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Stay competitive and earn more with up-to-date skills.
In order to stay competitive in this job market, you've got to keep your skills “up to snuff” and constantly think about ways to expand your know-how. It's not enough to hang a fancy diploma on the wall and rest on your laurels anymore — employees must up-level their skills and seek new challenges both at and outside of work. One of the best ways to do that? Take a class on an in-demand topic.
From Mandarin language classes to computer programming boot camps and digital marketing workshops, there's a course for almost anything. Plus, many classes are offered for free online. It's never been easier to learn a new skill and get ahead in your current role, or in a new gig.
It's like Dr. Seuss said: “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
Here are five learning hubs that will teach you skills that are in high demand and will pay off!
1. Khan Academy
Who They Are: Khan Academy offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. They also partner with institutions like NASA, The Museum of Modern Art, The California Academy of Sciences and MIT to offer specialized content.
Cool Classes Offered: Hour of Code (SQL, JavaScript, CSS & more), Finance & capital markets, GMAT, Entrepreneurship & more.
2. Skillshare
Who They Are: An online learning platform that hosts over 22,000 courses from experts in design, business, tech and more. Skillshare publishes original content as well as featuring classes from influential individuals like Guy Kawasaki and Roxane Gay.
Cool Classes Offered: How to Get a Job: A Step-by-Step Guide, Introduction to SEO: Tactics and Strategy for Entrepreneurs, Pricing Your Freelance Work: How Much To Charge?, Microsoft Excel Essentials, How to VLOG – Complete Beginners Guide & more.
3. edX
Who They Are: Founded by Harvard University and MIT in 2012, edX is an online learning destination and MOOC provider, offering high-quality courses from the world's best universities and institutions to learners everywhere.
Cool Classes Offered: Introduction to Design Thinking, Robotics, People Management, Introduction to Project Management, Mandarin Chinese for Business & more.
4. ALISON
Who They Are: Whether you are seeking a new job, a promotion, a college place or starting a new business, ALISON empowers you to improve your economic and personal circumstances, and through you, that of the community you live in. Alsion is a nine million-strong, global online learning community, filled with free, high-quality online education resources to help you develop essential, certified workplace skills.
Cool Classes Offered: Workplace Safety and Health, Nursing and Patient Care, Fundamentals of Marketing Your Business Online, Operation Management, Sales Techniques – Using Competitive Sales Strategies, Python Programming – Working with Numbers, Dates and Time & more.
5. Udacity
Who They Are: With industry giants—Google, AT&T, Facebook, Salesforce, Cloudera, etc.— Udacity offers classes and programs designed so professionals can become Web Developers, Data Analysts, Mobile Developers, etc.
Cool Classes Offered: Intro to Computer Science, Interactive 3D Graphics, App Monetization, Introduction to Virtual Reality & more.
6. United Nations Institute for Training and Research
Who They Are: An autonomous UN body established in 1963, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (unitar.org) is a training arm of the United Nations System, and has the mandate to enhance the effectiveness of the UN through diplomatic training, and to increase the impact of national actions through public awareness-raising, education and training of public policy officials. UNITAR offers courses that run throughout the year or several times a year that are free-of-charge and open to the public.
Cool Classes Offered: Human Rights and the Environment, Strengthening Civilian Capacities to Protect Civilians, Conflict Analysis, Confronting Trauma – A Primer For Global Action & more.
Once you upgrade your skills, it's time to upgrade your resume. Not sure how? One of our expert writers can help.
Editor's Note: This piece was originally written by the Glassdoor Team and originally ran on Glassdoor. It is reprinted with permission.