Provider: Study.com
Course: Genetics 101
Course content: Text. Videos.
Final exam format: Multiple Choice. 100 questions. 2 hours.
Final exam content vs course content/practice exams: Similar
Time taken on course: A few days
Familiarity with subject before course: Very familiar. Tested out of 25%. There is some overlap with Intro or General Biology--not a lot but some. I also took genetics courses on Coursera and EdX years ago, so most of this was remembering what I once knew.
Pitfalls, high points, things others should know: The videos are generally good and reasonably entertaining
1-10 Difficulty level: 2-3; if you aren't already familiar with the subject it will be much harder
Provider: Study.com
Course: Geology 101
Course content: Text. Videos.
Final exam format: Multiple Choice. 100 questions. 2 hours.
Final exam content vs course content/practice exams: Similar
Time taken on course: A few days
Familiarity with subject before course: Somewhat familiar. I took Earth Science a few years ago and have taken naturalist training for volunteering at parks; I tested out of maybe 15 percent of this.
Pitfalls, high points, things others should know: I was hoping we would spend more time on mineralogy but that was only one or two sections of the course. The course covers a wide variety of topics in physical geology so it's likely that some units will be hard and others difficult for a person, depending on where they live and what they already know (If you live on the San Andreas Fault, you might have some familiarity with earthquake science than someone who doesn't, for example)
1-10 Difficulty level: 3
Provider: Study.com
Course: Advanced Social Psychology
Course content: Text. Videos. 4 papers.
Final exam format: Multiple Choice. 70 questions. 2 hours?
Final exam content vs course content/practice exams: Similar, maybe one or two from left field.
Time taken on course: A few days to a week; I was doing other courses at the same time so it's hard to say. Also this is probably the most time-consuming study .com course I've taken because it required four papers.
Familiarity with subject before course: Tested out of 10-15% or so. I have taken intro psychology and intro sociology at community college, I have worked in health care settings, have taken education courses, and I have absorbed a lot of this stuff over the years. Also familiar with AP style and have a citation manager (Zotero) which makes things more efficient.
Pitfalls, high points, things others should know:
1-10 Difficulty level: 2-3; BUT have I mentioned the four papers? Also probably a lot harder if you are a young adult as more of the info will be new to you. I spent most of my energy on the papers that were worth the most points and then did a mediocre to poor job on the other two because I'd already taken the final and knew I would pass.
Course: Genetics 101
Course content: Text. Videos.
Final exam format: Multiple Choice. 100 questions. 2 hours.
Final exam content vs course content/practice exams: Similar
Time taken on course: A few days
Familiarity with subject before course: Very familiar. Tested out of 25%. There is some overlap with Intro or General Biology--not a lot but some. I also took genetics courses on Coursera and EdX years ago, so most of this was remembering what I once knew.
Pitfalls, high points, things others should know: The videos are generally good and reasonably entertaining
1-10 Difficulty level: 2-3; if you aren't already familiar with the subject it will be much harder
Provider: Study.com
Course: Geology 101
Course content: Text. Videos.
Final exam format: Multiple Choice. 100 questions. 2 hours.
Final exam content vs course content/practice exams: Similar
Time taken on course: A few days
Familiarity with subject before course: Somewhat familiar. I took Earth Science a few years ago and have taken naturalist training for volunteering at parks; I tested out of maybe 15 percent of this.
Pitfalls, high points, things others should know: I was hoping we would spend more time on mineralogy but that was only one or two sections of the course. The course covers a wide variety of topics in physical geology so it's likely that some units will be hard and others difficult for a person, depending on where they live and what they already know (If you live on the San Andreas Fault, you might have some familiarity with earthquake science than someone who doesn't, for example)
1-10 Difficulty level: 3
Provider: Study.com
Course: Advanced Social Psychology
Course content: Text. Videos. 4 papers.
Final exam format: Multiple Choice. 70 questions. 2 hours?
Final exam content vs course content/practice exams: Similar, maybe one or two from left field.
Time taken on course: A few days to a week; I was doing other courses at the same time so it's hard to say. Also this is probably the most time-consuming study .com course I've taken because it required four papers.
Familiarity with subject before course: Tested out of 10-15% or so. I have taken intro psychology and intro sociology at community college, I have worked in health care settings, have taken education courses, and I have absorbed a lot of this stuff over the years. Also familiar with AP style and have a citation manager (Zotero) which makes things more efficient.
Pitfalls, high points, things others should know:
1-10 Difficulty level: 2-3; BUT have I mentioned the four papers? Also probably a lot harder if you are a young adult as more of the info will be new to you. I spent most of my energy on the papers that were worth the most points and then did a mediocre to poor job on the other two because I'd already taken the final and knew I would pass.