Business programs and courses are a great way to learn new practices and stay up to date on trends in the global economy and technology. Working professionals trying to balance a career and family responsibilities may find the idea of continuing education in business impossible. 

Online learning continues to develop and improve each year. Some critics thought degrees like the online MBA would never catch on or attain the high level of respect a traditional master’s program enjoys. As time goes on, many highly reputable business schools have offered online MBAs and other forms of business training.

Some of these business programs are free while some will come at a price. What if it was possible to take advantage of a business school’s offerings without ever having to pay a dime in tuition? Remarkably, distance learners now have many options in this realm.

There are presently countless hours of online courses available to business students and professionals utterly free of charge. Topics within these courses are as varied as the areas of business they represent. Students can take a free course on financial marketing, executive leadership, ways to think like an entrepreneur, using social media, and how to successfully negotiate in business.

The ultimate benefit of these programs lies in the cost to benefit ratio. The advantage of these courses is clear. Respected professors and authors provide excellent content through readings, video lectures, and audio recordings.

Classes are offered by incredible institutions of higher learning like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford, Duke, Harvard, New York University, and more.

The cost? Zero dollars. Students pursuing these free business courses can save thousands and thousands of dollars by receiving the same excellent instruction that traditional students are exposed to. So, let us examine some of these programs you can take advantage of.

• Top Business Programs you can take for Free
• How can I Learn Business for Free?
• Which Business Course is the Best?
• Best Business Majors for the Future
• MBA vs Bachelor’s vs Associate’s
• Top Paying Business Degree Jobs
• How can I get a Free MBA?
• Is a Free Online MBA Self-Study Program Worth the Time?

Top Business Programs you can take for Free

With so many options for free online instruction available today, we have put together a ranking of the best free online business courses currently available in the nation. Many of these courses are found on sites like Coursera.org, Edx.org, through iTunes, and on business school websites.

1. Yale University

Yale University delivers a free online course called Financial Markets. All course material needed for this free class is delivered 100% online so students can receive course content anywhere a reliable internet connection exists. As this is a beginner level course, the university presents no prerequisites for the course.

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Students can begin working through coursework as soon as they have completed registration. The curriculum writers have divided this course into seven weeks of study with a recommendation of three to four hours each week. The total course load for the class is 38 hours. Subtitles for this Financial Markets class are offered in Korean, Spanish, and English.

The course includes an overview of the ideas, institutions, and methods that regulate human society to foster enterprise and manage risk. The emphasis throughout the class is on financially-savvy leadership abilities. Students enrolled in the course can expect descriptions of practices that exist today and an in-depth analysis of prospects for the future.

2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

A free online course called Becoming an Entrepreneur is available from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Are you curious about the world of entrepreneurship, yet have no idea about where to start your research? Becoming an Entrepreneur has been designed by MIT to help guide online students of all ages and backgrounds through the engaging process of establishing a brand or company.

The free online course has already been taken advantage of by hundreds of thousands of students and has proven to be as engaging and informative as it is accessible. Becoming an Entrepreneur will provide distance learners with the inspiration to explore an entrepreneurial journey and tools to overcome the initial barriers to building a business.

Lessons within this class include new business ideas and how to do market research. Helpful information on how to design and test offerings and pitching strategies are also included. Online learners will want to allow six weeks of learning time for this course.

3. Princeton University

Princeton University provides a free online course entitled Networks: Friends, Money, and Bytes. How common is it to take out your iPhone while waiting in line at a Starbucks? Have you ever googled a C-list actor only to get linked to a Wikipedia entry revealing his recent films and popular YouTube clips from some of them?

You may check on some user reviews on Amazon and then download a movie on BitTorrent or stream it on Netflix. Have you ever seen the WIFI logo on your screen disappear you’re now you’re on 3G? The next thing you know, video quality begins to degrade. Do you have any idea what all has been going on behind the scenes over that five-minute-long scenario?

Networks: Friends, Money, and Bytes has been formulated by the staff at Princeton to help answer that and many more questions about the technology we rely on every day. Course content for this class is delivered 100% online and 100% free of charge. Divided into 12 weeks of content, course designers expect students to complete all course requirements in just 11 hours.

4. Stanford University

A free online course entitled Game Theory is available at Stanford University. Game theory is the mathematical modeling of tactical interaction within rational and irrational agents. The method was made famous in the Hollywood blockbuster, “A Beautiful Mind.”

