Free Online Courses: Humanities & Social Sciences

Download free courses & lectures from some of the world’s leading universities, including Stanford, Yale, Berkeley, MIT, Oxford, Harvard and others. All courses can be downloaded to computers & mp3 players, and can be accessed anytime, anywhere.

Humanities & Social Sciences

Archaeology

  • Hannibal - iTunes – Patrick Hunt, Stanford

Architecture

Art & Art History

  • Aesthetics & Philosophy of Art – iTunes – James Grant, Oxford University
  • Art History: Ancient to MedievaliTunes Video – Penn State, Heather McCune Bruhn
  • Foundations of American Cyber-CultureYouTube – UC Berkeley
  • Introduction to Visual ThinkingYouTube – UC Berkeley
  • Masterpieces of Western ArtiTunes – Columbia University
  • SmARThistory Video LecturesVimeoWeb – Beth Harris, MoMA & Steven Zucker, Pratt Institute
  • The Elements of DrawingiTunes – Stephen Farthing, Oxford University

Classics & Classical World

Economics

  • American Economic HistoryiTunes – J. Bradford Delong, UC Berkeley
  • Austrian Economics: An IntroductionWeb Site - Murray N. Rothbard - New York Polytechnic University
  • Capitalism: Success, Crisis and Reform - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – Douglas W. Rae, Yale
  • Economic Crisis and GlobalizationVideo – Richard D. Wolff, The New School
  • Economic Geography of the Industrial WorldiTunes – Richard Walker, UC Berkeley.
  • Financial MarketsYouTubeiTunes AudioiTunes Video - Download Course – Robert Shiller, Yale
  • Financial Theory - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - Web Site – John Geanakoplos, Yale
  • Game TheoryYouTubeiTunesDownload Course – Ben Polak, Yale
  • Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory - YouTube – Professor J. Bradford Delong, UC Berkeley
  • International Trade - YouTube - iTunes Video – Steven Wood, UC Berkeley
  • Introduction to EconomicsiTunes – J. Bradford Delong, UC Berkeley
  • Introduction to EconomicsWeb Site – Carnegie Mellon
  • Marxian Class Analysis Theory and Practice Online CourseVideo – Richard D. Wolff, The New School
  • Introduction to Environmental Economics and Policy - YouTube – Professor Gordon Rausser, UC Berkeley
  • Marxian Economics – An Intensive IntroductionVideo – Richard D. Wolff, The New School
  • Reading Marx’s CapitalGoogle Video – David Harvey, City University of New York
  • The Austrian School of Economics: An IntroductionWeb Site - Friedrich A. Hayek & colleagues – Recorded at University of Colorado

Bookmark our collection of free online Economics courses. And find free econ textbooks in our Free Textbook collection.

Film

  • Existentialism in Literature & Film - iTunes – Hubert Dreyfus, UC Berkeley
  • Holocaust in Film and Literature – YouTube – Todd Presner, UCLA
  • Philosophy in Film and Other Media - iTunes – YouTube – Web Site – Irving Singer, MIT
  • Western Movies: Myth, Ideology, GenreiTunes – Richard Slotkin, Wesleyan

Geography

  • Geography of US Presidential ElectionsiTunesYouTube – Martin Lewis, Stanford
  • Geography of World Cultures - iTunes – Martin Lewis, Stanford University
  • Global GeopoliticsiTunes – Martin Lewis, Stanford University
  • GlobalizationiTunesFeedMP3s – Robert Acker, UC Berkeley

