The MOOC Revolution: The Best MBA Electives For Free

A fascinating array of MBA electives are now available for free from some of the best professors and best business schools in the world.

Leading institutions are using their teaching and research stars – not adjuncts or TAs – in their MOOCs. At Yale, Nobel Prize winner Robert Shiller is conducting a MOOC on Financial Markets in February. Similarly, Columbia Professor Jeffrey Sachs, who moonlights as a Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, is holding a MOOC on Sustainability beginning in January.

Here’s a recommended list of some of the courses you won’t want to miss.

Financial Markets

School: Yale University

Platform: Coursera

Link: Financial Markets

Start Date: February 2014

Workload: 6-12 Hours Per Week (Length Not Specified)

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: This 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: None.

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