While the common vernacular for “games” includes activities like chess, poker, and football, the term also deals with the modeling of conflict among political campaigns, competition among firms, politics, and commerce trading in markets such as the NYSE. Part of being able to model keyword auctions and peer to peer file-sharing networks is to be able to account for the incentives of the people using them.

Game theory will provide the basics of what it means to represent games and strategies. The extensive form, which Information Technology specialists call game trees, Bayesian games, and stochastic and repeated games, are all dealt with within this course. Game theory is considered a beginner level course, which will take the average online student 20 hours to complete.

5. Harvard University

Harvard University provides a free online class called Improving Your Business Through a Culture of Health. Many would agree that the United States is one of the planet’s wealthiest nations. Few may understand that it is also far from the healthiest. Our nation’s struggle with disease affects businesses every day.

Sick employees and families reduce productivity and increase costs. Product recalls, and environmental mishaps like toxic chemical emissions continue to harm communities and reputations.

The HarvardX course presented by leading instructors from the Harvard Business School and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health provides businesses with tactics, tools, and strategies to gain a competitive edge by implementing a Culture of Health to address issues and stay ahead.

Embracing a Culture of Health will improve an organization’s employees’ well-being and can improve the health of consumers, communities, and the environment. Students enrolled in this course will see how a Culture of Health can help reduce costs, increase profits and revenues, and enhance a company’s reputation.

6. Dartmouth University

Dartmouth University provides a free online course called Retail Fundamentals. This free course is listed as part of the Retail Management Professional Certificate program at Dartmouth. Retail components like pricing decisions, inventory management, demand forecasting, and assortment planning are all covered within this 100% online and 100% free course.

Distance learners will learn about the various challenges that retailers face on a regular basis and will have the opportunity to discover methods and techniques readily available to address these issues. Online students will also have access to a vast array of simulation tools to better internalize the concepts.

This free online course will take a hands-on, decision-making approach that will help professionals understand and put into practice the concepts covered in the course.

By the program’s end, students will be equipped to make better decisions at every step of the retail experience. Class designers have structured the course to suit a wide variety of participants, from store managers and retail owners to undergrad business majors and specialists in retail.

7. Rice University

Rice University provides a free online course called Relationship Management. Many would agree that to be a successful engineer, you must communicate well with others. Relationship Management focuses on developing the skills professionals need to build and sustain relationships and networks.

The course is the second of three classes Rice offers in its Leadership Development for Engineers Specialization track. All course materials can be found online, with zero costs put on students. Listed as an advanced-level course, Relationship Management follows the first course listed in the Leadership Development for Engineers series.

Online learners interested in this course should be prepared to commit four weeks of study to the program. Each week will typically consist of three to five hours of work. Subtitles for this free online program are offered in Vietnamese and English. Course themes of Relationship Management include Communication, Building Power and Influence, Managing Conflict, and Conducting Effective Meetings. Dr. David Van Kleeck is the course instructor.

8. Duke University

Duke University offers a free online course entitled Advertising and Society. The syllabus for this course includes seven weeks of lessons that include approximately nine hours of course content.

Significant questions that get answered during each lesson include What is advertising, and where did it come from? How do ads get made? Does sex sell? And What is the future of Advertising? As this is an introductory course on how to understand and process the effects of advertising on society, there are no prerequisites required to complete before enrolling for the course.

The video-based curriculum features an instructor teaching a classroom. PowerPoint slides are included as well as TV commercials and print ads. The homework for this class is a weekly quiz taken at the end of each lesson. Students will find all course materials online and will not be responsible for making any purchases throughout the course. Once a student registers, she will have immediate access to the program.

9. Columbia University in the City of New York

A free online course named Marketing Analytics is offered at Columbia University in the City of New York. Successful marketers make it their business to understand and predict how customers will purchase products and services and what the response will be to marketing initiatives.

This 12-week course over marketing will provide distance learners with the tools they will need to learn how analytics helps businesses drive marketing resulting in maximized effectiveness and optimized return on investment (ROI). Marketing Analytics is part of the Business Analytics MicroMasters program.

Online students will also discover how to develop quantitative models that leverage business information, machine learning, and statistical computation to forecast sales and marketing influence in the areas of market segmentation, communication, and customer relationship management.

Program designers estimate students should spend between eight and ten hours working through coursework each week. Marketing Analytics is an advanced level course which follows the prerequisites of undergraduate probability, calculus, and statistics.

