The MOOC Revolution: How To Earn An Elite MBA For Free

Financial Markets

School: Yale University

Platform: Coursera

Link: Financial Markets

Start Date: February 17, 2014

Workload: 6-12 Hours Per Week (Eight Weeks)

Instructor: Bob Shiller

Credentials: Professor Shiller is the Sterling Professor of Economics at Yale University and 2013 co-winner of the Nobel Prize in economics.  Shiller, who has authored seven books on economics, also produces two columns: “Finance in the 21 Century” for global distribution and “Economic View” for The New York Times. His repeat sales home price indices, which he developed with Karl E. Case, are the foundation of the futures market indices maintained by The Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Graded: No statements or certifications are awarded in conjunction with this course.

Description: The course outlines the fundamentals underlying global financial systems. It covers markets like stocks, bonds, futures, options, and swaps, outlining how these instruments work and how they’ll shape business, politics, and culture in this century.

Review: This course is bound to be among the largest MOOCs ever because it is the first one to actually be taught by a Nobel Prize winner. How often can you say that you studied under one of the world’s most renown financial market experts, someone who only recently was awarded a Nobel Prize?

Additional Background: The University of Chicago also offers a course called Asset Pricing through Coursera.