Alison

Alison is a free online learning platform with certificate and diploma courses for individuals and a free learning management system for organizations. Its About page says it was "founded in Galway, Ireland, in 2007" by its CEO, Mike Feerick, and describes it as "a for-profit social enterprise dedicated to making it possible for anyone, to study anything, anywhere, at any time, for free online, at any subject level." The same page counts "50 Million+ Learners From 193 Countries", "15 Million+ Global Graduates", "6000+ CPD-Accredited Courses" and "445+ Course Creators", and claims Alison is the largest free online platform of its kind in the world for education and skills training.

The course catalog

The home page invites learners to "Explore 6000 + Free Online Courses" across ten categories. The biggest are Business (1,819 courses), Teaching & Academics (1,693), Personal Development (1,373), Information Technology (1,315), Health (1,158) and Management (1,130), followed by Engineering & Construction, Sales & Marketing, Language and English. The English strand stands out: the home page describes CEFR-aligned courses, "Created by experts", that take learners "from beginner to proficient level English speakers through structured lessons", with an English Proficiency Test alongside. A skills index lists "250+ Skills", and the courses page says Alison has partnered "with universities, foundations and individuals across the globe" since 2007. Anyone with an idea can suggest a course topic to the publishing team, and experts can publish their own courses through the Create Courses on Alison program.

Courses come in two sizes. Certificate courses take "2-3 hours" and focus on "Specific topics within a subject area, like languages, media studies, health, business, or computer programming." Diploma courses aim at a "Comprehensive understanding of a subject", such as business management, workplace safety or nursing; the courses FAQ puts them at "around 6-15 hours". Every course follows the same structure, "Course - Module - Topic - Assessment". Certificate courses usually end with one assessment and Diplomas spread several throughout, using single or multiple-choice questions. To pass, "You need to complete all modules and topics, and achieve at least 80% in your assessment", and "you can retake the assessment as many times as you like." Study is self-paced: "You can begin a course when you're ready and study whenever you have the chance."

Certificates, accreditation and what they mean

All courses are free to study and complete. At the end, a learner can buy a Certificate or Diploma, and "Paying for a certificate is completely optional." Instead, a learner can download a free Learner Record, which lists all completed and started courses with total study time, or a Learner Verification for one course, showing study time and final score. A short list of courses, including Back Care and Manual Handling and several Microsoft Office 2010 courses, come with a free digital certificate.

On accreditation, the FAQ says courses "are now being accredited by CPD UK, an independent organisation", so "a certificate from a course on Alison can now be used as part of your CPD requirements (please check with your organisation's guidelines)." Alison is also candid about the limits. Asked whether its Diploma in Nursing Studies makes someone a nurse, the FAQ answers that it "cannot be compared to a formal, accredited qualification of a Registered Nurse", while it may still help an application to a nursing program. Gift cards let someone buy a certificate for another learner.

Career tools

Alison wraps the courses in free career services. The Career Ready Plan works in three steps: take a short assessment to find suitable careers, choose one, then follow a step-by-step plan. It explains each career's requirements, responsibilities and earning potential, recommends the courses to take, builds a learning schedule around the hours per week a learner chooses, and sends reminders, and learners can change their planned hours and reschedule whenever they need to. A Career Guide covers careers in groups such as Health Science (162 careers) and Arts, Audio/Video Technology, and Communications (125). Psychometric tests cover verbal, numerical and abstract aptitude, workplace personality and mental wellbeing, and the Aptitude Test is described as "validated by experts and recognised by employers". The Resumé Builder offers industry-standard templates, multiple resumés and unlimited downloads, job boards suggest courses to close skill gaps for a listing, and public Alison Profiles are seen, the site says, by "Recruiters and organisations".

The app and Premium

The Alison App lets learners "Access thousands of courses without internet and learn on the go", and the home page counts "12 Million+ App Downloads". The site itself is available in English and Spanish. Alison Premium is an optional upgrade that offers "ad-free learning, special discounts, and priority support". The business model is spelled out by Mike Feerick: "Alison is free of charge to you. But it's still a business, albeit a socially-focused one. We are a social enterprise making our money through advertising, merchandise, and the sale of Certificates and Diplomas, should a Graduate choose to buy one."

Alison for Business: the free LMS

The LMS side, Alison for Business, comes in three tiers: Free LMS, LMS+ and LMS API. The Free LMS is pitched as "Perfect for small businesses, NGOs, and budget-conscious teams", lets organizations "Train unlimited team members completely for free", and includes the 6,000+ CPD-accredited courses so a company can "Start assigning learning today, no content creation required." It adds course creation and assignment tools, "Real-time tracking and reporting" of completions, engagement and outcomes, CPD-accredited certificates for learners, and a "5-minute setup, no technical support required." The LMS page reports "12K+ Organisations trained".

The page describes use cases for corporate onboarding, compliance and leadership training; universities, colleges and vocational schools adding coursework; startups; training providers and consultants who "host and deliver their proprietary content"; NGOs; government agencies; and franchises that need consistent training across locations. Under security it lists "ISO 27000/9000 Standards" and "GDPR Compliant". Testimonials come mainly from small organizations, such as Eniola Adewale of Medical Nigeria, who can refer staff and clients to "our dedicated portal on Alison while monitoring their collective progress and securing their certificates easily." The business menu also has a Pricing page, bulk discounts, a product tour and demos with "Learning Advisors".

Who it suits

Alison suits learners who want free, self-paced study across a very wide range of workplace subjects, from English and IT basics to health, management and teaching, and who value a CPD UK accredited certificate they can choose to pay for. Jobseekers get unusual extras for a free platform: the career plan, aptitude tests, resumé builder and job boards. The offline app helps anyone with patchy internet. On the business side, the Free LMS gives small companies, NGOs and schools a ready library and basic tracking at no cost, with LMS+ and an API for organizations that need more.

It suits less well someone looking for a degree, a professional license or live teaching: the courses are short, self-taught and, as Alison's own nursing answer makes clear, no substitute for a formal qualification. Learners who dislike ads will want Premium.