History

  • African-American History: Modern Freedom StruggleYouTubeiTunes – Clay Carson, Stanford
  • American Economic HistoryiTunes – J. Bradford Delong, UC Berkeley
  • Ancient Greek History - YouTube - iTunes Audio - iTunes Video - Download Course – Donald Kagan, Yale
  • Ben Franklin and the World of the EnlightenmentiTunes – Bruce Thompson, Stanford/UC Santa Cruz
  • China: Traditions and TransformationsMultiple Formats – Peter K. Bol & William Kirby, Harvard
  • Colonial and Revolutionary AmericaiTunesU – Jack Rakove, Stanford
  • Early Modern England: Politics, Religion, and Society under the Tudors and Stuarts - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – Keith E. Wrightson, Yale
  • Epidemics in Western Society Since 1600 - iTunes Video –  iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – Frank Snowden, Yale
  • European Civilization, 1648-1945 - YouTubeiTunes AudioiTunes Video - Download Course – John Merriman, Yale
  • European Civilization from Renaissance to PresentiTunes – Carla Hesse, UC Berkeley
  • European Civilization from the Renaissance to the Present - YouTube - iTunes Video – Thomas Lacquer, UC Berkeley
  • European Cultural History, 1500-1815 - MP3s – George Mosse, University of Wisconsin- Madison
  • European Cultural History, 1660-1870 - MP3s – George Mosse, University of Wisconsin- Madison
  • European Cultural History, 1880-1920 - MP3s – George Mosse, University of Wisconsin- Madison
  • France Since 1871YouTubeiTunesDownload Course – John Merriman, Yale
  • HannibaliTunes – Patrick Hunt, Stanford.
  • Historical JesusiTunes – Thomas Sheehan, Stanford University
  • History of Anthropological ThoughtiTunes – Rosemary Joyce, UC Berkeley
  • History of InformationYouTube – Professors Geoffrey D. Nunberg, Paul Duguid, UC Berkeley
  • History of Iran to the Safavid PeriodiTunes – Richard Bulliet, Columbia University
  • History of the International SystemiTunes – James Sheehan, Stanford University
  • History of the Modern Middle EastiTunes – Richard Bulliet, Columbia University
  • History of New York City: A Social History - iTunesYouTubeWeb Site – Daniel Walkowitz, NYU
  • History of the United States Since 1945iTunes – Daniel Sargent, UC Berkeley
  • History of the World to 1500 CEYouTube – Richard Bulliet, Columbia University
  • Intellectual History of the United States since 1865 - iTunes – Richard Candida Smith, UC Berkeley
  • Introduction to Greek History - YouTubeiTunesDownload Course – Donald Kagan, Yale
  • Medicine and Public Health in American History – Web Audio - Chris Hamlin, Notre Dame
  • Modern Civilization: 1750 to Present - YouTube – Lynn Hunt, UCLA
  • Modern Jewish HistoryMP3s – George Mosse, University of Wisconsin – Madison
  • Science, Magic and Religion - iTunes - YouTube – Courtenay Raiai, UCLA
  • The American Founders and Their WorldiTunes – Jack Rakove, Gordon Wood, etc. Stanford
  • The American Revolution – iTunes Video - iTunes AudioYouTube - Web Site – Joanne B. Freeman, Yale
  • The Civil War and Reconstruction Era, 1845-1877 - YouTubeiTunes AudioiTunes Video - Download Course – David Blight, Yale
  • The Peculiar Modernity of Britain, 1848-2000iTunes – James Vernon, UC Berkeley
  • The Rise and Fall of the Second ReichiTunes – Margaret Anderson, UC Berkeley
  • The United States and the World Since 1945 - iTunes Audio – Daniel Sargent, UC Berkeley
  • The Western Tradition (Video)VideosCourse Outline – Eugen Weber, UCLA
  • War and Peace: International Relations since 1914iTunes – David Wetzel, UC Berkeley
  • World War and Society in the 20th Century: World War IIMultiple Formats – Charles S. Maier, Harvard

Bookmark our collection of free online History courses.

Journalism

  • Journalistic EthicsYouTube – Jim Newton, UCLA

Languages

To start learning 37 foreign languages, please see our extensive collection of Free Language Lessons.

Law

  • Environmental Justice and Human Rights in the Aftermath of KatrinaWeb Audio – Cynthia Toms Smedley, Notre Dame
  • Environmental Politics and Law - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – John P. Wargo, Yale
  • Introduction to Copyright LawiTunesWeb Site – Keith Winstein, MIT

Linguistics

  • Old English in Context - iTunes – Stuart Lee, Oxford University
  • Structure of English Words - iTunes – Will Leben, Stanford

Literature

Bookmark our collection of free online Literature courses.

