Accomplished Online Students

We’re Making College More Affordable For Everyone.

It all begins with SmartPlan™. Find schools you like, and potential ways to save with free courses, offers, and much more.

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SmartPlan: Your Blueprint to Save on College

There are many non-traditional ways to make your online degree and college affordable and accessible. Getting your SmartPlan helps you figure out potential ways to save by identifying the right school, free courses you could take for credit, available discounts, and much more.

  • Which Colleges Match Your Needs
  • Ways You Could Save Time & Money
  • Free Courses You Could Take for Credit
  • Valuable Data and Insights on Each College
  • Detailed Steps You Should Take!

Take All The Courses You Want — 100% Free.

World-Class & Tuition-Free Education

Our free courses not only teach you valuable skills—you could receive credits at accredited universities across the country. Getting you that much closer to your degree.

  • Saving You Money on Tuition
  • Online, at Your Own Pace
  • No Applications or Entrance Exams
Institutional Partners:
  • Lynn-university-logo
  • Grand Canyon University
  • Bellevue University
  • Thomas Edison State University
  • University of Maryland Global Campus
  • Peirce College

We’re Removing Hurdles for Adults to Get the Education They Need

We want to be able to help the millions of American seeking a college education who haven’t been able to take the first step.

University and college education can still be too expensive and unapproachable for the majority of people througout the country. Normal distractions of work, bills, and home life, oten prevent someone from getting started with education or being able to dedicate time and money to a traditional 4-year or online degree program.

We’re changing that.

Real Student Stories

Michael M.

I served 6 years in the US Navy. I had been away from a classroom for several years and OnlineDegree.com gave me a chance to get back into a college learning mindset while completing several of my general education requirements. The courses are a great opportunity for anyone looking to ease into college risk free, stress free and tuition free with the convenience of self paced courses that can be completed at home or on the go.
-Michael M.

“…Ease into college risk-free, stress-free and tuition-free…”
Michael D.

“OnlineDegree.com is good for anyone at any point in their secondary education…this site will save you tons of time and you’ll have fun while doing it!”
-Michael D.

Doneka R.

“I don’t really have time to go to a brick and mortar school…I’m very happy with the process and classes.”
-Doneka R.

Daniel R.

“I am a Marine Corps veteran…married with four kids. I would recommend OnlineDegree.com to anyone else with a busy schedule.”
-Daniel R.

College Guides & Articles

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Our Team Is Making a Difference

OnlineDegree.com is a team of startup veterans and leading academics, determined to help everyone get the education they need.

We’re taking a stang against cruching levels of student debt to help everyone go to college, and save time and money in the process. We’ve created a simple and easy-to-use environment where anyone can take online course at their own pace and within the confines of their existing busy schedule—for free. Complete courses could then recieve credits at universities across the country. Explore our free courses to begin learning today.

More About Us & Our Mission

Providing Critical Access To Education

Our modern economy is changing at an accelerated pace, and workers need to keep up with that change. Never before in human history has the marketplace requirements been more demanding than they are today. Unfortunately, we as a society have not been able to adequately address the large re-educational burden that must take place for all Americans to remain competitive in today and tomorrow’s market. Our mission is to help everyone gain access to the education they need to bring about that needed change.

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • Is OnlineDegree.com Really Free?

    Yep! It’s free to take as many courses as you want. Our goal is to make college more affordable and approachable for the millions of people that want to go to school. We’ve made sure it’s accessible to everyone regardless of their financial situation. Enroll in as many as you’d like.

  • Do I Have to Pay for Textbooks?

    Nope! At OnlineDegree.com we firmly believe in the Open Educational Resourse (OER) movement that strives to provide free collaborative and peer-reviewed textbooks to alleviate student costs. All of our reading material to accompany each course has purposely been chosen to be OER. It is thus free and there is no cost to the student in it’s digital format.

  • Is OnlineDegree.com a University?

    Nope! OnlineDegree.com doesn’t offer degrees like a university. We help people get started with their education by offering free college-level courses and potentially obtaining units towards their degree at a university. You can take courses on our site without the lengthy enrollment, applications or interviews that are required at universities.  It’s simple and takes less than 60 seconds to get started.  You’ll learn about a variety of cutting edge topics and courses, be better prepared to enroll at a university, and can potentially obtain units towards your degree (saving a ton of time and money!).

  • Are There Any 3rd-Party Fees?

    It’s completely free to take all of the courses, the textbooks, and generate a transcript. However, when you take a final exam, a 3rd-party online proctoring service, RPNow, needs to monitor you to make sure there’s no cheating. It’s standard practice for all online testing at the college-level. We’ve negotiated the fee on your behalf, and they will only charge you a small fee of $9. OnlineDegree.com though doesnt charge you anything for taking as many courses as you’d like…no fees or tuition, ever, period.

