9 websites that offer free online courses

Getting a higher education in the Middle East is not all that accessible to everyone living here due to increasing costs and stagnant wages.

While scholarships do exist, many of the spots are reserved for students or applicants who have a "wasta" or someone on the inside. So in an effort to broaden your options, here's a list of online colleges and course centers that applicants can study at for free and still get the quality education and information needed to pursue a career.

Offering diplomas and certificates along with a wide range of topics from Arts and Humanities to Marketing and Economics, Allison has more than 5 million users online.

Certificates and diplomas can be mailed to users for a very small fee.

OpenCulture.com aims to be an all around educational media platform online. Providing over 1,100 courses online on a wide range of topics such as astronomy, chemistry, mathematics and language, along with 209 free texts books, 700 free films and 700 ebooks.

OpenCulture.com also provides a certificate of completion, certificate of accomplishments, or both for a certain fee depending on the user's request.

Coursera.org is an online platform that is partnered up with many world wide universities such as Stanford, Columbia and the University of London. All courses are for free and are available for everyone pursuing a higher education. With more than 14 million users worldwide, this online educational platform has become one of the ultimate destinations for people who are trying to further enhance their knowledge.

Another leading organization in the world of online education, Academic Earth has partnered with Harvard, Cornell, Berklee, Princeton and MIT along with other many well respected universities in the U.S in order to provide world class education to students around the globe.

Open2Study.com is a tad different than other websites because it allows you to interact with other students from your "virtual" classroom and get assistance and/or further explanation on a subject from fellow class members. This platform is also accredited by the Open Universities Australia, an Australian leader in online education.

This online educational platform provided students worldwide with both free and paid classes and courses to take. If you're unaware of what you would like to do in regards of a career or simply enhance a hobby or a skill, then Study.com is the place for you.

There's never any harm in trying a few things out, no?

Offering a wide selection of courses that are free of charge and provided by leading universities and institution around the world, FutureLearn welcomes students from around the world to pursue a higher education. Though some courses may require specialized equipment, everything from marketing, business, chemistry, administration and so on are available on the website.

With more than 60+ partnerships with top universities around the world, learners have a wide access to 400 different courses in different fields of study.

Khan Academy aims to help learners from all ages in as mass variety of fields such as calculus, management, arts and literature and so on. They are also partnered up with NASA, The Museum of Modern Art, MIT and The California Academy of Sciences that offer specialized and tailored content for students around the globe.