Free online courses for Scotland

Free online short courses to help you upskill and reskill.

Thanks to the support of the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and Scottish Government, we’re able to offer a limited number of funded places on a range of online short courses. 

Use our online courses to:

• add in-demand skills to your CV
• gain credits towards postgraduate qualifications
• fit university study around full-time work.

When to apply for a funded place

We’re releasing government-funded course places in phases throughout 2022 and 2023: 

• Phase One – now closed.
• Phase Two – now closed.
• Phase Three – open until 5pm on 10 April 2023.

What it’s like to study online with us

We’ve been delivering online and distance learning for decades.

We support thousands of online students each year. People join us from all over the world, from all walks of life, to enjoy flexible lifelong learning that works for them.

• Find out how we’ll support you while you study.
• See what our main online learning platform looks like.
• Read about the experiences of our funded online students.

More about the SFC

The SFC and Scottish Government are providing millions of pounds across Scottish universities and regions this academic year to upskill Scotland’s workforce. It’s providing this funding to help universities:

• tackle skills gaps identified in the Scottish economy
• provide more agile support for employees and employers to upskill and reskill
• fund individuals made unemployed, facing unemployment, or whose jobs are at risk as a result of Covid-19 and/or Brexit
• support sectors that have been disproportionately impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, and, through upskilling and reskilling interventions, move workers into growing sectors
• support the transition to net-zero by enabling more people to access opportunities in the emerging green jobs sector
• increase the number of people with advanced digital skills
• provide flexible learning options so that more people can learn while they work.