Table of Contents
About FutureLearn
FutureLearn is a name that pops into many people’s heads when they think about online learning. The British brand has made education accessible for people across the world with courses from some of the UK’s most recognized schools.
Helping people around the world learn in new and accessible ways has earned the brand over 322k Facebook followers and over 17m registered users. Some of their partner schools include the University of Leeds, the University of Glasgow, and Coventry University.
In my FutureLearn review, I will tell you what the service provides so that you can decide whether or not it’s right for you.
You’ll learn about what they offer, what’s free, what’s not, and what students have said about their time studying with them.
Why You Should Trust Us
Our mission is to help you make better, more informed purchase decisions. Our team spends hours researching, consulting with medical experts, gathering insight from expert professionals, reviewing customer feedback, and analyzing products to provide you with the information you need.
Overview of FutureLearn
FutureLearn is one of the most popular massive open online course directories on the planet. They offer post-secondary-level courses that you can take whenever you like. You don’t need to be a registered university student to grow your skillset and learn about higher-level topics.
This makes FutureLearn great for people who can’t afford full tuition or who don’t have the time to attend university full-time. You can earn credits and certificates through their unlimited membership or an online degree, which range from graduate certificates to master’s degrees.
The company has been around for over a decade, beginning in 2012. They established themselves to promote British universities in the growing MOOC space. Upon their creation, they partnered with a dozen UK-based post-secondary education institutes. They’ve expanded that number to more than 260 different universities, growing their available courses as well.
The next portion of my FutureLearn review will cover a few of the brand’s highlights.
Highlights
- Can learn courses for free
- Over 17 million users
- Partners with more than 260 universities and organizations
- Opportunity to earn degrees
- All courses are accredited
- Learning can be done from your smartphone, tablet, or laptop
FutureLearn Features and Functionality Review
FutureLearn offers four different structures for learning:
- Short courses
- ExpertTracks
- Microcredentials
- Online Degrees
Short courses are singular courses. They’re like going to night school to learn more about a particular subject. You can usually sign up for these courses without a FutureLearn Unlimited membership, though you may be limited by how long you can access the material.
Each short course has a user rating so you can see what others think about the class. They have different lengths and required studying hours per week.
Next up are the ExpertTracks, which are skills-based courses taught by high-ranking experts in each field. These are great options for learning practical abilities that you can take into your field of work.
Microcredentials are like a combination of short courses and ExpertTracks assembled into a full curriculum. It’s through these programs that you can earn academic credits that you can use towards obtaining a degree.
Speaking of degrees, FutureLearn offers full degree-accrediting programs completely online. It’s similar to a university where you must attend online classes, pass the assessment, and complete the curriculum to earn anything from an undergraduate bachelor’s to a master’s degree.
FutureLearn Courses Review
The FutureLearn online courses come from hundreds of the best universities in the world, including:
- King’s College London
- University of Connecticut
- City University of Hong Kong
- Eindhoven University of Technology
- John Hopkins University
Not every course FutureLearn offers is a traditional university course. Some involve more practical skills while others are extremely specialized. That’s why the platform has partnered with organizations that can provide insider information on many of these trades. Some of these organizations include the British Film Institute, BBC Good Food, and Cancer Research UK.
With such a wide array of partners, my FutureLearn review could run its entire length covering all of the available courses. To keep it short, they house courses in these major subjects:
- Business
- Technology
- Creative arts
- Media
- Healthcare
- History
- Computer science
- Language
- Law
- Literature
- Politics
- Nature
- Psychology
- STEM
- Teaching
How Does FutureLearn Work?
You’d be surprised at how easy it is to understand FutureLearn. All you need to do is create an account, enroll in the courses that interest you, and you’re set. This process can become more complex (and costly) if you want to pursue further education, but not by much.
How to Choose Courses on FutureLearn?
This may be the simplest thing to explain in my entire FutureLearn review. You can search through their course directory, filtering by subjects or by institution, then choose the ones that you want to study.
