Thread by @watchmanralph

How to do courses on Coursera and earn certificates for free.

Coursera.org is an online platform that enables one to build skills with courses, certificates, and degrees online from world-class universities and companies.

Many Coursera courses are available to audit for free, but certain features like graded assignments, certificates, & mentorship may be paid features. This means you can select the "Audit Only" option and access the video lectures, discussion forums, and course readings for free.

Follow these steps to audit a course:

1) Open the home page of the course you want to audit.
2) Click Enroll.
3) At the bottom of the window, click "audit" or choose the "Audit only" option.
However, if you are interested in getting the full dose of the course, let's go!

On the Coursera platform, there are standalone courses and there are specializations. Specializations are made up of different courses and each course has a syllabus.
A Coursera Specialization is a series of courses that help you master a skill.

For example, there is the Excel For Business Specialization, Deep Learning Specialization, etc. Each specialization goes in-depth and mostly ends with a robust project you will have to do to show how far you've mastered the skill. Standalone courses mostly have just quizzes.

Let's assume you want to enroll in any of the specializations. Many Specializations run on a subscription basis costing btw US$39-79 per month. Most offer a 7-day free trial, after which you will be billed. If you cancel within the free trial time, you will not be billed.

For the few times I canceled within the free trial time, I was offered up to a 50% discount to continue. Now, how can one who is not financially buoyant enjoy all the features of a Coursera paid subscription without paying a dime? Here are the steps.

1. Assuming you want to do Data Mining Specialization on Coursera. As you can see from the pic below, the course is designated 'Specialization'. A specialization has courses. I have drawn arrows to point at 'specialization', 'courses', & 'financial aid available'.

If you click on 'Courses', you will find out that the specialization is made up of six(6) courses. It is actually five(5) with a project making it six(6). The 'financial aid available' is written with very small font size. Do not click on it.

What you need to do is to 'right click' on each of the courses that make up the specialization then 'open on a new tab'. In essence, open each course on a new browser tab. Let me show you the first course that is part of the Data Mining Specialization. Pic below

As you can see from the arrows I drew, there is also the 'financial aid available' link. Each course has a syllabus and if it is part of a specialization, they will indicate as shown above. You now need to click the 'financial aid available' link to apply for financial aid.

You can decide to apply for financial aid for all the courses that make up the specialization or you can decide to apply for one or more. You are not constrained. I normally apply for all because it takes 15 days for it to be approved.

Whether you applied for one or all the courses that make up the specialization, it will take 15 days for one or all to be approved. It is your choice. Imagine finishing the first course then waiting for another 15 days to start the second one. It depends on your schedule, though.

After clicking on the 'financial aid available', you will find this pop-up telling you it takes 15 days for it to be approved. Click on "continue to the application". If you click on 'enroll and start learning today', you will be placed on the 7 days trial period.

That is not what we want to achieve. After clicking on 'continue to the application', the page below will come up. Tick both boxes and type 'I agree to the terms above'. You are committing to finishing the course. Afterward, click on 'Continue'.

The next page will let you inform them of your financial situation that led to your application for financial aid. Whatever you are earning, convert to dollars as there is no provision for you to input your income in naira.

If you aren't working, you can input $1 in the 'Annual Income' section. You can also let them know you are willing to pay $1 per month. It is up to you. I have put $1 many times yet they didn't charge me. I guess it's because my 'Annual income' was poor those days :-).

If you can't afford a dollar per month, no problem. Just put $0. Other information they need from you are:
1) Why are you applying for financial aid (150 words minimum)?
2) How will taking this course help you achieve your career goals(150 words minimum)?

There is an option of a low-interest loan. I always clicked on the "NO" button. I let them know I don't like taking loans. If you are unemployed just let them know that you don't want the loan since you are unemployed. When done, submit your application and wait for 15 days.

Coursera will send you an email letting you know of your financial aid application. I like to check on this to ensure the number of emails corresponds to the number of financial aid applications I made.
Retweet for others to benefit. Let me know your questions.
Best wishes!