyment since the grade pressure’s off and you’re just learning for fun (and no, that’s not an oxymoron).

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