20 Best Software Engineering MOOC / Non-credit Programs Online
Choosing a software engineering MOOC can be challenging, especially when you want a programme that matches your current skill level and learning goals. This page lists twenty non‑credit courses from Coursera, Udemy and edX, each with a clear price ranging from $19.99 to $125.00. The courses cover fundamental topics such as data structures, UML diagramming, testing, and emerging areas like generative AI, and they are delivered by institutions including The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Vanderbilt University, and the University of British Columbia. By reviewing the brief descriptions and price points, you can decide which course aligns best with your background, whether you are a beginner looking for an introductory overview or a more experienced developer seeking specialised knowledge. The ordering reflects our internal ranking based on curriculum breadth and relevance, not an absolute quality claim.
- Courses compared
- 20
- Price range
- $19.99 – $125.00
- Providers
- Coursera, Udemy, edX
- Last updated
- 18 Sep 2026
How these 20 courses were chosen
Every course below is a real, currently listed course from Coursera, Udemy, edX, matched to "Software Engineering" by our catalog and ordered by our CourseAsk score. Courses whose own title names the topic rank above those only tagged with it.
The grade on each entry scores how much the provider publishes about the course before you pay — the length and detail of the description, whether it lists learning outcomes and objectives — and whether a named university or institution stands behind it. A is fully documented and institution-backed; E is little more than a title and a price. Courses with almost nothing published are left ungraded rather than marked down, because an unknown course and a poor one are not the same thing.
There are no star ratings on this page — the course feeds we license do not include them, and we would rather leave a column out than fill it with a number we cannot stand behind. What we do have is price: these range from $19.99 to $125.00, as listed by the provider when we last updated the page.
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1
Software Engineering
Offered by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Software development is not just about coding, it also involves the application of scientific knowledge and well-defined engineering techniques to produce maintainable, scalable, cost-effective and on-schedule software p...
$49.00listed price -
2
Software Engineering: Implementation and Testing
Offered by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is the process of developing software through planning, requirement analysis, design, implementation, testing, and maintenance. This course focuses on the implementation and testing...
$49.00listed price -
3
Generative AI Software Engineering
Offered by Vanderbilt University
Transform from Code Writer to AI Orchestrator in 4 Comprehensive Courses The software engineering landscape has fundamentally shifted. While others debate whether AI will replace developers, you'll learn to amplify your...
$49.00listed price -
4
Software Engineering 101: Data Structures with Python & C++
Welcome to Software Engineering 101: Data Structures with Python & C++ course. This is a comprehensive project based course where you will learn the fundamentals of data structures and algorithms like arrays, linked...
$19.99listed price -
5
UML Class Diagrams for Software Engineering
Offered by KU Leuven
Learn how unified modeling language (UML) class diagrams are created and used to visualize and conceptualize the design of a system.
$59.00listed price -
6
Software Engineering Basics for Everyone
Offered by IBM
Build the foundation for an in-demand Software Engineering related career. Explore fundamental software engineering principles, processes, architecture, tools, and stacks. Hear from software experts discuss what it takes...
$99.00listed price -
7
Software Engineering: Introduction
Offered by University of British Columbia
Learn software engineering principles that are applicable to the breadth of large-scale software systems.
$125.00listed price -
8
Algorithms, Data Collection, and Starting to Code
Offered by University of Colorado System
This course starts you on your journey learning about computational thinking and beginning C programming. If you’d like to explore how we can interact with the world in a rigorous, computational way, and would also like...
$49.00listed price -
9
Introduction to Programming with MATLAB
Offered by Vanderbilt University
This course teaches computer programming to those with little to no previous experience. It uses the programming system and language called MATLAB to do so because it is easy to learn, versatile and very useful for engin...
$49.00listed price -
10
C Programming: Pointers and Memory Management - 4
Offered by Dartmouth College & Institut Mines-Télécom
In this course, we will examine a key concept, foundational to any programming language: the usage of memory. This course builds upon the basic concept of pointers, discussed in C Programming: Modular Programming and Mem...
$49.00listed price -
11
Build a Modern Computer from First Principles: From Nand to Tetris (Project-Centered Course)
Offered by Hebrew University of Jerusalem
What you’ll achieve: In this project-centered course* you will build a modern computer system, from the ground up. We’ll divide this fascinating journey into six hands-on projects that will take you from constructing ele...
$49.00listed price -
12
Software Testing and Automation
Offered by Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani
The course “Software Testing and Automation’ provides a comprehensive introduction to software testing, covering both foundational principles and modern testing practices used in industry. Learners begin by understanding...
$49.00listed price -
13
C Programming: Language Foundations - 2
Offered by Dartmouth College & Institut Mines-Télécom
In this course you will learn to use logical statements and arrays in C. Logical statements are used for decision-making with follow-up instructions, based on conditions you define. Arrays are used to store, keep track o...
$49.00listed price -
14
Programming Languages, Part C
Offered by University of Washington
[As described below, this is Part C of a 3-part course. Participants should complete Parts A and B first -- Part C "dives right in" and refers often to material from Part A and Part B.] This course is an introduction to...
