4 ms·

Well I mean they sell their same courses for like 20 bucks on coursera.

paulgb 6y ago
You can't get a Harvard degree on Coursera though. To get the degree you have to be accepted to a degree program, and being accepted to a Harvard degree program is much of what the degree signals.
- throwawaybab323 6y ago
  Well actually you can. The degree is listed as from harvard along with the program. Getting accepted is a joke all you need is a undergraduate gpa of a 3.0.
  - esrauch 6y ago
    Are you saying that all you need to get accepted to Harvard is to have a B highschool GPA? That ... doesn't sound right.
    - throwawaybab323 6y ago
      Its the same with other mooc programs undergraduate gpa of a 3.0 gets you in.
  - paulgb 6y ago
    I can't seem to find this. Is it Harvard Extension School or actual Harvard? (Not to diminish the extension school; I have a credit from it and I was satisfied at the quality of instruction, but the admissions is definitely not the same as Harvard admission)
    - sukilot 6y ago
      The point is that HES is a degree "from Harvard".
      - hoteltree 6y ago
        No employer treats those two things the same.
mennis16 6y ago
edX. But also they really are not the same courses, at least the MIT courses on edX are not the same as "real" MIT courses (or what they put on OCW). Video lectures are separately planned/recorded to be shorter duration "modules", which decreases the depth and sometimes also results in entire topics being cut out. Assignments are heavily simplified. There is no proper replacement for recitations/office hours. And so on. Also, there are sites like HMX which is more in the realm of $1000 per class, and still not "the real thing". These classes are solid but they are just not comparable to actual classes at Harvard Medical School. My experience with taking classes versus trying out mass online learning has repeatedly resulted in "this is a nice amenity to have, but it is not a substitute for a proper course". Does Harvard have a monopoly on undergraduate math, philosophy, etc. materials? No. But there is a huge difference between doing challenging problem sets/having complicated debates with a high quality peer group (+ access to top profs), and doing the most basic "understanding checks" with a random sampling of college students. I think it is silly to pretend the only value top schools provide beyond random U is the value of building up a network/credentials. That is part of it, but it is also actually much easier to get a better education at these schools. I think there are two main problems with higher ed: 1) the top schools do not do a good enough job of admitting talented students across socioeconomic lines and 2) students are taking out debt to go to mid tier schools at unsustainable levels [especially because some of these students do not actually have a plan for college but feel pressured to rush into it]. There are also probably a bunch of lower tier private schools that should not exist. Anyway, for some reason I get the sense HN takes these 2 problems and somehow comes to the complaint that "elite schools are a waste of money". Given the generous financial aid, the greater availability of classes and rigor of coursework, the career building resources, etc. I don't think you will find better value per dollar at any US schools than from the HYPSM+ cohort. Students for whom it is at all feasible should just take a gap year this year IMO.
- throwawaybab323 6y ago
  Wow this reads like the narcissistic stuff you would find on r/cscareerquestions.
  - mennis16 6y ago

You can't get a Harvard degree on Coursera though. To get the degree you have to be accepted to a degree program, and being accepted to a Harvard degree program is much of what the degree signals.

throwawaybab323 6y ago
Well actually you can. The degree is listed as from harvard along with the program. Getting accepted is a joke all you need is a undergraduate gpa of a 3.0.
- esrauch 6y ago
  Are you saying that all you need to get accepted to Harvard is to have a B highschool GPA? That ... doesn't sound right.
  - throwawaybab323 6y ago
    Its the same with other mooc programs undergraduate gpa of a 3.0 gets you in.
- paulgb 6y ago
  I can't seem to find this. Is it Harvard Extension School or actual Harvard? (Not to diminish the extension school; I have a credit from it and I was satisfied at the quality of instruction, but the admissions is definitely not the same as Harvard admission)
  - sukilot 6y ago
    The point is that HES is a degree "from Harvard".
    - hoteltree 6y ago
      No employer treats those two things the same.

mennis16 6y ago

edX. But also they really are not the same courses, at least the MIT courses on edX are not the same as "real" MIT courses (or what they put on OCW). Video lectures are separately planned/recorded to be shorter duration "modules", which decreases the depth and sometimes also results in entire topics being cut out. Assignments are heavily simplified. There is no proper replacement for recitations/office hours. And so on. Also, there are sites like HMX which is more in the realm of $1000 per class, and still not "the real thing". These classes are solid but they are just not comparable to actual classes at Harvard Medical School. My experience with taking classes versus trying out mass online learning has repeatedly resulted in "this is a nice amenity to have, but it is not a substitute for a proper course". Does Harvard have a monopoly on undergraduate math, philosophy, etc. materials? No. But there is a huge difference between doing challenging problem sets/having complicated debates with a high quality peer group (+ access to top profs), and doing the most basic "understanding checks" with a random sampling of college students. I think it is silly to pretend the only value top schools provide beyond random U is the value of building up a network/credentials. That is part of it, but it is also actually much easier to get a better education at these schools. I think there are two main problems with higher ed: 1) the top schools do not do a good enough job of admitting talented students across socioeconomic lines and 2) students are taking out debt to go to mid tier schools at unsustainable levels [especially because some of these students do not actually have a plan for college but feel pressured to rush into it]. There are also probably a bunch of lower tier private schools that should not exist. Anyway, for some reason I get the sense HN takes these 2 problems and somehow comes to the complaint that "elite schools are a waste of money". Given the generous financial aid, the greater availability of classes and rigor of coursework, the career building resources, etc. I don't think you will find better value per dollar at any US schools than from the HYPSM+ cohort. Students for whom it is at all feasible should just take a gap year this year IMO.

throwawaybab323 6y ago
Wow this reads like the narcissistic stuff you would find on r/cscareerquestions.
- mennis16 6y ago