Episode 21

full
Published on:

8th Nov 2023

Ep21: How to Get Coursera Courses for Free

I'll explain how to access Coursera courses for free with a public library card. This is possible for people living in specific states and cities like California, New York, Tennessee, Missouri, and Chicago. I'll share personal experience of using library resources to take an 8-module Google cybersecurity professional certificate course from Coursera for free, from which I earned CPE credits towards my CISSP renewal. I'll also mention the added bonuses of a library card, including access to Udemy, free WiFi hotspots, newspapers like New York Times, and more. I encourage listeners to explore this free route to improve their cybersecurity knowledge, saying a sign of curiosity and inquisitiveness, two qualities important to succeeding in cybersecurity.

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Transcript
Speaker:

This is a quick PSA for all you

bite-size security enthusiasts.

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I'm about to tell you how

to get Coursera courses.

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For free.

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With a little piece of plastic.

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That you can get for free.

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And there's no gimmicks.

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There's no catches.

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There's no coupon codes.

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And I'm not asking you

to subscribe to anything.

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But it is pretty cool.

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So keep listening.

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If you are interested in taking the Google

cybersecurity professional certificate

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course, which has eight modules.

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And it might take you, I don't know,

six months to do, depending on the

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level of expertise you're already at.

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You're looking at $49 a month.

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So maybe $300 to do it.

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If you really stick to it for

the seven months and you have

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absolutely no experience.

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However, if you'd like to get it for

free, no gimmicks, no coupon codes.

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I'm not selling you.

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Some, you know, some portal

for you to join for my services

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if you are in California, New

York, Tennessee, Missouri,

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and the city of Chicago.

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And potentially somewhere

else, but you'll have to check.

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Get yourself.

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A public library card.

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Already said it in the last episode.

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But I did discover.

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That indeed Coursera was

offered to me through the.

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California state public library.

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So one of the library cards was

Contra Costa that collected.

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And when I logged into the digital

resources, there was Coursera.

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Now is on a wait list.

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But I did get, I did get the invite.

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And it said to keep checking

back and I did it like every

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Monday, they must purge it.

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And I went back and I checked.

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And I got in.

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And now I am taking the full eight

module, Google cyber security,

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professional certificate.

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And each module that you finish

and there's eight of them.

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You get a certificate

with your name on it.

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That you can use for CPE credits for

if you already have a current cert.

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So I'm using them for my CISSP and it

shows me the approximate hours that I took

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and the actual downloadable certificate.

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So I grabbed both.

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I put them in my portal and

they're accepted and I can prove

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that I've taken that training.

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So if you're in any of those

states, Your public library.

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May offer.

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Coursera.

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They may not, but they may.

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And if it wasn't one of the listed,

you should check because there

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are a lot of digital resources out

there beyond just LinkedIn learning,

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which seems to be the primary one.

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That you don't even know exists

because every library page.

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Is different and it's weird.

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And every card has its own

bar code and every card has

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its own pen and its password.

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So, what you need to do is get

yourself a library card and you

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already have one figure out what

your pin and your password is.

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Log into that libraries cards

website online and see what

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other resources you can get.

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I also get Udemy.

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And this free wifi hotspots,

New York times wall street

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journal access to audio books.

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The list goes on.

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It's quite extensive, actually.

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And you're going to save yourself.

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Initially hundreds of dollars, but in

a year's time, thousands of dollars.

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If nothing else, if you're

interested in a cyber security.

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Certificate and you want to take the

Google cyber security professional

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certificate, or you can go on LinkedIn

and start setting, studying for the

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CISSP it's well, worth your time

to do this because I'm telling you.

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Not a lot of people.

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We'll take the time to do it.

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And if you do that makes you

curious, it makes you inquisitive.

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And those are also qualities of

someone who's going to succeed

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and do very well in cyber security

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Byte Sized Security
Snackable advice on cyber security best practices tailored for professionals on the go
In a world where cyberattacks are becoming more commonplace, we all need to be vigilant about protecting our digital lives, whether at home or at work. Byte Sized Security is the podcast that provides snackable advice on cybersecurity best practices tailored for professionals on the go.

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Marc David

Marc David is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and the host of the cybersecurity podcast, Byte-Sized Security. He has over 15 years of experience in the information security field, specializing in network security, cloud security, and security awareness training. Marc is an engaging speaker and teacher with a passion for demystifying complex security topics. He got his start in security as a software developer for encrypted messaging platforms. Over his career, Marc has held security leadership roles at tech companies like Radius Networks and Vanco Payment Solutions. He now runs his own cybersecurity consulting and training firm helping businesses and individuals implement practical security controls. When he’s not hosting his popular security podcast, you can find Marc speaking at industry conferences or volunteering to teach kids cyber safety. Marc lives with his family outside of Boston where he also enjoys running, reading, and hiking.