{"id":22252,"date":"2014-10-22T18:01:07","date_gmt":"2014-10-22T10:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?p=22252"},"modified":"2023-04-06T19:22:05","modified_gmt":"2023-04-06T11:22:05","slug":"questions-paid-online-courses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whether you\u2019re a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge<\/a>, you can benefit from taking online courses. Many of these (relatively) inexpensive programs allow you to satisfy your thirst for learning in the comforts of your own home, and at your own pace<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

While some of these courses are free, others aren\u2019t. If you\u2019re thinking of signing up for a paid course because you believe that \u201cYou get what you pay for\u201d, or because of any other reason, you\u2019d want to ask (and answer) these questions first to help you get the most bang for your buck<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Recommended Reading:<\/strong> 9 Sites For Free Online Courses And Open Courseware<\/a><\/p>\n

1. What \u201cValue\u201d Does This Course Offer Me Today?<\/h2>\n

You can also rephrase this question as: \u201cHow will this course benefit me right now?<\/strong>\u201c<\/p>\n

For example, if you\u2019re a novice freelancer<\/a> who has yet to land jobs, you\u2019ll get more out of a course called \u201cHow to Land a Client in 7 Days\u201d than \u201cHow to Re-invent Your 5-Year-Old Business\u201d. Granted, the latter may come in handy in the future, but for now, focus on what you need to know at this very moment<\/em><\/strong>. Remember that you\u2019re paying not just for the knowledge, but also for the results you can gain from that knowledge, so the sooner you get your investment back, the better.<\/p>\n

2. Does the course facilitator\/expert have excellent credentials?<\/h2>\n

But what if there are at least a dozen \u201cexperts\u201d who all claim to be able to teach you \u201cHow to Land a Client in 7 Days\u201d? Good question. Of course, you don\u2019t want just any Tom, Dick, and Harry to teach you<\/strong>. You want someone who \u201cwalks the talk\u201d, rather than someone who\u2019s \u201call talk, no walk\u201d.<\/p>\n

To find Mr.\/Ms. \u201cWalk the Talk\u201d, you conduct a background check<\/strong>. You find out who\u2019s facilitating the course you want to take, look them up on Linkedin<\/a>, and read through anything that supports their claim of being an \u201cexpert\u201d (e.g. work history, notable achievements, clientele, groups).<\/p>\n

If the course facilitator doesn\u2019t have a Linkedin, and\/or it\u2019s impossible for you to do a thorough background check<\/strong> on them, it\u2019s better to err on the side of caution, and look for another course<\/strong> with a more credible facilitator.<\/p>\n

3. What do non-affiliate reviews say about the course?<\/h2>\n

Sometimes, a famous personality in your industry will recommend a paid online course<\/strong>, with the disclaimer that s\/he is an \u201caffiliate\u201d of such. When someone says, \u201cI\u2019m an affiliate of so-and-so\u201d, what s\/he means is \u201cFor every person that signs up for so-and-so, I will receive some form of monetary compensation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, this doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that Mr.\/Ms. Famous Personality (FP) cares only<\/em> about what s\/he can get from you, money-wise. For all you know, Mr.\/Ms. FP may genuinely feel that the course gives great value for money.<\/p>\n

Then again, it\u2019s better to<\/strong> look up reviews from unbiased<\/em> third parties<\/strong> who lurk in blogs, forums, and even your immediate social circle. These people are more likely to give you the good, the bad, and the ugly on a paid course without batting an eyelash.<\/p>\n

4. Do you have the time to spare?<\/h2>\n

After answering the previous 3 questions, you can now decide whether the paid online course is worth it or not. If it is worth it, now\u2019s the time to ask yourself: \u201cCan I set aside at least a couple of hours each day to learn the course material<\/strong>?\u201d<\/p>\n

If you find it hard to schedule time to devote to the online course, think of it as another one of your college classes<\/strong> \u2013 albeit one you\u2019re taking voluntarily, instead of one you\u2019re taking because an authority figure is looking over your shoulder and nagging you about college credits, career goals, and the Big Life Questions. Set a fixed time and place where you go over the course materials<\/strong> and absorb what you need to learn without distractions.<\/p>\n

Read Also:<\/strong> Getting A College Degree Or Self-Learning?<\/a><\/p>\n

Of course, you can try to study while doing other tasks, but recent research suggests<\/a> you\u2019re better off not <\/em>multitasking.<\/p>\n

