Anyone Stealing a college education?

[rohit33]

Now everything is on zoom , I was wondering if anyone has been able to sit in on a college education online?
Ie. Somehow getting the links to the zoom call classes of a college/university class and joining in?
Edit: I can't believe people are asking what the point would be. Listen just cos you're too poor to pay for shit doesn't mean you shouldn't want to learn stuff. Learning never ends! That's the point! I'd love to take a higher education course on microbiology, plant ecology, biology, all that shit. I'm poor as shit, and I can't get a scholarship. I don't need the certificate, I'm old enough, and far enough along in my life that I don't need to hold my self worth to a piece of paper, but goddam I wanna learn stuff.

So you just directly copied your post from another site? Did you not get the replies you wanted on there?

If you aren't fussed about a certificate and just want to learn, there are absolutely loads of free courses online on just about anything you could imagine - openlearn, futurelearn, coursera...

Journalist?

How did you edit your post?

@SilverGlassHare

Journalist?

Darn it, I assumed the same as JustKeep, that the OP hadn't got the answers they liked elsewhere, hadn't thought of journo.

I work at a university and I've been watching the lectures on one of my courses throughout the year. It's been brilliant. The one that surprised me most was about managing supply chains. Not something I've ever been involved in or had any interest in but the lectures and case studies were fascinating. My students are part time and now I understand their comments about going back to work and driving everyone crazy with their sudden enthusiasm and 100s of ideas. It's not quite stealing as I've openly told the module leaders I've been listening to lectures and they find it flattering rather than cheeky.

I should have mentioned, there are loads of free courses on Open Learn from the Open University. I've done a few on microbiology out of curiosity and they were great but a little too high level for me

When I went to university (early 1980s) all lectures were open - and also optional on my course. Some poorer lecturers might only have about 100 students scattered round the lecture theatre, but for some brilliant communicators there would be people standing at the back and sitting down the steps.
I regularly attended Physics and Psychology lectutes (not my subject or remotely connected) and learnt so much about space and the working of the human brain. Fascinating stuff I still remember to this day.
So I can absolutely see the attraction.
However, from the other side, as someone offering paid training online this year, we do struggle with people paying for one delegate then piggybacking two others. We need to earn the money to keep going and it is technically stealing, as you say OP.
We would love to provide it all for free, but would not be able to be here doing it if we did.

AS pp, Open Learn and Future Learn have free lectures and courses.
Oxford University record a lot of their first year lectures as put them on line - even pre pandemic, ds watched a lot of 1st year Maths lectures.
A very basic Google gave me this for example

podcasts.ox.ac.uk/keywords/microbiology

I'm sure lots of other universities do the same.