Coursera

Coursera

 3.9/5 (163 reviews)

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Overall Rating3.9 out of 5
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About Coursera

Coursera is a global online learning platform that offers massive open online courses (MOOCs), specializations and degrees. Users can build skills with courses from universities like Yale, Stanford and New York University and companies like Google and IBM.

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Self-paced
  • High-quality video
  • Free courses available
  • Free seven-day trial

Cons

  • Inflexible enrollment
  • Some courses are pricey

Bottom Line

If you want to learn a subject at your own pace, Coursera offers a wide selection of online courses, certificates and degrees at varying price points.

Top Coursera Reviews

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Verified

I'm delighted to have this course offered on Positive Psychology through Coursera ... I appreciate the format and set up of the course. The videos are very well done. A helpful as...

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I have nothing but good things to say about my experience with Coursera. I have loved the learning I have been able to do and look forward to taking many more classes with them .....

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Coursera courses

Coursera has more than 3,900 courses, 13 professional certificates and 20 degrees available. The company offers on-demand video lectures, self-paced quizzes and hands-on projects to help you apply the skills you’re learning.

Courses are available in:

  • Arts and humanities
  • Business
  • Computer science
  • Data science
  • Information technology
  • Health
  • Language learning
  • Math and logic
  • Personal development
  • Physical science and engineering
  • Social sciences

Through Coursera, you can take courses to earn a certificate or degree, develop new skills, prepare for a new career or switch careers. Companies often use the courses to offer professional training opportunities to employees.

According to a Coursera Learners Outcome Survey conducted in 2019, 87% of users who took professional development courses reported career benefits, including promotions, raises or career changes.

Coursera cost

The cost of Coursera classes varies based on the type of course, the course length and the subject matter. More in-demand courses, like Javascript and Blockchain, may cost more than courses like philosophy. On average, you can expect to pay the following prices for the three core offerings from Coursera:

Type of courseCourse lengthCourse cost
Individualized course4 - 6 weeks$0 - $99 per course
Special program4 - 6 months$39 - $79 per course
Online degree1 - 3 years$15,000 - $25,000

Coursera FAQ

Is Coursera legit?
Yes. The content on Coursera is crowdsourced from various contributors. The overall quality of courses may not be completely equal, but many consumers find value in the ability to supplement their learning opportunities.
Are courses on Coursera accredited?
Coursera offers a mix of accredited and nonaccredited courses. Some of its accredited classes feature specialized subjects and are offered in partnership with colleges and universities.
Are the courses on Coursera free?
Some Coursera courses are free, but most individual courses, which take around four to six weeks to complete, cost between $29 and $99 per course. Specialized programs and online degrees are also available from Coursera and have varying price points.
Is Coursera helpful?
Yes. People who can’t afford the cost of higher education often benefit from taking courses on Coursera, as do those who want to receive specialized training in a particular subject.

Is Coursera legit?

Coursera provides educational and skills advancement resources for individuals who don’t have access to traditional college programming or who want to improve their expertise in a specific field. Though the classes can be pricey and the enrollment dates are inflexible, the platform is valuable for many students and employees. However, because some employers don’t recognize degrees earned through Coursera, we mainly recommend the platform for business use.

Coursera Reviews

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Page 1 Reviews 0 - 10
Verified Reviewer
Original review: June 4, 2023

No support if you get stuck. No help at all. They don't even have instructors reviewing your work. It's all peer grading. You're better buying books on the subject. Save your money and use a library card.

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Verified Reviewer
Original review: May 2, 2023

While Coursera's business model is helpful for making online education affordable, the company relies too heavily on peer help. There is no TA, moderator or QA to ensure user experiences. When you are graded wrong by your peers, all that you could do is to resubmit your coursework for another round of peer review. Grading issue happens quite frequently. It makes it feel like a punishment. What's most ridiculous is that a course I'm taking requires an Adobe product. However the Adobe product key that Coursera offers doesn't allow for full function of the Adobe product. So I'm not able to finish the coursework.

After inquiring Coursera's customer support, she found a post hidden in the discussion forum that mention this as an issue known to Coursera. If this is a known issue, should it be announced in the course message or course information? Or shouldn't the course content be modified accordingly? Or shouldn't Coursera work something out with Adobe? But nope, just a random post in the ocean of the discussion forum. Highly irresponsible on Coursera's part.

