Is Udemy Accredited? – In-depth Analysis of Udemy Certification

There has been a massive increase of online learning platforms that enable learning to be done at home, at your own pace. 

While these courses have a great many advantages in comparison to traditional in-person learning, it can be hard to tell which online learning platforms are worth your time! 

It’s important to know whether online learning platforms are accredited, as well as with what certifications. 

Udemy is one such online learning platform, and it’s a great idea to look at the certification of Udemy before committing to it. 

When it comes to Udemy specifically, we’ll break down its accreditation, certificates, course quality and give you a good understanding of what to look out for in general with online learning platforms. 

Let’s get into it!

What is Accreditation, and Why Does it Matter?

Accreditation is an important aspect of education of all types. All of us who have gone through elementary school have been in contact with an accreditation system, unknowingly! 

Accreditation is a system of assessing the standard and quality of service delivered by the education provider. 

Because there are so many different schools, educational providers, courses, and other forms of learning, there must be a standard that ensures the quality of all types of learning. 

Accreditation provides peace of mind to learners as well as prospective employers or higher education advisers that the quality of education received is measured to a certain standard by an external body.

Online courses that have accreditation are of course much higher value than those that are not. 

Accredited online courses have been validated as legitimate education providers and can be treated similarly to a regular in-person course, such as a college course. 

These have many benefits for your professional career and look great on your CV! 

Oftentimes, employers will look for specific accredited courses and qualifications, or it may even be a requirement for prospective employees to have these accredited qualifications to be considered for the job. 

Is Udemy Accredited? The Facts

Udemy is an online learning platform that emphasizes community contributions.

You can take courses on Udemy about anything from languages to music or entrepreneurship, and you can also create your own course on Udemy if you have a skill worth teaching.

Because of the nature of Udemy being skills-based, it is unfortunately not accredited by any type of academic institution. 

The straight answer to the question is Udemy accredited is therefore no; it is an online learning platform and has not been accredited by an external authority. 

All of the courses and certifications found on Udemy should be treated as lifestyle learning. 

These may be interesting and add great value to your personal repertoire, but this should be the limit of your expectations from any Udemy course. 

Are Udemy Certificates Recognized?

When you complete any approved Udemy course that you’ve paid for, you will receive a certificate of completion.

These certificates are great for documenting and recognizing your personal achievement in learning a specific skill; however, they are not recognized by any academic or professional institutions. 

This does not mean that they are worthless – just perhaps not worth as much as an accredited course from a certified education provider! 

Prospective employers still recognize the accomplishment of committing to online learning, especially as it offers so many opportunities for those who would not otherwise be able to do traditional learning.

Udemy certificates still represent a notable amount of time and commitment to learning a specific skill which is not meaningless to prospective employers, as long as it’s relevant to your career or the job you’re applying for.

The skills learned on Udemy are not certified; however, the skills are still valuable and the time you invest into learning them (as documented by the certificate) is not a waste. 

Udemy Course Quality and Industry Recognition

While Udemy in itself is not an accredited institution, as a platform it does offer some courses that are accredited by the independent authority that regulates that particular field. 

There are plenty of accredited courses on Udemy that are well worth your time and recognized in the industry.

Be sure to look for “accredited” in the title of the course, which means that the course meets industry standards and is a legitimate provider of that skill or qualification! 

Some examples of courses on Udemy that are accredited include: 

• REBT Practitioner Certification (Accredited by the Complementary Therapists Accredited Association)
• CBT Cognitive Behavioral Coaching Certification (Accredited by Continuing Developing Professional Standards Agency)
• Internationally Accredited Diploma in Nutrition (Accredited by the CPD Standards Association).

To find more accredited courses, simply add the term “accredited” to your search terms when looking for a course! 

Pros and Cons: The Value of Udemy Certification

Udemy can provide a great opportunity for you to add to your skills and even gain an accredited certificate in some instances. 

Deciding whether Udemy is worth your time and money is up to your own personal situation, so we’ll break down the pros and cons for your evaluation! 

Pros

• Online learning platform provides flexibility to suit your own schedule
• Skills learned on Udemy can still be recognizable by prospective employers even if not certified
• Some courses on Udemy are accredited
• Self-directed learning has plenty of advantages in itself, especially to prospective employers
• Instructors on Udemy are often very experienced in their field and are well-recognized
• Udemy certificates are still evidence of hours of learning and assessments, valuable for those without the opportunity to gain accredited qualifications
• Udemy offers plenty of lifestyle skills.

Cons

• Udemy as a platform is not accredited, so some of the courses you can find on Udemy are not always worthwhile
• The certificates you gain from Udemy are not recognizable as qualifications 
• You have to discern yourself whether a course is valuable for your intentions and goals
• Udemy courses cannot replace traditional qualifications.

Udemy’s Place in Professional and Career Development

While Udemy cannot replace a traditional college-level course, it can still add value to your professional development. 

Employers cannot recognize a Udemy course as a replacement for an accredited course, but a Udemy course still shows that you’ve invested time and money into learning a skill!

These are especially notable to prospective employers if the skill learned on Udemy is specifically relevant to the job. 

While many employers require an accredited qualification to consider an applicant, this does depend on the job. 

If you’re using Udemy courses to boost your knowledge base, that’s great!  However, you’ll still need accreditation though in most circumstances – especially in jobs that are regulated by an authority such as teachers or lawyers. 

If you’ve taken a Udemy course, it’s still totally worthwhile to put it on your resume to show prospective employers that you’re continually building your skills and knowledge and investing time into personal development. However, it will probably not be the primary reason you get hired. 

At the end of the day, Udemy’s accessibility means it has lower value for employers. Anyone can take a course on Udemy, but not everyone can go and get the certifications employers are looking for in their employees! 

Also Read: Udemy Review

Conclusion 

So, to conclude: Udemy is not an accredited online learning platform. However, it does offer accredited courses. 

It still has significant value as a learning platform; after all, investing your time into learning new skills and knowledge is never a waste. 

However, if you’re looking for a certification that will boost your job opportunities or guarantee entry into a specific job, Udemy is not your best choice. 

Udemy is not a replacement for traditional qualifications but does have value as it provides a great opportunity for people who may not have access to a traditional qualification, whether that be due to lack of time, money, or other reasons. 

The instructors on Udemy are often experts in their field and well-recognized. So, if you’re looking to invest your spare time into gaining a specific skill for your personal development, Udemy is excellent! 

Udemy offers the opportunity to learn a great variety of skills that provide great enhancement to your personal life with topics such as music or languages, for example. 

Udemy is a valuable platform in this aspect, as it can be difficult to find courses in person that suit your availability or even course offerings near you in the subject that you want to learn. 

In this article, we’ve explored the meaning of accreditation and what Udemy’s accreditations and certificates are. 

Now that you’ve got an understanding of Udemy’s offerings for your professional development, it’s up to you to decide whether it’s worthwhile or not!