$29.00listed price -
15
Computer Science: Programming with a Purpose
Offered by Princeton University
The basis for education in the last millennium was “reading, writing, and arithmetic;” now it is reading, writing, and computing. Learning to program is an essential part of the education of every student, not just in th...
$49.00listed price -
16
Rust Programming
Offered by Duke University
This comprehensive Rust Specialization from Coursera and Duke University, a top Data Science and AI program, provides software engineers, data scientists, and technical professionals with applied skills to leverage Rust’...
$49.00listed price -
17
Software Quality Control and Management Part 2
Offered by Northeastern University
Welcome to Software Quality Control and Management: Get ready to explore how quality assurance brings software to life! In this course, you’ll learn what Software Quality Assurance (SQA) is, why it matters, and how it fi...
$49.00listed price -
18
Learn to Teach Java: Writing Classes and Arrays
Offered by University of California San Diego
Learn to program using Class design and 1-D Arrays in Java, and prepare to teach others using the free, online interactive CS Awesome textbook. In this course for teachers we'll guide you both in learning Java concepts a...
$49.00listed price -
19
Introduction to Programming with Python and Java
Offered by University of Pennsylvania
This Specialization starts out by teaching basic concepts in Python and ramps up to more complex subjects such as object-oriented programming and data structures in Java. By the time learners complete this series of four...
$79.00listed price -
20
Python Programming Fundamentals
Offered by Duke University
This introductory course is designed for beginners and individuals with limited programming experience who want to embark on their software development or data science journey using Python. Throughout the course, learner...
$49.00listed price
Best Software Engineering MOOC / Non-credit Programs Online compared
| # | Course | Provider | Offered by | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Software Engineering | Coursera | The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology | $49.00 | View → |
| 2 | Software Engineering: Implementation and Testing | Coursera | The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology | $49.00 | View → |
| 3 | Generative AI Software Engineering | Coursera | Vanderbilt University | $49.00 | View → |
| 4 | Software Engineering 101: Data Structures with Python & C++ | Udemy | — | $19.99 | View → |
| 5 | UML Class Diagrams for Software Engineering | edX | KU Leuven | $59.00 | View → |
| 6 | Software Engineering Basics for Everyone | edX | IBM | $99.00 | View → |
| 7 | Software Engineering: Introduction | edX | University of British Columbia | $125.00 | View → |
| 8 | Algorithms, Data Collection, and Starting to Code | Coursera | University of Colorado System | $49.00 | View → |
| 9 | Introduction to Programming with MATLAB | Coursera | Vanderbilt University | $49.00 | View → |
| 10 | C Programming: Pointers and Memory Management - 4 | Coursera | Dartmouth College & Institut Mines-Télécom | $49.00 | View → |
| 11 | Build a Modern Computer from First Principles: From Nand to Tetris (Pr... | Coursera | Hebrew University of Jerusalem | $49.00 | View → |
| 12 | Software Testing and Automation | Coursera | Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani | $49.00 | View → |
| 13 | C Programming: Language Foundations - 2 | Coursera | Dartmouth College & Institut Mines-Télécom | $49.00 | View → |
| 14 | Programming Languages, Part C | Coursera | University of Washington | $29.00 | View → |
| 15 | Computer Science: Programming with a Purpose | Coursera | Princeton University | $49.00 | View → |
| 16 | Rust Programming | Coursera | Duke University | $49.00 | View → |
| 17 | Software Quality Control and Management Part 2 | Coursera | Northeastern University | $49.00 | View → |
| 18 | Learn to Teach Java: Writing Classes and Arrays | Coursera | University of California San Diego | $49.00 | View → |
| 19 | Introduction to Programming with Python and Java | Coursera | University of Pennsylvania | $79.00 | View → |
| 20 | Python Programming Fundamentals | Coursera | Duke University | $49.00 | View → |
Prices shown are the provider's listed price when we last updated this page. Confirm on their site before enrolling.
What the prices here tell you
The 20 priced courses on this page run from $19.99 to $125.00, with the middle of the range around $49.00 — a spread of $105.01. That is a wide gap for one subject. A higher price on this page usually reflects who is behind the course rather than how much material it contains, so it is worth opening two or three at different price points and comparing their syllabus before deciding.
Who is behind these courses
These courses come from Coursera, Udemy and edX. The platforms differ in how they sell: some charge once per course, others expect a subscription, and the listed price is not always what you pay at checkout after a promotion. 13 of these are produced by a named university or institution, including The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Vanderbilt University and University of British Columbia — which usually means a fixed syllabus and a recognised certificate, rather than an individual instructor’s own course.
Before you enrol
Open the provider’s own page and check three things this comparison cannot tell you: when the course was last updated, what the syllabus actually covers in its later sections, and what recent learners say. Prices shown here are the provider’s listed price when we last rebuilt this page on 18 September 2026 — they change often, and a promotion can move them substantially. We earn a commission if you enrol through our links, which costs you nothing and never affects the order courses appear in.