10. University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania provides a free online course entitled Viral Marketing and How to Craft Contagious Content. Have you ever noticed how some things become popular while others don’t? Why do some products become overnight successes while others flop? Why do some ideas take off while others languish in obscurity? What are the key concepts and tendencies behind viral marketing?

Pennsylvania’s free course called Viral Marketing and How to Craft Contagious Content sets out to explain how things can catch on to society’s awareness and will help students apply these ideas to be better at marketing ideas, brands, and products.

Distance learners will be trained on how to make ideas stick, how to increase one’s influence, how to generate more buzz, and how to use the power of social networking to distribute information and authority. All coursework within the class is presented through a 100% online format. Students need only commit to studying for seven hours.

How can I Learn Business for Free?

Being a successful entrepreneur means you have to wear a lot of hats, especially when your company is just starting out and you don’t have enough employees to cover all the areas you need.

Learning the new skills necessary to start a new business can be expensive, but fortunately the initiative for free, high-quality, educational resources online has only continued to grow in the past few years. Below are some of the resources available to learn more about marketing, entrepreneurship, business management and more.

1. CodeAcademy

This great resource offers free interactive programming sessions to help you learn programming languages such as HTML, CSS, Javascript and PHP. You can save your progress as you go with a free account. Learning to code can help entrepreneurs fix bugs if they don’t have a developer, or even go down the road of building their own website or products (such as apps).

2. HubSpot Academy 

The free certification program offers courses on inbound marketing, including website optimization, landing pages and lead nurturing. These skills are a must for business owners as they try to grow their business and online presence.

3. Moz

If you want to learn search-engine optimization to make sure your website is as visible as possible, check out this treasure trove of resources from SEO leader, Moz. Besides having the free Moz Academy, there are also webinars (live and recorded), and beginner’s guides to SEO, social media and link building.

4. LearnVest

The most successful entrepreneurs know how to manage their money both on a business and personal side. In addition to having extremely affordable finance classes, LearnVest also offers some of its classes for free, such as “Building Better Money Habits” and “How to Budget.”

5. Niche consultant courses

The Internet has made for a coaching boom, which is extremely helpful to entrepreneurs who want to learn how to start or better a business in a specific niche. Some great coaches and organizations that routinely have free courses and ebooks on building a business include Natalie MacNeil and MyOwnBusiness. Try searching “niche keyword” + “business course” to find one most applicable to you.

6. edX

This free site currently has over 300 courses on a variety of topics, including “Financial Analysis and Decision Making” and “Entrepreneurship 101: Who is your customer?” These courses not only cover business in general, but can also you help learn more skills that are applicable to your industry, such as big data or environmental conservation.

7. Khan Academy

This free learning resource was created to give everyone access to education in math, science, art, technology and more. There are over 100,000 interactive exercises to put your education to practical use. Even though many of the courses are geared toward high school students, there are several courses that would be good for anyone to have a refresher on, such as taxes and accounting.

8. MIT Open Courseware

These are actual courses taught at MIT and offered for free on the site for viewing and reading at your discretion. The school put together an entrepreneurship page that lists available courses that are beneficial to new business owners. Courses include “Early State Capital” and “The Software Business.”

9. Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

This university has almost 100 free on-demand college courses that are extremely applicable to entrepreneurs, including ones that cover business planning, operations and management and small-business tax.  

10. Coursera

Much like MIT’s Open Courseware, this site has 114 educational partners that provide free courses to almost 10 million users. One benefit to Coursera is that there are very specific courses that fit perfectly into particular niches, such as “Data Management for Clinical Research” from Vanderbilt University and “Innovation for Entrepreneurs: From Idea to Marketplace” from the University of Maryland. Its wide network of partners allows for a greater selection.

11. OpenCulture

This site isn’t an educational platform on its own, but rather collects and shares free resources from around the web. Its list of 150 free online business courses is a great resource because it offers classes from iTunes U and other lessons on video and audio. The site also has lists of free audiobooks, certificate courses and other online courses.

12. YouTube

It’s probably unsurprising to most users that YouTube is one of the world’s largest search engines, as there are literally videos on just about anything you can imagine. From TED talks to recorded presentations on building a business, it’s a great free resource on just about any topic.

13. Alison

This platform offers free online courses from some of the most well-known names on the internet today, including Google, Microsoft, and Macmillan. With over 4 million users and over 600 courses already, it covers topics such as economic literacy, personal development and business/enterprise skills.

14. Saylor

The Saylor Foundation offers tuition-free courses and also works with accredited colleges and universities to offer affordable credentials. Its course offerings are similar to what you’d see when working toward a bachelor’s degree.