Music

Philosophy

  • Aesthetics & Philosophy of Art – iTunes – James Grant, Oxford University
  • Ancient and Medieval Philosophy - iTunes Video - Web Video – David O’Connor, Notre Dame
  • Ancient PhilosophyiTunes – David Ebrey, UC Berkeley
  • Ancient Wisdom and Modern Love - iTunes Video - Web Video – Professor David O’Connor, Notre Dame
  • Aristotle: EthicsWeb Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Aristotle: RhetoricWeb Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Authority & the Individual: Six BBC Lectures - Web Site – Bertrand Russell, Cambridge
  • DeathYouTubeiTunes AudioiTunes Video –  Download Course – Shelly Kagan, Yale
  • Environmental PhilosophyiTunes Video - Web Video – Kenneth Sayre, Notre Dame
  • Existentialism in Literature & FilmiTunes – Hubert Dreyfus, UC Berkeley
  • General PhilosophyiTunes – Peter Millican, Oxford University
  • Hegel: The Philosophy of HistoryWeb Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • HeideggeriTunes - Hubert Dreyfus, UC Berkeley
  • Heidegger’s Being & TimeiTunes - Hubert Dreyfus, UC Berkeley
  • Hobbes: Leviathan and De Cive (1964) - Web Site - Leo Strauss, U Chicago.
  • Introduction to Political PhilosophyYouTubeiTunesDownload Course, Steven B. Smith, Yale
  • Justice: What’s the Right Thing to Do?,YouTube - iTunes - Web Site - Michael Sandel, Harvard
  • KantWeb Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Walter Kaufmann Lectures on Nietzsche, Kierkegaard and Sartre - Web Site
  • Kant’s EpistemologyiTunes – Dr Susan Stuarts, University of Glasgow
  • Man, God, and Society in Western Literature - iTunes Audio – Hubert Dreyfus, UC Berkeley
  • Medical EthicsWeb Audio – David Solomon, Notre Dame
  • Montesquieu’s The Spirit of the Laws (1966) - Web Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Morality and Modernity - Web Video – David Solomon, Notre Dame
  • Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil - Web Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Philosophy in Film and Other Media - iTunesYouTubeWeb Site – Irving Singer, MIT
  • Philosophy for BeginnersiTunes – Marianne Talbot, Oxford
  • Philosophy of LanguageiTunes – John Searle, UC Berkeley
  • Philosophy of Love in the Western WorldiTunesYouTubeWeb Site – Irving Singer, MIT
  • Philosophy of Mind - iTunes – John Searle, UC Berkeley
  • Philosophy of SocietyiTunes – John Searle, UC Berkeley
  • Plato Apology/Crito - Web Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Plato: GorgiasWeb Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago.
  • Plato: LawsWeb Site - Leo Strauss, U Chicago.
  • Plato: Meno - Web Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Plato, Protagoras  -Web Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Plato’s RepublicWeb Site – Laurence Bloom, University of Georgia
  • Proust & PhilosophyFeed – Johns Hopkins
  • The Examined LifeiTunes – Greg Reihman, Lehigh University
  • The Moral Foundations of Politics - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – Professor Ian Shapiro, Yale
  • The Nature of MindiTunes – John Joseph Campbell, UC Berkeley
  • ThucydidesWeb Site - Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Vico: Seminar in Political PhilosophyWeb Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago
  • Xenophon’s Oeconomicus - Web Site – Leo Strauss, U Chicago

Bookmark our collection of free online Philosophy courses.

Political Science, International Relations and Law

  • African American Studies: Intro to African American Political ThoughtYouTube – Mark Sawyer, UCLA
  • Climate Change: Law and PolicyiTunesFeedStream – Cymie Payne
  • Environmental Politics and Law - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – John P. Wargo, Yale
  • Faith and GlobalizationYouTube – Tony Blair, Miroslav Volf, Yale
  • Geography of US Presidential Elections – YouTubeiTunes – Martin Lewis, Stanford
  • International PoliticsFeed – Johns Hopkins
  • Introduction to German PoliticsiTunesFeed – Andreas Busch, Oxford University
  • Introduction to Political PhilosophyYouTubeiTunesDownload Course, Steven B. Smith, Yale
  • Justice: A Journey in Moral Reasoning (Video)Video – Michael Sandel, Harvard
  • Perspectives on China (Video)Video – Roderick MacFarquhar, Harvard
  • Politics and StrategyYouTube – Kathleen Bawn, UCLA
  • RepublicanismFeed - Johns Hopkins
  • The Moral Foundations of Politics - iTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – Professor Ian Shapiro, Yale

Bookmark our collection of free online Political Science courses.

Religion

  • Faith and GlobalizationYouTube – Tony Blair, Miroslav Volf, Yale
  • Historical JesusiTunes – Thomas Sheehan, Stanford University
  • Introduction to the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible)Download Course – Christine Hayes, Yale.
  • Introduction to New Testament History and LiteratureYouTubeiTunesDownload Course – Professor Dale B. Martin, Yale
  • Jerusalem: The Holy City from Ancient Canaan t0 Modern IsraeliTunes VideoiTunes Audio – Robert Cargill, UCLA
  • Jews and Christians Throughout History - iTunes Video - Web Video – Rabbi Michael Signer, Notre Dame
  • Science, Magic and Religion: From Antiquity to PresentiTunesYouTube - UCLA

Sociology

  • Foundations of Modern Social TheoryiTunes Video - iTunes Audio - YouTube - Web Site – Iván Szelényi, Yale
  • Global Sociology - YouTube – Professor Michael Burawoy, UC Berkeley
  • Introduction to SociologyWeb Site – Harvey Molotch, NYU
  • The Sociology of Race RelationsiTunes – Gianpaolo Baiocchi, UMASS Amherst

Urban Studies

  • Sensing Place: Photography as Inquiry (Video)iTunesDownload Course – Anne Whiston Spirn, MIT
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  • About Us

    Open Culture editor Dan Colman scours the web for the best educational media. He finds the free courses and audio books you need, the language lessons & movies you want, and plenty of enlightenment in between.

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