  • How Long Does it Take to Enroll?

    Less than a minute. No essays, no entrance exams, no interviews, and no tracking down high school transcripts from 20 years ago. Just register and start taking courses. It’s that easy.

  • When I Complete Courses at OnlineDegree.com, Can They Transfer to Any University in the Country?

    No, our courses have earned a recommendation for credit from NCCRS (the National College Credit Recommendation Service) whose recommendations are considered by over 1400 accredited colleges and universities in the United States. You can see the full list of participating colleges from the NCCRS, but includes schools in the California State University system, SUNY, Ohio State, Texas A&M, and many many more…over 1400 in total. We’ve also organized direct relationships with universities around the country like Ashworth College or Southern New Hampshire University that will accept our courses for college credit making your transfer more simple and easy. This provides our students with many options around the country, and we’re working tirelessly to add more universities all the time.

  • How Could I Save 25-30% on My Degree?

    By utilizing OnlineDegree.com’s tuition-free courses that could apply towards your degree at participating accredited universities across the country, as well as discounts we’ve arranged for our students, you could save 25-30% or more towards your degree.   To provide an example, all of the 15 college-level courses offered at OnlineDegree.com have been reviewed and verified by our university partner, Colorado State University Global (CSUG). The courses provide 44 units of available credit that could be applied towards your degree, and CSUG offers our students an additional 10% tuition discount when you enroll. The estimated savings is calculated as follows: based on $350/ credit hour fees * 120 Units for a bachelors degree, the 10% Tuition Discount would account for $4200 in potential savings.  Then, the credit earned from OnlineDegree.com tuition-free courses could be $6300 (ex. $350 credit hour tuition * 18 Units) up to $8400 (ex. $350 credit hour tuition * 24 Units), for a total savings of $10,500-$12,600 or 25-30% of the full tuition.  This is one example, and we have many partnerships with different discounts and savings.  You’ll want to inquire with each respective school’s advisor though to confirm which courses could best apply to your specific major or degree of interest, and how they combine with other units you’ve earned. Your particular major/degree will dictate which courses can specifically be applied.

  • Sounds Too Good To Be True, How Can OnlineDegree.com Be Free?

    We love hearing that 🙂 ! Our mission is to make college more affordable and accessible for the millions of adults who want a better life. Tuition is a huge barrier for many people, and often prevents someone from taking that first step towards a degree. We’ve worked tirelessly to keep all of our courses and accompanying books free to students. That commitment has resulted in removing those common hurdles, and helping our students potentially save thousands of dollars towards their eventual degree. We are boldly exploring other means of keeping the lights on outside of the traditional tuition model, and OnlineDegree.com will always be 100% tuition-free to our students. Period.

  • Does OnlineDegree.com “grant credit”?

    Remember that OnlineDegree.com is not a university and does not and cannot “grant credit” – the option to grant credit always belongs to the college or university and will further depend on whether a course fits into your degree program. Our goal at OnlineDegree.com is to help you receive credit at a university by taking our free college-level courses. We want to save students time and money to get their degree. To do that, we work with a number of participating accredited universities who’ve agreed to recognize our courses directly, and our courses have also earned a recommendation for credit from the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) who’s recommendations are considered by over 1400 universities and colleges nationwide in their network.

  • What If I’m Under 18 Years Old?

    It’s awesome that you’re already thinking about college, but unfortunately, OnlineDegree.com is only for adults age 18 and up who’ve completed high school or a GED equivalent. We’ll be here though when you’re old enough!

  • If I Just Complete One or Two Courses, Could I Still Obtain Credit?

    Yes! Each course has it’s own credit recommendation value. You don’t have to take all of them, just the ones you’d like.

  • Does This Guarantee I’ll Be Accepted at an Eventual University?

    No, no one can guarantee your acceptance other than the actual university where you’re applying. They always have the final decision. Each university has different guidelines and requirements on how they admit students into their school. This can include GPA, SAT/ACT scores, extracurricular activities you’ve participated in, etc. At many universities, transfer students have higher rates of acceptance vs freshman enrolling out of high school. That means earning units at a community college or through OnlineDegree.com can potentially increase your odds of getting into the school you want. Ask the eventual university where you’re applying to find out what things they take into consideration.

  • What If I’m Not Interested in Potentially Receiving Credits?

    No problem! Our courses at OnlineDegree.com are free for everyone solely for educational and self-betterment purposes. If you’d like to take the course to just learn more about the respective subject or topic, that’s great! You can take as many as you’d like.

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You Could Save Thousands Of Dollars Toward College.

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