edX is a popular online learning platform and organization that works to democratize learning. It was founded by Harvard and MIT. When classes are provided online for free or at a low cost, obstacles such as high tuition and location are no longer an issue. There are a lot of universities that teach about different fields & topics and upload their courses on edx. But, we’re going to talk specifically about programming courses by Harvard only in this article.
You can either audit these seminars/courses for free or pay $50-$200 for features such as graded homework and completion certificates that you can add to your resume or LinkedIn page.
Free Programming Courses by Harvard
There are a lot of courses out there by Harvard, specifically in the field of programming but we’ve chosen the best and most relevant courses for our audiences. Here’s the very first course in our list by Harvard:
1. CS50’s Introduction to Game Development
You’ll look at the design of classic games including Super Mario Bros., Pong, Flappy Bird, Breakout, Match 3, Legend of Zelda, Angry Birds, Pokémon, 3D Helicopter Game, Dreadhalls, and Portal in order to better understand how video games are made.
The course addresses the basics of 2D and 3D graphics, animation, music, and collision detection utilizing frameworks like Unity and LVE 2D, as well as languages like Lua and C#, through lectures and hands-on projects. You will have developed several of your own games and obtained a full understanding of the fundamentals of game design and programming by the end of the class.
What you’ll learn?
- Principles of 2D and 3D graphics, animation, sound, and collision detection.
- Unity and LÖVE 2D
- Lua, C#
- Basics of game design and development
2. CS50’s Introduction to Artificial Intelligence with Python
Artificial intelligence is changing the way we live, work, and play. The demand for AI and machine learning skills is fast increasing, thanks to new technologies like self-driving cars and recommendation systems, as well as improvements to old ones like medical diagnostics and search engines. This course will help you take the first step toward solving major real-world challenges and securing your career’s future.
This Python course, Introduction to Artificial Intelligence, looks into the concepts and techniques that underpin modern artificial intelligence, including game-playing engines, handwriting recognition, and machine translation.
Students learn about the theory behind graph search algorithms, categorization, optimization, reinforcement learning, and other artificial intelligence and machine learning topics through hands-on projects that they incorporate into their own Python applications.
What you’ll learn?
- Graph search algorithms
- Artificial intelligence principles
- How to use AI in Python programs
- How to design intelligent systems
- And much more.
3. CS50: Introduction to Computer Science
CS50x is an introductory course given by David J. Malan that teaches students how to think algorithmically and effectively solve issues. Abstraction, algorithms, data structures, encapsulation, resource management, security, software engineering, and web development are just a few of the topics covered.
C, Python, SQL, and JavaScript, as well as CSS and HTML, are among the languages available. Real-world domains such as biology, encryption, economics, forensics, and gaming-inspired problem sets. CS50, Harvard’s largest course, is the on-campus version of CS50x.
A certificate is awarded to students who get an acceptable grade on nine problem sets (programming assignments) and a final project. This is a self-paced course, so you may complete it on your own time.
What you’ll learn?
- A broad and robust understanding of computer science and programming
- Familiarity in a number of languages, including C, PHP, and JavaScript plus SQL, CSS, and HTML
- How to develop and present a final programming project to your peers.
4. CS50’s Understanding Technology
This course serves as an introduction to technology for students who aren’t (yet) computer literate. This course fills in the gaps, empowering you to utilize and troubleshoot technology more successfully. It is designed for folks who work with technology every day but don’t necessarily understand how it all works below the hood or how to fix problems when something goes wrong.
This course equips you with today’s technology while also preparing you for tomorrow’s through lectures on hardware, the Internet, multimedia, security, programming, and web development.
What you’ll learn?
- Internet
- Multimedia
- Security
- Web Development
- Programming
5. CS50’s Introduction to Programming with Scratch
This course is basically an introduction to programming with Scratch, a visual programming language that allows aspiring programmers to build code by dragging and dropping graphical blocks (similar to puzzle pieces) rather than entering text. Scratch was created at MIT’s Media Lab and is used at the start of Harvard College’s basic computer science course, CS50.
It allows students with no prior programming expertise to create their own animations, games, interactive art, and tales. This course uses Scratch to expose students to the principles of programming, which can be found not only in Scratch but also in classic text-based languages like Java and Python.
What you’ll learn?
- Functions.
- Events
- Values
- Conditions
- Loops
- Variables
6. CS50’s Computer Science for Business Professionals
This is CS50’s introduction to computer science for business professionals, which is aimed at managers, product managers, founders, and other decision-makers. This course uses a top-down approach, stressing knowledge of high-level concepts.
This course equips you to make technological decisions even if you are not a technologist through lectures on computational thinking, programming languages, internet technologies, web development, technology stacks, and cloud computing. You’ll go away from this course with a better understanding of how things function and more confidence in the reasons that should drive your decisions.
What you’ll learn?
- Computational thinking
- Programming languages
- Internet technologies
- Web Development
- Technology stacks
- Cloud computing
7. Using Python for Research
This course fills in the gaps between introductory and intermediate Python courses. While there are many good beginner Python classes available, most do not go far enough in-depth to allow you to apply your Python abilities to research projects. After covering the fundamentals of Python 3, we will learn about tools often used in research settings in this course.
You’ll get to exercise your new Python abilities with numerous case studies chosen for their scientific breadth and coverage of different Python features, using a combination of a guided introduction and more independent in-depth research.
What you’ll learn?
- Python 3 programming basics (a review)
- Python tools (e.g., NumPy and SciPy modules) for research applications
- How to apply Python research tools in practical settings
Conclusion
Here, we’ve discussed free Programming Courses by Harvard. These are all courses by super talented educators who are experts in their field. Check out the courses as per your favorite programming language.
Which course are you’ll going to pick? Let us know in the comment. These courses are free to audit but you’ve to pay a little amount for the verified certificate. Go ahead & Pick up your favorite one.
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