5 people found this review helpful

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    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: Feb. 4, 2023

    There is NO customer service, only automated responses. They have an old email address for me and I can't change it since I can't access my decades old AOL email. I signed up for a course I didn't realize had a course I should have taken first and I wanted to switch to the prereq 20 minutes after purchase. Spent hours hunting down customer service but there is NO CUSTOMER SERVICE. Only automated responses that don't answer my questions. These courses ARE expensive and running a business without ANY way of contacting the company is extremely unethical. What is it, one dude running the place from a huge villa in Monaco? Just a guess. The classes are good, maybe a mixed bag but I didn't have issue with the courses but CERTAINLY with the complete lack of customer service.

    16 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: Nov. 30, 2022

    Unprofessional, unreliable, and irresponsible. Coursera staff appear to be poorly lacking in their duties and abilities to successfully manage this platform. They present serious, inaccurate claims of plagiarism based off insufficient sources and neglect to investigate these claims when prompted of their reasoning. They carelessly confirm inaccurate computer-generated claims of plagiarism on assignments, without investigating whether or not the computer is correct. Laura in particular, is guilty of the above and lacks in her duties to accurately identify plagiarism. Staff also fail to include appropriate contact information, leaving only the option to email, without a phone number to call. Do not spend your money on Coursera. The staff overseeing the assignments are untrained.

    15 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: Nov. 4, 2022

    Signed up via LinkedIn "recommendation" as they seemed more affable and budget-friendly compared to Learning. Well got halfway through a supposed Social Media Mgmt. certification, when a requirement was to create a FB and IG Business account, which seemed fake to me, as not being in business... or even certain if that's legal. And NO actual support to assist if you get stuck. I'm all for online learning alternatives, but this is severely questionable.

    14 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: Oct. 22, 2022

    I wanted to complete an assignment, but due to an error I wasn't able to. They offered me alternatives which didn't work, support is next to useless. I am paying for the course and I cannot even complete the assignment.

    16 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: Sept. 22, 2022

    This company is horrible. I was extremely excited to start learning about UX Designing, and everything seemed to be fine until half my work was gone when I logged back in a week later. They have NO phone number, and when I tried to reach them through email and messages and reports, NO ONE responded to me. I'm furious that I spent a total of $80 on absolutely nothing.

    21 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: July 6, 2022
    I decided to try out a trial with Coursera. And the trial, I wasn’t really feeling it. So, I decided to end it. And it was a free trial. Apparently, not. So, I cancelled the subscription. And a couple of months later, I start noticing payments coming out of my account to Coursera. So, I try and reach out to them. There’s no phone number anywhere. There’s no way to speak to somebody at all. They have a chat bubble that’s supposed to populate in the corner, but it doesn’t work with Google browser, with Safari browser, or the app itself. So, I had to try multiple different bowsers to find what the chat bubble would pop up in. Finally, got to start chatting with somebody, asking them about a refund. They said, “Okay, we’re gonna forward this to some other department, and they’ll be reaching back to you through email.” I’m so glad I cancelled it and I’m not working with them. Because if I ever needed help with anything, it would be insane. They charge high amounts for their services. These are expensive services, and there’s no customer service. It’s unbelievable. So, that’s my review. Don’t waste your time with them. You will regret it. And that’s all.
    49 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: June 8, 2022

    I was charged for a course after I completed the certification. I requested a refund and asked why was my credit card billed anyway. They said I had to cancel or complete the certification class. Which I did completed the course then the customer service rep was stuck when I said that. Check your cards because they are charging people for a service they not receiving any longer.

    28 people found this review helpful
    Verified Reviewer
    Original review: May 19, 2022

    Their business model relies on sneaking in sub subscriptions that they hope you don’t notice. They DO NOT CARE about their learners- only about extracting as much money as possible. Horrible, unethical corporation run by sociopaths.

    25 people found this review helpful
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    Coursera Company Information

    Company Name:
    Coursera
    Year Founded:
    2012
    Address:
    381 E Evelyn Ave
    City:
    Mountain View
    State/Province:
    CA
    Postal Code:
    94041
    Country:
    United States
    Website:
    www.coursera.org