Course / Program Name: Organize Your Small or Home Office

Hosted by / Sponsored by: About.com

Course of Study: Business organizational skills

Course Link: Take this course.

This course covers ways to organize a home office or small business, so it will be of the most use to you. This can be done whether you’re just starting a small business, or if you just have a space so messy you don’t know where to begin. With these helpful tips and tools, you’ll be more productive because this free study will get you organized and transform an office area into a space where work gets done consistently.

In a mere seven weeks, you’ll be exposed to general knowledge about small offices and home office designs. Furthermore, it will prepare you to implement a filing structure, put all your important documents in order, assure the safety of all business information, and just generally be a more efficient businessperson.

Hosted by / Sponsored by: About.com

Course of Study: Business organizational skills

Course Link: Take this course.

This free business course helps you hone your organizational skills, which leads to more free time to engage in the activities you truly enjoy.  To do this, you will acquire ways to relax and re-energize yourself.  So by incorporating these life skills into your daily routine, you’ll then be able to get more done and market your business better.

This type of business success course is geared toward small business people, in particular. Every week, you will be provided with with teachings that unpack the specific success goal for that week, along with a task for you to complete. Also, you will be given additional resources to read regarding that week’s goal.

Course / Program Name: Managerial Psychology

Hosted by / Sponsored by: MIT

Course of Study: Management / Psychology

Course Link: Take this course.

Description: MIT’s OpenCourseWare presents this free online course in managerial psychology. You can follow along with previous students’ reading assignments, lecture notes, and recitations as you learn the basics of behavioral science theories, methods, and tools as they apply to business and organizational management.

The course covers managerial psychology not only on an individual level, but also how those theories apply to working in groups and even full organizations.

Hosted by / Sponsored by: MIT OpenCourseWare

Course of Study: Economics

Course Link: Take this course.

Description: Students interested in taking university-level courses can find many options in MIT’s OpenCourseWare course materials.

This free online course in microeconomics allows students to study at their own pace, using actual course materials and teaching aids used in MIT classrooms.

This is an introductory course on the principles of microeconomics (which covers economics from the perspective of individual consumers, specific industries, or even firms rather than the larger working of the economy as a whole).

This course includes a syllabus, readings, assignments, lecture notes, and even class exams (including separate solutions to check answers). Materials can be accessed online or downloaded (in .pdf format).

Hosted by / Sponsored by: U.S. Small Business Administration

Course of Study: Business Startups

Course Link: Take this course.

Description: This course is a part of the SBA small business training network. To take this free introductory marketing course on the Web, students are asked to fill out a brief free registration form.

This free online course is conducted in a presentation format combining both audio and video elements.

A course outline is available, allowing students to choose specific subject areas, depending on their existing knowledge of business plans and business startups (or to resume the course where left off previously).

This course also includes a business plan template to help you move beyond theory to the practical side of writing your very own business plan.

Course Outline:

• Why Planning is Important
• The Big Picture: Snapshot of a Business Plan
• The Details: Components of a Business Plan
• Sample Business Plans
• Business Plan Template
• Next Steps
• Additional Assistance

Hosted by / Sponsored by: U.S. Small Business Administration

Course of Study: Marketing

Course Link: Take this course.

Description: The SBA offers a wide variety of free online courses for small business owners. To take this free introductory marketing course on the Web, students are asked to fill out a brief free registration form (you can choose to skip the form by simply clicking the submit button without filling in details).

The course itself is conducted in a presentation / slideshow format combining both audio and video elements.

A course outline is available, allowing students to choose specific subject areas, depending on their existing knowledge of marketing (or to resume the course where left off previously).

As with all SBA-sponsored free online courses, Marketing 101 is primarily designed with the entrepreneur in mind.

Course Outline:

• What is Marketing
• Market Research is Key
• The Marketing Plan
• Measure Performance
• High Impact Strategies
• Next Steps
• Additional Assistance

Hosted by / Sponsored by: U.S. Small Business Administration

Course of Study: Accounting

Course Link: Take this course.

Description: The SBA offers a wide variety of free online courses for small business owners. To take this free accounting course, students must fill out a brief free registration form.

The course itself is conducted in a presentation / slideshow format combining both audio and video elements.

A course outline is available, allowing students to choose specific subject areas, depending on their existing knowledge of accounting (or to resume the course where left off previously).

Course Outline:

• What is Accounting?
• Accounting Scorecards – Financial Statements
• Balance Sheet
• Income Statement
• Cash Flow Statement
• Don’t be Afraid
• Next Steps
• Additional Assistance & Resources