Alison who pioneered free online education celebrates 10 million learners worldwide

Alison, the ambitious social enterprise dedicated to making education and workplace skills training free for all, announced that it has passed the 10-million registered learner milestone.

Alison pioneered free online education ten years ago when it launched the world’s first massive open online course (MOOC) provider. The site serves more than two million users each in the United States and the United Kingdom, and one million users in India. The site has two million users across Africa, making it the largest single provider of free online education on the continent.

Based in the West of Ireland, Alison was founded by serial entrepreneur Mike Feerick. The site offers learners free access to more than 800 courses, spanning subject areas including languages, IT and digital skills, project management, personal development and many others. Recently launched subjects include a course on how to Build Your Own Drone and Software Testing.

Mike Feerick said: “Reaching 10 million learners is a phenomenal milestone for us – and our targets are already set to achieve 100 million learners by 2020. We are passionate about providing access to education to people around the world for free. Our mission is to democratise education and workplace skills training, providing opportunities for anyone with an internet connection to empower themselves through learning new skills.”

The organization will launch a new website on 10 April designed to improve user experience with a more interactive platform that is mobile-friendly.

Mike Feerick said: “Everyone in the modern workforce must continually invest in themselves by learning new skills and garnering new knowledge. Alison empowers people to do just that, in their millions. One day, billions of people will use platforms like Alison to become – and stay – more competitive. We are the beginning of a new, more assertive and confident workforce.”