15. Podcasts

Even though it’s not an official course, podcasts are an amazing (and easily digestible) way to become a better entrepreneur. Podcasts can be listened to via streaming on your computer (if that certain podcast offers it) or via iTunes for iOS and apps such as Podcast Republic for Android.

Podcasts such as Entrepreneur of Fire already garner thousands of listeners every episode and are a great way to learn the most up-to-date information and strategies possible. Another good list of entrepreneur podcasts includes Think Entrepreneurship.

Whether you learn best by audio, video, or text, this list of 15 learning resources for entrepreneurs can help you learn more about building a business, accounting, and getting customers.

Which Business Course is the Best?

Your degree will go further if you combine the right degree level with the right specialization. The top 5 highest paying business degrees are:

1. MBA

This might go without saying, but a master’s degree in business administration is without a doubt the top-paying degree, all around. An MBA can earn you a career at the management, director, and executive-level, earning you a starting salary of $124,000.

2. Bachelor’s in Information Systems Management

With a bachelor’s in information systems, you are set up with a well-paying job after only four years of school. This degree can lead to positions such as IT Manager, Systems Manager, and Systems Architect. Salaries for graduates in information systems management earn on average $83,000.

3. Master’s in Finance

A master’s in finance is how you will get those highest paying jobs we mentioned before. Finance Managers make a median salary of $120,000-$140,000.

4. Bachelor’s in Marketing

If you are good at what you do, an undergraduate degree in marketing can get you far. Some marketing director and manager positions only require a bachelor’s degree, allowing your education dollars to stretch further. Marketing positions can earn you up to $91,000.

5. Bachelor’s in Supply Chain Management

Supply chain management is one of the top paying career paths for business with that can be obtained with a bachelor’s degree. The average salary for supply chain managers is $110,000, and some makeup to $127,000. Not bad for a 4-year degree!

If you are looking for a career that will make you money, business is it. But remember, there are other very important factors to consider when you are choosing a field to enter. If you’re already convinced that business is the right choice for you, might as well make sure your future salary will fit the bill of your education to get there.

Best Business Majors for the Future

The fastest growing fields in business are Marketing, Finance, Consulting, Healthcare Management, and Environmental Management.

Environmental Management: The world is becoming more environmentally friendly, and as customers will start to expect more social responsibility from their purchases, companies will need to adapt. Careers in environmental management include: Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Environmental Protection Specialist, and Environmental Manager.

Healthcare Management: The healthcare business is changing. More insurance coverage for more citizens means more healthcare facilities. In addition, as the baby boomer generation ages, there will be a higher need for management for new facilities and programs. Jobs in healthcare administration include: Hospital Director/CEO, Clinic Administrator, Health Insurance Specialist, and Social and Community Support Manager.

Marketing: The field of marketing is always growing and with new innovations and technologies coming out at faster rates, there is an increased need for intelligent and creative marketers and marketing managers. There are so many jobs in marketing, but some of the most common are: Digital Marketer, Communications Specialist, VP of Marketing, Director of Marketing, and Marketing Manager.

Finance: Excellent minds in finance are always needed in the business world, and taking into consideration that the highest paid careers in business are usually in the finance realm, this could be the route to go, especially if you have a knack for numbers. Careers in finance include: Finance Manager, CFO Chief Financial Officer, Budget Director, and Financial Analyst.

Consulting: Companies are looking to become more agile, and the way to do so is to hire consultants. Business consulting can be done in any industry, and in many areas. Common consulting jobs include Business Consultant and Business Analyst.

MBA vs Bachelor’s vs Associate’s

The three most common levels of business degrees are: associate’s degree in business, bachelor’s degree in business, and master’s degree in business administration. All three degrees build upon each other or can be earned independently.

A common path of choice is to obtain a bachelor’s degree in business, followed by entering the workforce for several years and finally earning an MBA (master’s in business administration). In fact, most MBA programs require several years of work experience before applying to the program.

This shows a well-rounded applicant who has proven their potential to succeed in the world of business. The MBA degree helps business professionals to move to the next level.

If you are looking for a degree in business administration, but you aren’t sure you have the flexibility or money for such a commitment, think again — with the University of the People you can earn a tuition-free,US-accredited, fully flexible, and 100% online degree at your own pace.

Most entry-level jobs in business will either require an associate’s degree and previous, relevant work experience, or a bachelor’s degree. A senior-level, management or executive-level job may require higher education, such as an MBA.