FutureLearn Cost
The great thing is that you can study most courses on FutureLearn for free. However, there is a paid program that grants you a bit more flexibility if that’s what you need with your studies.
The FutureLearn Unlimited program costs $28 per month but it includes:
- Limitless access to most short courses.
- Certificates for all completed courses.
- Flexible learning (i.e. you can take classes at your own pace).
Who Is FutureLearn For?
FutureLearn is for people who need to make learning work around their schedule instead of the other way around. If you’re a life-long learner or are simply looking for a new challenge, this service is for you.
FutureLearn Reviews: What Do Customers Think?
To give you an idea of what users thought of the service, I’ve collected some general FutureLearn review scores I found across the internet:
- Facebook: 4.7/5 stars after 255 reviews
- Yotpo: 4.6/5 stars after over 166k reviews
- G2: 4.4/5 stars from 19 reviews
- Sitejabber: 3.7/5 stars after 3 reviews
- Trustpilot: 2.7/5 stars after 56 reviews
As you can see, the majority of FutureLearn reviews leaned toward the positive end. Many of its customers were satisfied with the experience thanks to how accessible FutureLearn made its courses. They enjoyed how they could study on their phones without seeing any drop in quality.
One FutureLearn reviewer wrote: “The FutureLearn.com is one of the most amazing free online course catalogs! It offers free high-quality online courses from the world’s leading universities and other institutions. Easy to browse, choose a course you need. Use it on mobile – OK! I had a very positive experience with FutureLearn. Highly recommend visiting it.”
Others said that FutureLearn was great for learning about subjects that always interested them. The courses were in-depth and they felt that the paid program was worth it. One user wrote: “I did a few of their courses during the lockdown and I thought they were really great for what they are. Short, concise courses offered by a variety of universities on topics of interest.
They continued: “I undertook them due to having spare time and wanted to learn a bit more a bit quicker. I am considering upgrading to unlimited as at the moment I am too busy to complete the courses in the short time period to the best of my ability without effectively copying all the content to my laptop.”
The negative FutureLearn reviews I found focused on the perception that the company was locking more of its content behind paywalls. Many users who wrote less-than-positive reviews felt bitter that the service which was formerly generous was turning into a for-profit online service.
There were some ways to still make the most out of the free courses, reported some customers, but it involved speeding through the courses in extremely short time frames. This, sadly, wasn’t a feasible option for people who had other responsibilities and only had so much free time to dedicate to learning.
That was the largest complaint that customers wrote in their FutureLearn reviews. Besides that, nearly every user was impressed with the quality of content that the site provided. Of course, this is due to the universities that FutureLearn partners with, but it was a sign that the courses were worth the money to some customers.
Is FutureLearn Legit?
It didn’t appear to me that FutureLearn was doing anything shady. They are legit.
Is FutureLearn Worth It?
If you can make FutureLearn’s courses work with your schedule, then I think the program is worth it. The advantage that they hold over other MOOCs is their robust course selection and accreditation.
FutureLearn Promotions & Discounts
I couldn’t find any FutureLearn coupons at the time of writing my review.
Where to Buy FutureLearn
You can sign up for their programs at www.futurelearn.com.
FAQ
Who owns FutureLearn?
The Open University and SEEK Ltd. own FutureLearn.
How to get free certificates from FutureLearn?
You cannot obtain free certifications from FutureLearn. You have to sign up for an unlimited membership to get them.
Are FutureLearn courses recognized and accredited?
Yes, FutureLearn courses are all accredited.
What is FutureLearn’s Privacy Policy?
They do not collect any information that could identify you unless you are troubleshooting or purchasing one of their products.
What is FutureLearn’s Refund Policy?
For the most part, you’ll have a 14-day “cooling off” period after signing up for a course or program wherein you can cancel your membership and earn a refund.
How to Contact FutureLearn
If you have any questions after reading my FutureLearn review, you can submit a contact request on the company’s website.
Check out related reviews you might like:
Ask the community or leave a comment
WRITE A REVIEWCustomer Reviews
Leave a review