Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Class Central Ranks Top 100 MOOCs 'of All Time'

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 08/21/19
hand writing top 100 on board

The top five free online courses of all time follow no pattern whatsoever. One covers programming, two are about natural sciences and two others examine brain topics from very different perspectives, and they come from universities all over the world. But all five have one thing in common: They've been judged as the best-ranked by the people who have taken the classes and voted on them through Class Central, an online service that catalogs online courses, including massive open online courses.

In the top spot is an introduction to the Python programming language, available on Coursera from Rice University. The second, Mountains 101, from the University of Alberta, offers a "broad an integrated overview of the mountain world," including geological origins, biodiversity, water cycles and cultural significance. Number three, Learning How to Learn, produced by the University of California San Diego, and McMaster University, explores the mental tools that can help people "master tough subjects." In spot number four, "Understanding Dementia," is offered directly by the University of Tasmania. And in fifth place, "Extinctions: Past and Present" is available through FutureLearn by the University of Cape Town.

Each year Class Central offers a ranking of the top free courses, based on the reviews posted by their learners. The latest list relied on analysis of some 60,000 reviews. The ranking eliminated all course that had fewer than 30 reviews and those "unlikely to be offered again." Where courses had multiple parts (like that Python class), only the first part was included in the list.

The rest of the list includes classes on technology; lifestyle improvements; learning science; the humanities; government, business and the law; marketing; and theology.

The latest top-100 references three institutions that each have five courses in the ranking: MIT in the United States, the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom and the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Three other universities have four courses on the list: Stanford, the University of Michigan and the University of Pennsylvania.

Dhawal Shah, founder of Class Central, noted that although western countries account for a large chunk of the courses, "the top 100 contains courses from 53 universities from 18 countries, with all continents represented."

Among course platforms, Coursera leads the way, followed by edX and FutureLearn.

"While many people have used MOOCs as a steppingstone to promotions or new careers, others take MOOCs for personal satisfaction," Shah pointed out. "Even those who did not finish high school or are retired from the paid workforce can enrich their lives with MOOCs. With an internet connection, MOOCs can be accessed all around the world."

The full list of the top 100 rankings is on the Class Central website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Hootsuite

    Beyond the Feed: How Higher Ed Turns Social Media Into a Measurable Enrollment Engine

    More than half of prospective students research programs on social media before visiting a university website, and nearly half will skip applying to a school that looks inactive online. Hootsuite, the all-in-one social OS platform trusted by more than 2,000 higher education institutions, helps campus teams turn everyday posts into measurable outcomes, from applications to alumni giving.

  • A glowing digital brain with neural connections and light trails

    AI Giants Warn It May Be Time to Slow Down

    For years, leaders in the artificial intelligence industry have warned that increasingly capable AI systems could eventually become dangerous, all the while continuing to race to build them. Now, their sentiments have changed.

  • lock icons, shields, and glowing data paths

    Research Studies Suggest AI Is Accelerating Familiar Cyber Attacks

    Research released around the recent Black Hat USA 2026 conference suggests that artificial intelligence is increasing the speed and scale of cybersecurity activity without replacing the attack methods defenders already face.

  • digital brain with network connections

    Microsoft Moving to Internally Developed AI Models in Office Apps

    Microsoft is reportedly using its own in-house artificial intelligence models to handle some workloads in Excel and Outlook, offering new evidence that the company is moving its AI strategy beyond model development and into large-scale cost reduction.