Top Paying Business Degree Jobs

Jobs for business majors are expected to grow 10% over the next 10 years in all areas, so this is an excellent field to get into right now. Different jobs will be available to you depending on the degree you choose. Here is a list of some of the highest-paying jobs for business graduates, their average annual salary, and which specialization you need for each one.

1. VP Sales and Marketing ($176,000): MBA in Sales, Marketing
2. Chief Executive Officer ($131,000): MBA in Management, Operations, Entrepreneurship, Sales
3. Finance Manager ($118,000): MBA in Management, Operations, Entrepreneurship
4. Director of Marketing ($115,000): BA/MBA in Marketing, International Business, Sales
5. Budget Director ($113,000): BA/MBA in Finance, Entrepreneurship, Accounting, Operations, Economics
6. Actuary ($97,000): BA/MBA in Finance, Economics, Accounting
7. Business Operations Manager ($97,000): MBA in Management, Operations, Entrepreneurship
8. Medical and Health Services Manager ($94,000): BA/MBA in Health Administration, Management, Operations, Entrepreneurship
9. Financial Analyst ($80,000): BA/MBA in Finance, Economics, Accounting
10. Operations Research Analyst ($78,000): BA/MBA in Operations, Management, Business Analysis

How can I get a Free MBA?

The options for a free MBA fall into a handful of categories:

1. Full scholarship to qualified MBA candidates – limited availability. For example, University of Missouri-Kansas Henry W. Bloch School of Management announced that Fall 2015 admittees will have tuition (but not university fees and health insurance) covered.
2. Full sponsorship by employer – limited availability.
3. Select institutions that provide free tuition to local students – limited availability.
4. Free online courses equivalent to a typical MBA curriculum – open availability.

Of these options, only the last one has wide open availability to anyone in the world with an Internet connection and a computer or in some cases a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet.

Online Course Categories and sources

While there are hundreds of online learning Web sites, finding MBA curriculum-equivalent courses is no small task. Fortunately, in a non-comprehensive search, we found no fewer than 41 institutions of higher learning around the world that have released courses which fall into the following categories:

1. Full or partial content of actual MBA curriculum core/ flex core business courses.
2. The equivalent of MBA curriculum core/ flex core business courses.
3. Full or partial content of actual MBA curriculum elective courses.
4. The equivalent of MBA curriculum elective courses.

By “course” we mean here either a collection of lectures and study materials from a real bricks-and-mortar, on-campus course, or a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) — the latter being more interactive and potentially more valuable.

Is a Free Online MBA Self-Study Program Worth the Time?

If you were to enter a top MBA program such as one offered by the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, you are likely to spend about $200,000 for all expenses, plus two years living in or near Philadelphia. Alternatively, you could take a less expensive online MBA program through another school.

However, if you are purely seeking knowledge, as mentioned earlier, why not take a free equivalent curriculum of a top MBA school instead of paying for a degree at a lesser-known school whose accreditation may be questionable?

It just so happens that Wharton released lectures and study materials on Coursera for the first year of their MBA core and some “flexible core” curriculum courses. When you pair these courses with MBA-level business and elective courses from a selection of other top b-schools such as the University of Virginia Darden, Harvard, MIT Sloan, you have a self-study program nearing the equivalent of an MBA.

Add in the handful of MBA-level courses/ study materials that each of another three dozen or so b-schools are offering free online, and you have considerable leeway to fine-tune your MBA knowledge.

Add in a specialization of computer science, chemistry, biomedicine, cognitive science, engineering (various), architecture, environmental studies, mathematics or any of dozens of other subjects available from a multitude of free online courses and you potentially gain a body of knowledge that could change your career opportunities for the better.

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Obviously, you are not going to get the same benefits from a self-study approach as you would in an in-person program. Often, one important benefit of being at a top b-school is being able to build a network of connections – to colleagues, alumni and professors.

Another is the opportunity for getting an internship. However, for what you potentially gain at no cost, it’s a question of whether you want the b-school experience or the knowledge.

Conclusion

Many of these programs are archived, which means that students can take them at their own pace. There are also thousands of live courses that can be taken on a schedule in conjunction with other online students.

Depending on what you want to get out of your online educational experience, students can also pay fees for courses to earn official certificates. Students should also be wary of for-profit colleges that offer expensive online courses that won’t actually help them in the job market.

No matter what you decide, continuing your education online with a nonprofit accredited institution can be a cost-effective way to advance your career and expand your horizons.