If we truly wish to maximize the power of education, we can’t just limit it to academia.

Education does not end when you receive your master’s degree. People need to consistently learn new skills to stay up to speed with their industries. It’s a never-ending journey, and Udemy is here to prevent the workforce from falling behind. Thanks to the leading disruptors in the education space, learning a new skill is just a few clicks away.

In today’s episode, we’ll cover:

• How Udemy takes education beyond the school system
• The role of AI in Udemy’s new student experience
• Udemy’s innovative approach to entrepreneurship and business growth

This week, I spoke with Llibert Argerich, marketing director at Udemy, the largest online learning platform in existence. Llibert has a bold but undeniably pragmatic vision of the education industry. He believes that in just ten years, “the world of education will be completely different than what we have today.” This vision stems from the fact that new skills must be learned continuously and efficiently. Udemy’s constantly-updated library of over 130,000 video courses is the perfect solution.

Skills Are Only Relevant For So Long

According to a recent study by Deloitte, the average skill has a half-life of just 5 years. “In technical jobs like web development,” Llibert says, “a skill’s half-life is 18 months.” Education marketers are no exception. “The way Udemy markets itself right now is nothing like a year ago,” he added.

Udemy’s 40 million students are on YouTube 4 to 5 times a day, taking courses in everything from coding to design to public speaking. That comes out to approximately 500-600 videos being watched at a time.

“One Udemy instructor with one course will reach more students than a traditional university professor in their whole career,” Llibert remarked.

Since all Udemy courses are on video, Llibert and his team center their video advertising content around clips of instructors at work. The courses are also updated every month to keep up with their rapidly evolving subjects. SEO specialists must frequently adapt to new algorithms, much like developers adapting to new software. Udemy’s 50,000+ instructors even work with tech companies to create courses about a week before new tools or resources are publicly released.

Not Sure Where To Start? Let A.I. Be Your Guide

The founders of Udemy are well-aware of how intimidating it is to venture into a new discipline. There’s so much to learn. How could you possibly know where to start?

Udemy solves this dilemma with AI. Instead of browsing through thousands of courses, new students are asked a series of questions about their individual goals. Udemy’s algorithm uses this information to recommend the most appropriate courses. Once the student finishes these courses, the AI will then recommend the most logical next steps.

“If someone has taken a course in PPC, for example, then they are also probably interested in regression planning,” Llibert clarified.

The courses are essentially grouped together to accommodate different career paths. There is always a next step because Udemy students never stop learning!

Everything An Entrepreneur Needs In One Place

When you consider the variety of courses offered by Udemy, it’s clear that learning new skills is just a part of their objective. The platform is also striving to become the go-to, step-by-step guide for entrepreneurs. Virtually everything an entrepreneur needs to know can be learned on Udemy.

Someone looking to start a new business might begin with courses related to finding an initial customer base. Appropriate subjects would likely include the fundamentals of AdWords, Facebook marketing, or web development. Once the business gains traction, the student would move on to courses related to scaling website traffic efficiently while maintaining a low CPA and CPL. This would be followed by courses in customer retention, re-marketing, or managing multiple teams.

Rejoice, new entrepreneurs: The path to startup success is finally right in front of your eyes.

Is This The Next Stage Of Human Evolution?

Speaking with Llibert gave me a glimpse into the future of education. It revolves around the acceptance that people cannot evolve on their own.

Everyone needs a teacher. If Udemy can change the relationship between education and the global workforce, the next stage of human evolution may be closer than we thought.