Isn’t it funny how we come across resources serendipitously?  You think you know of resources that are out there to help you with your family history, and then you come across something that pleasantly surprises you because of its usefulness and makes you doubly happy because the resource is free.   This, could be one of those moments for you.

We learn family history and genealogy here and there as we go along, we discover at some point (most often, far too late in the process) how important it is to cite resources, and we read a few books here and there about researching.  Wouldn’t it be fantastic now that you have a love of genealogy to go back to college and receive a more organized family history education?

Free University Courses on Family History 

You guessed it; you can, and you can do it for free online.  Now the resource isn’t one of those “get your degree in 10 clicks of your mouse” sites.  The courses are offered by the Independent Study program by Brigham Young University (BYU), you won’t receive a degree at the end of the free courses, but you will learn a lot.

Quality Education 

Why not take an online course from a different institution you might ask?   BYU is a university owned and supported by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the LDS Church).  The LDS Church has one of the largest collections of genealogy information in the entire world and is host to the largest family history library in the world.  BYU houses the second largest family history library in the world.  So, you’ll be able to learn a thing or two from them.

What You Can Learn 

There are over twenty courses that you can enroll in.  For starters:

  • Learn about Starting your researching, discovering ancestors, and helping family members get involved with family history.
  • For members of the LDS Church, take a course about providing temple ordinances for your ancestors.
  • Learn about different types of records.
  • Go deeper and take courses specific to research in countries such as France, Germany and more.

You can view the course listing for free courses at: http://ce.byu.edu/is/site/courses/freecourses.cfmIf you’re interested, there are other free courses you can take such as bowling and organ performance, but that’s up to you.  Have fun learning for free!