All our free courses
Nature & Environment
Animals at the extremes: polar biology
The extreme challenges of life in the polar regions require the animals who make their habitat there to make many adaptations. This free course, Animals at the extremes: polar biology, explores the polar climate and how animals like reindeer, polar bears, penguins, sea life and even humans manage to survive there. It looks at the adaptations to ...
Health, Sports & Psychology
Introducing social work: a starter kit
This free course, Introducing social work: a starter kit, provides a glimpse into some of the things that social workers do and looks at why and how social work is done. The course is designed for people who might be interested in and curious about social work practice. It will also be a useful initial resource for those who may be thinking ...
Science, Maths & Technology
Mathemateg bob dydd 2
Bydd y cwrs rhad ac am ddim hwn yn adeiladu ar eich sgiliau mathemateg presennol ac yn eich helpu i deimlo'n fwy hyderus wrth fynd i'r afael â'r fathemateg rydych chi'n dod ar ei draws mewn sefyllfaoedd bob dydd.
Science, Maths & Technology
Mathemateg bob dydd 1
Bydd y cwrs rhad ac am ddim hwn yn datblygu ac yn gwella eich sgiliau mathemateg hanfodol ar gyfer gwaith, astudio a bywyd bob dydd. Mae gan y cwrs bedair sesiwn, sy'n ymdrin â'r pynciau canlynol: rhifau, mesur, siapiau a gofod, a thrin data. Bydd digonedd o enghreifftiau i’ch helpu i symud ymlaen, ynghyd â chyfleoedd i ymarfer eich dealltwriaeth.
Money & Business
Introduction to bookkeeping and accounting
Learn about the essential numerical skills required for accounting and bookkeeping. This free course, Introduction to bookkeeping and accounting, explains the fundamental rules of double-entry bookkeeping and how they are used to produce the balance sheet and the profit and loss account.
Money & Business
Effective communication in the workplace
Improve your workplace relationships and boost your professional impact with this free course on effective communication. Discover how to express yourself clearly, understand others better, and adapt your communication skills for a range of situations, from everyday conversations to the digital workplaces of the future.
Science, Maths & Technology
Scales in space and time
Scale – dealing with the miniscule to the massive, over milliseconds to millennia – is central to all the sciences. In this free course, Scales in space and time, you’ll go to the absolute limits of what can be measured – all through a study of an oak tree! By studying it you will be introduced to concepts in physics, chemistry, biology and ...
Society, Politics & Law
Critical criminology and the social sciences
This free course, Critical criminology and the social sciences, will provide you with an insight into some of the main disciplines within the social sciences, focusing in particular on critical criminology. It will begin by outlining some of the defining characteristics of the social science disciplines of psychology, law, sociology and critical...
Health, Sports & Psychology
Making sense of ourselves
This free course, Making sense of ourselves, introduces you to well-known psychological topics by asking and answering everyday questions, such as Why don’t we like one another? Why would I hang around with you? Do you see what I see? What’s the point of childhood? You’ll learn how psychologists can go about addressing these questions using ...
History & The Arts
Discovering music: the blues
This free course, Discovering music: the blues, will introduce you to a musical tradition with roots in the nineteenth century but which is still relevant to making music today. You will learn about how the lyrics of blues songs reflect the social environment in which they were created, and about the musical techniques that underpin the ...
Money & Business
Leadership challenges in turbulent times
Welcome to Leadership challenges in turbulent times, a free course offered by the Open University. We are excited to join you on your journey to explore leadership in the turbulent times that we live in.
Digital & Computing
Learning from major cyber security incidents
As a society, we are now almost always connected to the internet and rely on it for many different day-to-day activities. However, this dependency on the internet can make us vulnerable to attacks.
History & The Arts
Exploring books for children: words and pictures
Many people have fond memories of the stories they encountered in childhood, perhaps especially of those wonderful picture books and illustrated tales which fired our young imaginations and transported us to magical worlds. To an adult’s eye, some picture books may seem remarkably simple, even oversimplified. However, in this free course, ...
Nature & Environment
Introducing mammals
Mammals come in a bewildering variety of shapes and sizes, and yet all species have some characteristics in common. These similarities justify the inclusion of all such diverse types within the single taxonomic group (or class) called the Mammalia. This free course, Introducing mammals, offers a starting point for the study of mammals. It will ...
History & The Arts
Health and wellbeing in the ancient world
This free course, Health and wellbeing in the ancient world, investigates the health of people in ancient Greece and Rome, using both literary and archaeological evidence to uncover details of real life in ancient societies.
Society, Politics & Law
Exploring economics: the secret life of t-shirts
This free course, Exploring economics: the secret life of t-shirts, aims to describe what goes into making and selling t-shirts. Which resources, which markets, who is involved, the income people get, the income and value they create are all discussed. You will explore these questions at different stages of the production of a t-shirt, and ...
Health, Sports & Psychology
Supporting and developing resilience in social work
What does it take to become a resilient practitioner in social work? This free course, Supporting and developing resilience in social work, will guide you through some important concepts. An understanding of ‘emotional resilience’ and ‘professional leadership’ will help to guide you through taking a positive approach to problems that arise in ...
Languages
How to learn a language
This course introduces the skills and strategies for language learning, setting realistic goals when learning languages and keeping motivated, practise speaking skills and vocabulary learning strategies. It will enable you to evaluate resources and create a virtual immersion environment.