New Udemy Report Shows Surge in Global Online Education in Response to COVID-19

People around the world are learning how to work from home and stay productive as the Future of Work arrives

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Udemy, the largest global marketplace for learning and teaching online, today released “Online Education Steps Up: What the World is Learning (from Home),” a special data report that provides a comprehensive look at online learning and teaching around the globe as the COVID-19 pandemic, shelter-in-place orders, and social distancing impact the world.

The new report analyzes global trends on the platform showing how people are turning to online learning to upskill, stay busy, and increase productivity. As remote working becomes the new normal, the findings reveal significantly increased demand globally across every segment:

• 425% increase in enrollments for consumers
• 55% increase in course creation by instructors
• 80% increase in usage from businesses and governments

“Udemy’s mission to improve lives through learning has never been more vital than during today’s challenging times,” said Darren Shimkus, President, Udemy for Business. “We remain committed to providing people and businesses around the world with affordable access to the skills they need today and in the future. The trends we’ve seen over the last two months represent a significant acceleration in the transformation to a new Future of Work.”

The State of Online Learning

Online learning has surged as people look for ways to be productive while staying at home. Strong global growth in top-ranking professional skills includes Neural Networks (61% increase), Communication Skills (131%), and Growth Mindset (206%). Passion topics like Pilates (402% increase), Technical Drawing (920%), and Ukulele (292%), have surged as well.

Demand also correlates with shelter-in-place orders around the world. For example, the data shows a 130% growth in enrollments in the U.S., 200% in India, 320% in Italy, and 280% in Spain.

• People in the U.S. are gravitating toward creative skills like Adobe Illustrator (326% increase)
• The Spanish are taking Piano (466%) and focused on Investing (262%)
• People in India are learning Business Fundamentals (281%) and Communication Skills (606%)
• Italians are taking courses on Guitar (431%), Copywriting (418%), and Photoshop (347%)

The State of Learning within Organizations

COVID-19 has translated into increased reliance on online learning as companies shift to remote work and move away from travel and in-person events and training. There has been an immense surge in enrollments in courses related to Telecommuting (21,598% increase) and Virtual Teams (1,523%), as well as Decision Making (277%), Self Discipline (237%), and Stress Management (235%).

The State of Online Teaching

There is also an increase in course creation as experts around the world are looking to share their knowledge as well as supplement their income through online teaching. Categories with the highest surge in new courses include Office Productivity (159% increase), Health and Fitness (84%), IT & Software (77%), and Personal Development (61%).

About Udemy

With a mission to improve lives through learning, Udemy is the world’s largest online learning destination that helps students, businesses, and governments gain the skills they need to compete in today’s economy. Millions of students are mastering new skills from 57,000 expert instructors teaching over 150,000 online courses in topics from programming and data science to leadership and team building. For companies, Udemy for Business offers an employee training and development platform with subscription access to 4,000+ courses, learning analytics, as well as the ability to host and distribute their own content. Udemy for Government is designed to upskill workers and prepare them for the jobs of tomorrow. Eighty percent of Fortune 100 companies trust Udemy for employee upskilling. Udemy is privately held and headquartered in San Francisco with offices in Denver, Brazil, India, Ireland, and Turkey. Udemy investors include Insight Partners, Prosus (Naspers Ventures), Norwest Venture Partners, and Stripes Group.