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Coursera Plus Review: Is Coursera Plus Subscription Worth Your Money?
Coursera is a popular online learning platform that offers courses from accredited universities. Recently, Coursera introduced a new annual subscription service called Coursera Plus. With Coursera Plus, users have access to over 3,900 online courses at an annual fee of $399. Whether you are looking to learn a new skill, take multiple courses in a year, or earn a certificate that you can add to your LinkedIn profile, Coursera subscription can be a good value for your money.
So what is Coursera Plus and how much does it cost?
As already indicated, Coursera Plus offers an unlimited annual subscription in exchange for access to over 90 percent of the platform’s courses. With this plan, you will access over 3,900 courses facilitated by instructors from top universities like Duke, Columbia, Penn, Johns Hopkins, Yale, and Princeton. Most of these courses are created in collaboration with tech giants like Google Cloud, VMware, and Goldman Sachs. You will learn everything from business and personal development to health and data science. Coursera Plus costs $399 per year of subscription.
Once your subscription is activated, you will see a badge attached to all the courses included in your subscription. You can browse some of the top Coursera Plus courses here.
It is important to note that Coursera Plus subscription does not come with degrees of MasterTrack certificates. Additionally, some professional certificates like those offered by IBM and Amazon Web Services are not included.
Is Coursera Plus a good deal?
All Coursera Plus courses come with the following features:
- Facilitated by experts
All Coursera Plus courses are taught by accomplished experts. Most tutors are from reputable colleges, universities, and organizations that present the class and are highly qualified in their respective subject-matters.
- Supplementary resources
Most Coursera courses feature comprehensive video tutorials, quizzes, and supplementary reading materials that guarantee holistic learning experience. Some courses also come with assignments and capstone projects that allow you to demonstrate your proficiency in the subject.
- Budget-friendly
You can access Coursera courses free of charge. However, you will be required to pay a small fee to get a certificate for the cause you have taken. You can test a handful courses to find programs that best suit your interest.
Coursera Review: How certificates will you earn with Coursera Plus subscription?
According to Coursera, you will earn a certificate for every specialization or course you complete. You can present your certificate to potential employers or add it to your resume. Courses in the following categories are available under the Coursera Plus subscription.
- Math and logic
- Language learning
- Arts and humanities
- Health
- Social science
- Engineering and Physical science
- Business
- Data Science
- Computer Science
- Information technology
- Personal development
Will Coursera Plus Subscription save you money?
Well, this depends. While you can sign up for Coursera courses for free, you will not have access to all the course’s features like graded assignments and a verified certificate of completion with the free plan. That said, if you are considering paying full access to multiple courses, then Coursera Plus can save you money depending on the courses you are hoping to complete in a year as well as the cost of each. However, if you are only hoping to complete one or two courses in a year, then Coursera Plus may not be cost effective.
You can also save money with Coursera Plus when you enroll for a specialization that requires you to complete a bundle of related courses.
Coursera Plus subscription vs. specialization subscription: A comparative breakdown of prices
As already mentioned, Coursera Plus subscription is $399 per annum, which breaks down to about $33.25 per month. The average cost of a specialization on Coursera is $49-$79 per month, with each specialization taking about three months to complete. This brings the average cost of Coursera specialization to $147 – $237. If you plan on taking only one specialization, and complete it within the recommended timeframe, then paying by subscription may be a good idea. However, if you are planning on taking multiple courses, or taking longer to complete a specialization, then you are a good candidate for Coursera Plus plan.
Coursera Plus review: Pros and cons
Coursera Plus Pros
- Value for money when enrolling for multiple courses
- Costs only $399 to access 3900+ courses for 12 months
- 14-day money back guarantee
- Unlimited certificate courses
- Wide range of courses available
Coursera Plus Cons
- Does not come with free trial period
- No option for installment payment
- No option for financial aid from Coursera
Top courses on Coursera Plus plan
In this section, you will find top courses on Coursera Plus plan. These courses have been grouped by skill level to help you find the most suitable options for your learning needs.
Top FREE Coursera Plus courses for beginners
- AI for Everyone from deeplearning.ai
- Machine Learning by Stanford
- Introduction to Programming with MATLAB by Vanderbilt University
- The Science of Well-Being by Yale University
- Learning how to Learn: Powerful Mental Tools to Help you Master Tough Subjects by McMaster University and the University of California San Diego
Top Intermediate Coursera Plus Courses
- Introduction to TensorFlow for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning by deeplearning.ai
- Neural Networks and Deep Learning by deeplearning.ai
- Algorithms, Part I by Princeton University
Advanced Coursera Plus courses
Site Reliability Engineering: Measuring and Managing Reliability by Google Cloud
Coursera Plus review: Final thoughts
Considering giving Coursera Plus a try? You can get started with one of the courses recommended above. These top Coursera Plus courses will give you an inside look at the Coursera Plus plan. Most important, you will get started with free Coursera courses with no strings attached. If you find the program to be a good fit and want to complete the specialization, you are free to carry on at your convenience.
More Coursera Plus Courses
1. Data Science
2. Gamification
3. Learning How to Learn: Powerful Mental Tools
4. Developing Innovative Ideas for New Companies
5. An Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python
7, Writing Winning Resumes and Cover Letters
8. Responsive Website Basics: Code with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
9. Ruby On Rails: An Introduction
10. Full Stack Web Development
11. Game Design and Development
12. Graphic Design
13. Machine Learning
14. How To Start Your Own Business
15. Inspirational Leadership: Leading with Sense
16. Photography Basics and Beyond: From Smartphone to DSLR
18. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
19. Strategic Leadership and Management
20. Web Design for Everybody (Basics of Web Development and Coding)
21. TESOL Certificate, Part 1: Teach English Now!
22. iOS App Development with Swift
23. iOS Development for Creative Entrepreneurs
25. Foundations of Business Strategy
30. Entrepreneurship
31. Digital Analytics for Marketing Professionals
32. Foundations of Graphic Design
33. Foundations of Business Strategy
34. The Technology of Music Production
36. Cracking The Creativity Code: Discovering New Ideas
37. An Introduction to Programming the Internet of Things (IOT)
38. Content Strategy for Professionals
40. Entrepreneurship: Launching an Innovative Business
43. Java For Android
44. Strategic Career Self-Management
45. Basic Statistics
46. Big History: Connecting Knowledge
47. Introduction to Sustainability