The Top 5 Free Courses to Finally Understand Blockchain
Learn to fish in the crypto ocean today (and become a whale tomorrow)
Do you feel nostalgic, watching all those students rushing back to class after a summer break? Why not join them on a quest for knowledge? Even if you don’t miss school at all (and rather miss the last time you had a summer break), there is one thing we know you are eager to learn about — how do we know? — because everybody does. Blockchain.
Whether you are completely in the dark or already work in crypto for years, you may still lack a thorough technical understanding.
A wide variety of participants — governments, SEC and regulatory bodies, financial service organisations and exchanges, private business and tech startups, agencies and individual investors — makes the disruptive market of digital currencies, already extremely high-paced and volatile, even more complicated. While some choose to remain blissfully ignorant of the trend, others not only work in crypto, but also fully comprehend the technical side of the technology. And they can easily explain it. To a grandma. In plain words.
If the latter is how you picture your ideal self, we have just what you need.
So what exactly happens in a blockchain when a transaction occurs? How is Ethereum better than Bitcoin, if it is? Will cryptocurrencies be regulated? Are traditional investment frameworks applicable to cryptoassets investment? When will crypto exchanges become less vulnerable to fraud? If you are secretly asking yourself these and many other questions mushrooming in your mind, we have good news for you.
Not only will you get your answers, but also learn how to get them on your own next time. Because guess what? You will start to actually understand the peculiarities of the prominent technology of blockchain and make your own assessments and decisions (yes, and investment too). Teach a man to fish, as they say.
Here is a list of five comprehensive online courses that we prepared to match any taste and pocket:
The selected courses are designed by world’s leading universities, academic platforms and even top-notch industry practitioners.
Most of them are offered for free and have no prerequisites.
1. Introduction to Digital Currencies
by the University of Nicosia
This 10th MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) runs from September 3rd, and the registration is still open. The course lasts 12 weeks and ends with a final exam in early December. Students who successfully pass the course, receive academic certificates verified through the Bitcoin blockchain.
The course is offered by two major crypto enthusiasts: Antonis Polemitis, Managing Partner at Ledra Capital and CEO of the University of Nicosia, and Andreas M. Antonopoulos, a host on the Let's Talk Bitcoin podcast and author of few bestselling books on the matter.
It is held every semester with an updated schedule, covering a brief overview of history, Bitcoin in practice, alternative uses of the blockchain, financial institutions and regulations, innovation and situation in the developing world.
- You can either take a course separately for free, or enrol in the two-year MSc in Digital Currencies program, the world’s first Masters degree in Crypto.
- Students are also entitled to a discount at Decentralized, an international cryptoconference organized by the university, that will take place in Athens, Greece, on November 14-16.
Price: Free
Start: September, 3 (Registration is open)
Length: 12 weeks
2. What is Bitcoin?
by Khan Academy
If you don’t have 12 weeks to spend to master crypto and want to learn how Bitcoin works ‘overnight’, the Khan Academy’s short video course can be just what you were looking for.
This is not a comprehensive course on digital currencies, but rather an introduction to the technological side of the main one — Bitcoin. The series of 10-mins videos explains cryptographic hash functions, digital signatures, transaction records and other aspects that would help you understand the mechanics. Although the material was published five years ago, it is still useful for anyone who is still in the dark about how blockchain works and how transactions take place. If you don’t have 12 weeks to spend to master crypto and want to grasp the tech part ‘overnight’, the Khan Academy’s short video course can be just what you were looking for.
Price: Free
Start: On demand
Length: A series of 10-min videos
3. Cryptocurrency and Disruption
by LSE (The London School of Economics and Political Science)
Announced in July, this brand new online course by LSE, a world’s top business school, is offered for the first time in 2018. Over 8 weeks or 60 academic hours you will delve deeper into distributed ledger technology and its future, theoretical frameworks and approaches to investing, mechanisms of an ICO and its regulation. You will learn how to become a full member of cryptocurrencies ecosystem, able to interact with all its structures: exchanges, wallets, ICOs, etc. By the end of the course you will be capable of critically assessing the causes of things in the cryptoasset world. At least that's what they promise.
Cryptocurrency and Disruption is the only class in our list that you have to pay for, but you will receive a certificate by LSE.
Price: £1,900
Start: TBD, there is an open call for participants.
Length: 8 weeks
4. Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies
by Princeton University (on Coursera)
One of the first on Coursera in the area of cryptocurrencies, Princeton’s course guides you through mechanics of transactions and mining, the concepts of anonymity, community and regulation, and issues that arose when Bitcoin started to break through. A profound academic approach to explaining how the main cryptocurrency works with well-designed programming exercises (some Java skills required) as the icing on the cake — we expected nothing less from an Ivy League school.
Before taking this class, one should bear in mind that the material hasn’t been updated since its launch in 2014, so the parts of the content about fees, forks, mining, etc. have become mostly irrelevant and should be taken with a grain of salt. You might still want to consider going through the course to shed light on Bitcoin’s historical background and see how it has changed over time, as well as to master the programming assignments.
However, we would suggest you take another course from the list after, to stay ahead of the learning curve.
The course is offered on recurring basis, and the latest intake is scheduled for today (October, 2).
Price: Free
Start: October, 2
Length: 11 weeks
Prerequisites: Basic Java
5. Blockchain: Foundations and Use Cases
by ConsenSys Academy (on Coursera)
The course starts today and lasts for 5 weeks of as little as 2 hours of work per week. This is an introductory course to anyone who is interested in the foundations of the blockchain technology, both developers and non-developers, but it will be especially useful for business leaders, marketers and startupers, as it is offered by a global leader in the blockchain space. As a decentralized incubator for tech startups, ConsenSys will place every student on the frontline of the current crypto trends, introducing the class to real business cases and industry leaders, granting ‘a valuable behind-the-scenes look at the people and companies working in this space’.
While most educational material on cryptocurrencies that can be found online (and for free) is either outdated or based solely on Bitcoin, this course is built around Ethereum, a next-generation blockchain. Branded as ‘2019 Edition’, it promises to be highly accurate for the blockchain environment and teach you to make educated business decisions in the field. The only thing left to add is that, as one should suspect, ConsenSys own products and services are promoted during the course. You know, no course is perfect.
Price: Free
Start: October, 2
Length: 5 weeks
Lifetime learning also has its deadlines, so if you have been thinking about enrolling in a class on blockchain sometime in the future, or wanted badly to understand what the heck everybody is talking about, but simply didn't know those exist — the time is now.
This is a call to arms. Or better say, call to pens.
Vanessa Emrith