Free and Low-Cost Training Resources

Need a little help learning how to use a data or research tool? Want to take your skills to the next level, or support your staff’s professional development? We offer one-on-one and group training on many skills and tools, and there are also many free and low- cost training web sites out there, and there are more options emerging all the time. Check out our roundup of free and low cost training sites here.

Coursera(Mountain View, CA, USA)
Coursera (Mountain View, CA, USA)
  • Free courses, certificates, and degrees from universities and companies
  • Self-paced quizzes and hands-on projects
  • Courses offered include:
    • Fundraising and Development
    • Understanding Child Development: From Synapse to Society
    • Everyday Excel, Problem Solving with Excel, and Introduction to Data Analysis Using Excel
    • Improving Leadership and Governance in Nonprofit Organizations
    • Strategic Planning and Execution
    • Survey Data Collection and Analytics
    • Qualitative Research
    • Project Management Principles and Practices
LinkedIn Learning (Sunnyvale, CA, USA)
  • Free one month trial; unlimited access starting at $30 per month
  • Emphasis on educators with real-world experience
  • Courses offered include:
    • Excel: Tips and Tricks
    • Learning Data Analytics
    • Data Science Foundations: Fundamentals
    • Data Fluency: Exploring and Describing Data
    • Project Management Foundations (Topics include: Requirements, Teams, and Schedules)
    • Nonprofit Management Foundations
    • Strategic Planning Foundations
    • Social Media for Nonprofits
LinkedIn Learning (Sunnyvale, CA, USA)
edX (Cambridge, MA, USA)
edX (Cambridge, MA, USA)
  • A nonprofit founded by MIT and Harvard that offers free online classes in a global community 
  • Some classes offer a low-cost certificate after completion of courses but they are not necessary to enroll
  • Courses offered include:
    • Data Science: Visualization (Harvard)
    • Essential from Program Strategy and Evaluation (Stanford)
    • Community Engagement: Collaborating for Change (Michigan)
    • Social Work Practice with Individuals, Families, and Small Groups (Michigan)
    • The Best Start in Life: Early Childhood Development for Sustainable Development
    • The Science of Parenting (UC San Diego)
    • Positive Behavior Support for Young Children (University of Washington)
    • Introduction to Data Analysis using Excel (Microsoft)
nonprofitready (Santa Monica, CA, USA)
  • Free courses and certificates for nonprofit professionals
  • Free Certificate in Nonprofit Essentials that covers nonprofit structure and governance, how nonprofits raise money for their cause, and the skills you need to build a thriving career in the nonprofit sector
  • Course offered include:
    • The Executive Director’s Guide to Fund Development
    • 48 Fundraising Ideas in Under 8 Minutes
    • Identifying and Applying for Grant Funds
    • 10 Strategies for Success with Digital Fundraising
    • Executive Director’s Guide to Leadership
    • Introduction to Nonprofit Finances
    • Engaging Pro Bono and Skilled Volunteers
    • The New Volunteer Managers Toolkit
nonprofitready (Santa Monica, CA, USA)
Udemy (San Francisco, CA, USA)
Udemy (San Francisco, CA, USA)
  • Classes can be purchased one at a time, starting at $12.99
  • Each class is offered with a 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Course offered include:
    • Digital Marketing for Nonprofits and Charities
    • Grant Writing for Nonprofits and Freelance Writers
    • Nonprofit Financial Management
    • Data-Driven Nonprofits
    • Plan for Success! Fundraising Planning for Nonprofits
    • Child Psychology (Advanced Level) – Accredited Certificate Offered
    • Microsoft Excel for Project Management
    • Excel Essentials: The Complete Excel Series – Level 1, 2 & 3
Codeacademy (New York, NY, USA)
  • Free basic courses for coding, pro at $20/month billed annually for more advanced courses and skills
  • Languages offered include HTML, Java, C++
  • Free courses offered include:
    • Learn How to Code
    • Learn HTML
    • Learn Java
    • Learn SQL 
    • Learn Python 2
    • How to Make a Website with NameCheap
Codeacademy (New York, NY, USA)
Khan Academy (Mountain View, CA, USA)
Khan Academy (Mountain View, CA, USA)
  • Free lessons from a school-age children approach
  • Lessons on child development offered include:
    • Vygotsky sociocultural development
    • Kohlberg moral development
    • Piaget’s stages of cognitive development
    • Theories of language development: Nativist, learning, interactionist
    • Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development
    • Childhood growth
  • Other lessons:
    • Intro to SQL: Querying and managing data
    • Data analysis
    • Data representations
Class Central (Mountain View, CA, USA)
  • Free online courses from universities
  • Courses offered include:
    • A Crash Course in Data Science
    • Analyzing and Visualizing Data with Excel
    • The Clinical Psychology of Children and Young People
    • Improving the Health of Women, Children and Adolescents
    • Childhood Adversity: The Impact of Childhood Maltreatment on Mental Health
    • Psychology Of Development And Learning
    • Social Work Practice: Advocating Social Justice and Change
    • Essentials of Nonprofit Strategy
Class Central (Mountain View, CA, USA)