Learning for Less – Learn Online or Through An Employer for Free
With education costing more each year, it is nice to know that there are still ways to learn for less or no money at all. Using technology, employee resources, and your own creativity, you can learn just about anything for little or no money. I have learned everything from Photoshop and HTML to how to make my own home theater. All of these items I learned for free.
Before you decide to pay for any lessons it is a good idea to look for free information on the internet. Software programs and web design principles can usually be found on the internet at no cost at all. Tutorials bring in a lot of advertising and are therefore displayed for free. This is how I learned to write web pages in HTML. I have also learned a little JavaScript and other web design principles. Although these subjects are usually the easiest to find, I have also found one on bookkeeping and other useful subjects.
There are many companies that offer online courses on just about any subject matter. Often these courses are convenient and less costly than attending a university or technical school. However, you can often take lessons for free through these companies as well. To promote their courses many companies offer a few of their lessons for free hoping you will take more courses in the future. So, before you pay for a course it is a good idea to make sure that it isn’t being offered for free. I took a course on A+ certification for free through one of these companies. It was a course that I didn’t need, but I don’t turn down anything that is free.
Now, many people have trouble learning alone. They need to have the subject explained to them. They need someone living to answer their questions. For these people, online tutoring can be an effective way to learn a new subject. You can find a variety of rates for this type of tutoring that may be per minute or per session. If you don’t feel that the individual is doing a good job, you don’t have to continue with that person or even that company.
Employers often benefit from their employees learning new subjects. For this reason, many employers will reimburse part or all of an employee’s learning costs. It is a good idea to take advantage of these benefits. It is a good idea to ask for assistance even if your company does not specifically state that they have this type of policy. One of my past employers offered a 100% reimbursement as long as the course related to the employee’s position. My past employer also required that you passed the course with a certain grade so make sure you are aware of any similar requirements.
When college students are done with a subject they try to sell back their books. As I can tell you first-hand, this doesn’t always work. Sometimes the store only buys back a certain amount of books. Sometimes books can’t be sold back if they are considered workbooks. This is why you can find these books on auction sites such as EBay at discounted prices. If you are the type of student who can learn from a textbook, than doing so can be a great way to learn a new subject. You may even be able to test out of the subject if you are going to college and have learned everything that is required by the course through your textbook.
As with most goals in life, your success is determined by your drive. If you really want to learn something, you will find a way. If you are like me, you will be able to not only learn all of the subjects that interest you, but you will be able to learn for less. Use your creativity and other people’s experience to determine how you can learn for less.
