So after six months I have finally concluded my online course offered by Harvard. (My first post when I started the course) The course is administered through the Edx.org program and I am very happy to say that I have learned a tremendous amount.
For anyone who is thinking of taking these MOOC (Massively Open Online Courses) be prepared to challenge yourself. Time management is critical for successful completion. I found that allotting two to three hours a week for lectures and close to double that for assignments will allow you to do well.
One of the greater tools in the course is the help offered by fellow students and teaching fellows. Questions can be posted in forums and always expect a prompt reply. There were a few times when searching for my question helped as someone had already encountered the problem before me.
Also, don’t think that the easiest assignments are at the beginning. In the case of the online version of computer science the second assignment was one of the most challenging.
That being said and having completed the course I would have challenged myself to watch all the lectures first and then go back and start the assignments as that would allow you to have a stronger base of knowledge to pull from.
I can’t really say anything poor about my experience except for the fact it took a while to get the course certificate. By no means is this bad and to put it in to perspective imagine grading five thousand papers each week.
As the summer falls upon us I can say that I will look for courses to start in the fall. I find that the summer months are seasonally busy for me at work and compound that with the desire to go out and enjoy the nice weather my time would be more sparse.
If you have any questions about the course or my thoughts on the edx.org program feel free to leave a comment below and I will reply as promptly as possible!
I hope you take the time to check out the online courses offered by Harvard and other universities
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