5. Can you afford the course at the moment?<\/h2>\n

Notice that this question is the last on the list. There\u2019s a reason for that.<\/p>\n

If the paid online course is \u201cvaluable\u201d to you in the best sense of the word, and you have more than enough time to spare for it, there\u2019s no reason why you shouldn\u2019t pay \u2013 unless you\u2019re really, really broke<\/strong>. In that case, there\u2019s no point sinking yourself further into a financial quagmire, and your energy is better spent looking elsewhere for high-quality free courses.<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n

Price isn\u2019t always a reliable indicator of quality<\/strong>. Paid online courses can be either good or not-so-good, and the same can be said of free online courses. Before you take any online course (free or otherwise), take time to research on it before hitting the \u201cSign Up\u201d or \u201cRegister\u201d button<\/strong>. That way, you\u2019ll get your money\u2019s (and time\u2019s) worth, at least 90 percent of the time.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whether you\u2019re a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking online courses. Many of these (relatively) inexpensive programs allow you to satisfy your thirst for learning in the comforts of your own home, and at your own pace. While some…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3401,3410,3398],"tags":[1720,2992],"topic":[4523,4521],"class_list":["entry-content","is-maxi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses - Hongkiat<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Whether you're a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Whether you're a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hongkiatcom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-10-22T10:01:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-06T11:22:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Issa Mirandilla\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@IssaMirandilla\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Issa Mirandilla\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Issa Mirandilla\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/627dc4af48ab338482dea4baa943d7b4\"},\"headline\":\"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-10-22T10:01:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-06T11:22:05+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":853,\"commentCount\":3,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Education\",\"Online Courses\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Culture\",\"Freelance\",\"Internet\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/\",\"name\":\"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses - Hongkiat\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2014-10-22T10:01:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-06T11:22:05+00:00\",\"description\":\"Whether you're a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/questions-paid-online-courses\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Hongkiat\",\"description\":\"Tech and Design Tips\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Hongkiat.com\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/hkdc-logo-rect-yoast.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/hkdc-logo-rect-yoast.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":799,\"caption\":\"Hongkiat.com\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/hongkiatcom\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/hongkiat\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/hongkiat\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/627dc4af48ab338482dea4baa943d7b4\",\"name\":\"Issa Mirandilla\",\"description\":\"Issa Mirandilla writes about freelancing, writing, marketing, careers, personal finance and other business-related topics. Give her a nudge on Twitter or visit her website here.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/IssaMirandilla\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/issa_mirandilla\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses - Hongkiat","description":"Whether you're a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses","og_description":"Whether you're a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking","og_url":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/","og_site_name":"Hongkiat","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hongkiatcom","article_published_time":"2014-10-22T10:01:07+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-04-06T11:22:05+00:00","author":"Issa Mirandilla","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@IssaMirandilla","twitter_site":"@hongkiat","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Issa Mirandilla","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/"},"author":{"name":"Issa Mirandilla","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/627dc4af48ab338482dea4baa943d7b4"},"headline":"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses","datePublished":"2014-10-22T10:01:07+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-06T11:22:05+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/"},"wordCount":853,"commentCount":3,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#organization"},"keywords":["Education","Online Courses"],"articleSection":["Culture","Freelance","Internet"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/","name":"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses - Hongkiat","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2014-10-22T10:01:07+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-06T11:22:05+00:00","description":"Whether you're a professional who wants to upgrade your skills, or an ever-curious person who wants to expand your knowledge, you can benefit from taking","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/questions-paid-online-courses\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"5 Essential Questions Before Enrolling in Paid Online Courses"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/","name":"Hongkiat","description":"Tech and Design Tips","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Hongkiat.com","url":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/hkdc-logo-rect-yoast.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/hkdc-logo-rect-yoast.jpg","width":1200,"height":799,"caption":"Hongkiat.com"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hongkiatcom","https:\/\/x.com\/hongkiat","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/hongkiat\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/627dc4af48ab338482dea4baa943d7b4","name":"Issa Mirandilla","description":"Issa Mirandilla writes about freelancing, writing, marketing, careers, personal finance and other business-related topics. Give her a nudge on Twitter or visit her website here.","sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/IssaMirandilla"],"url":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/author\/issa_mirandilla\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4uxU-5MU","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/132"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22252"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22252\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66065,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22252\/revisions\/66065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22252"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=22252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}