25 best online classes you can take for free

Classes will start on May 19. You can enrol for the full course for free or pay USD49 to get a certificate. Enrol for the class at coursera.org. 

So you just finished watching Uncorked on Netflix, and suddenly found yourself searching about what kind of wine is Chablis, then you end up Googling a bit more, and more. This course is for anyone starting on wine, loves wine, and wine tasting. The class will teach you how to describe wine's appearance, aroma, flavour, and taste. The class even offer a feature on virtually making your own wine. Take advantage of this course from University of Adelaide via edX. Audit the course for free and have access to the course materials and discussions forums.  If you'd like to pursue more after a few learnings, you can take the verified track (USD199 USD) to get a certification and access graded assignments. 

Enrol for the class today at edx.org

It's not really a class but a treasure trove of How-to Videos that teach any novice home chef from properly preparing eggs, to world cuisines, and cooking styles. The website boasts of over 90 cooking tutorials. They even have a special section on quarantine cooking recipes featuring canned and frozen foods you may have stocked up on your fridge.  

Get cooking at allrecipes.com

The website features basic and advanced cooking techniques written by professional chefs. Each lesson features up-to-date culinary tips and recipes that you can apply in your kitchen. The course is a reading module so you can read and learn anytime you want, no fancy videos but it saves you from buying countless cooking books that you probably won't read anyway. Topics include basic cooking techniques, working with meats and seafood, wine and food pairing, pastry making, and a whole lot more. 

Start learning at chef2chef.net 

If you're more visual and would like to learn through videos, this food learning archive from BBC Food will keep your quarantining days occupied. The site publishes recipes from its food television programmes with celebrity chefs. You can find a lot of cooking techniques from how to chop with 'chiffonade' or shredding technique, how to prepares meat and seafood, to making ice cupcakes! 

Start learning today via bbc.co.uk

Taught by Marc Levoy, a Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at Stanford, and Principal Engineer at Google. The course is excellent for beginners who are just starting to learn digital photography. It will give students a basic understanding of digital photography and put you far ahead of those 'social media photographers.' The course has been so popular that it has caused some errors on loading videos. If you experience the error, head to his Youtube account to view 18 lectures and then head back to his page to read summaries of some of his projects at Google.  

Since you have not been dressing up for work as of late, level up your fashion sense and start impressing your coworkers when you get back to working in the office. Learn from the fashion experts of The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. The course will give you a better comprehension of your fashion choices. It will also provide you with the critical tools to appreciate and contextualise fashion design—from everyday clothing to couture garments. 

Classes will start on July 28. You can enrol for the full course for free or pay USD49 to get a certificate. Enrol for the class at coursera.org 

This class is extensive, and if you have four hours a week to devote to the course, you may finish in five months. It will give you the fundamental skills needed to be a graphic designer so you can finally apply for that design job you have been dreaming of. 

Get a free 7-day free trial or pay USD49 per month to continue learning after trial ends. Enrol at coursera.org

Want to learn about the art of cinematography? Renowned cinematographer Shane Hurlbut (cinematographer for Netflix's Rim of the World, 2009 Terminator Salvation, and 2014 Need for Speed, among others) is giving free access to his Illumination Workshop. The full course costs USD499 but the free access gives students 8-hour of learning materials which will include shadows, reflections, lighting layers, and incorporating emotions in cinematic scenes. 

View the class today at hurlbutacademy.com

If you're in the media industry or starting your personal blog, you will gain a lot of insights and actually learn more about SEO. The course is part of multiple programs, but the introduction will introduce you to search engine algorithms, how to write for better SEO, developing strategies on how to increase site rankings. The session will take approximately 10 hours to complete. 

The course will start on March 30. Get a free 7-day free trial or pay USD49 per month to continue learning after the trial ends. Enrol at www.coursera.org 

Still having a hard time communicating with your coworkers or clients? This course provides the essential skills for practical communication that will help you to develop communication skills in engaging in dialogues instead of arguments and teach you how to apply micro-affirmations that can lead to lead to positive behaviour changes in the workplace. 

Audit the course for free and have access to the course materials. Enrol now at edx.org 

You just never listen! Don't you hear this a lot from your significant other? Well, it also applies to your coworkers. Especially now that you are working remotely, it wouldn't hurt to learn how to listen to be a better communicator.

The course is hosted by the founder of JibberJobber.com, Jason Alba. The class lasts for one hour and 34 minutes, so you will be able to access it for free if you start a 10-day free trial at pluralsight.com. It will ask you for your credit card, but you can cancel anytime after your trial ends, if not you can access all their courses by paying USD29.00/month. 

Always a lone wolf? In the workforce, if you're always the 'me-myself-and-I' kind of worker, then it will not often work. Unless you're the great company genius who doesn't need anyone's help, you still have to communicate and work together with your team to produce great results. Learn effective teamwork and group communication skills with this course. 

The class will take 14 hours to complete if you allot six hours of your time per week. Enrol for free to access all course materials except graded items via coursera.org

Staying with your kid all day driving you nuts? Take advantage of this Malvern College Pre-School Hong Kong (MCPS) free online class for ages three to five-year-olds. Get your kids to learn how to be a little scientist in this one-hour session in Zoom. Let your kids unleash that inner scientist. The workshop will also feature a hands-on online experiment that will be very engaging for your kids. 

The class will start on March 31, Tuesday, from 4pm-5pm. Visit the site for more information. Register through this link. 

Hong Kong schools have delayed classes since Chinese New Year because of the ongoing pandemic. Hong Kong Education City prepared a lot of online resources for local primary and secondary school students, so they can learn from home while waiting for class to start. 

Check the schedules of online learning modules via hkedcity.net. 

So you find yourself cooped up with your dog the whole day sue to your new work-from-home set-up. You now gained a new coworker who wants nothing but treats and a lot of hugs. Just for fun, take up this course so you can understand your best friend's behaviour. The course will introduce you to the exciting new study of dog psychology

The class is entirely free, but hey, if you want to get a certificate no one is stopping you, pay USD49 to share that new certificate on your CV. Take the class at coursera.org. 

The present time making you a bit crazy? Try to focus your energy in positivity. Check out this class to gain techniques in focusing and navigate negative emotions, and change your limiting mindset. The course is hosted by Laura Delizonna, PhD, a Stanford University instructor.  

The class usually starts at USD29, but creativelive.com is waiving some fees for their health and wellness classes to help people while coping with the pandemic. Join this class today for free. 

It's not a class, but moms can use this tool for their kids who are currently driving them insane at home. Packed games, videos, and learning programmes, the National Geographic Kids website may be your saving grace. Kids can learn stuff about the earth, animals, and even coronavirus.  

Get your kids entertained while learning via kids.nationalgeographic.com

Obsessed about the virus and it's all you think about day-in and day-out? Divert that energy and learn about the virus scientifically. Learn from world-class experts on analysing COVID-19 and how it spread. The class will provide regular situation reports about the state of the epidemic. 

The class is free. Enrol today at coursera.org

The University of Hong Kong is hosting a class on understanding epidemics. The course covers topics from novel pathogen origins; infectious diseases spread analysis, countermeasures; including a panel of discussions with leading public health experts. 

Enrol for free at coursera.org