Computer science is a degree that has garnered a lot of popularity with the continued and exponential growth of technology. There is a large demand for people with this skillset and the incentive that they are offered greatly reflects this.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows very concrete evidence of the demand for computer science degree holders. It shows that the employment rate for this field is set to grow by 22% from 2020 to 2030. This entails 3,200 projected job openings for computer scientists every year.
Options For Free Computer Science Degrees
Coupled with the heavy demand for this particular skill set, there are numerous avenues for someone to acquire a degree in computer science for little to no financial investment. Computer science is a field that is well-suited for an online learning platform by virtue of its focus on software.
Coursera
Coursera is a global learning platform developed by Daphne Koller and Andrew Ng in 2012. The platform is partnered with several universities and offers a wide variety of lessons, certification, and courses. Many of which are free.
Included in this variety are computer science courses and topics from institutions like Stanford University, University of Alberta, Arizona State University, and others. The courses offered range from introductions to Python to Masters in Computer Science fields.
It is worth noting that while there are free courses to be found on this platform, not all of the courses offered are free.
University Of The People
University of the People is the world’s first tuition-free, accredited, American university. They offer a wide variety of courses without charging a hefty tuition fee or requiring student loans or debt.
Despite not having a tuition fee, however, they are not without fees. The university does charge a one-time, non-refundable application fee of $60, and course assessment fees at the end of each course. Undergraduate courses are charged $120, and graduate courses are charged $300. These fees are to be paid by the end of the respective courses.
UoPeople provides an outline of the total costs for their various courses, and it comes out to the following:
- Associate Degree: $2,460
- Bachelor’s Degree: $4,860
- MBA: $3,660
- M.Ed.: $3,960
- MSIT: $3,660
FreeCodeCamp
FreeCodeCamp is a nonprofit, donation-driven, online community that offers free courses, lessons, and tutorials online. They have a multitude of resources available in the field of computer science including a 3,000-hour coding curriculum.
As of the writing of this article however, FreeCodeCamp does not yet offer a means to earn a computer science degree. The platform has a plan to try and obtain the means to provide computer science bachelor’s degrees from an accredited US university this year.
Regardless of their inability to provide people with a degree, they are still a widespread network of resources that can be instrumental to the work of anyone in the field of computer science. This is especially true for those who are currently still in schooling or those that are just beginning to show an interest in the field.
To further explore your avenues and options in computer science, visit GoDegree’s article on How To Get A Degree In Computer Science Online.
