One of the most common things I hear from clients when I consult with them is, “I know I need to update skills, but I just don’t have the money or time to go back to school or take a course right now.”

And then I let them in on a little secret…I introduce them to my friend ALISON.

Who’s ALISON? Well, she and I go way back. She’s actually the child of CEO Mike Feerick, and she’s super generous with her time and talents. In fact, according to the ALISON website, it’s the first MOOC (Massive Open Online Course), and individual users can log in on their own time to learn just about every topic under the sun from A to Z. It also allows users to learn in several different languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, and Arabic. You can choose courses and update skills according to your interests, career level, and industry.

There are also a host of great options for employers, teachers, publishers, or other professionals to train employees or students to update skills, too.

It works by creating a free account profile on the ALISON home page. You can even use your existing Facebook, Yahoo, or Google log on credentials. Then, just search by topic in the search box, or explore by category using the ‘Courses’ tab. It’s easy, it’s free, and the best part is these are certified courses!

Many employers today are more sympathetic to unemployed job seekers than they were in the past, though the hurdles still remain for the long-term unemployed. In addition to a properly formatted, keyword rich resume, employers want to see that while you’ve been out job searching, you’ve also kept up to date with your skills and training in your current field, or leveraged training in another field to make a career change.

So if you can’t afford to go back to school or take a course to update skills, I strongly suggest becoming friends with ALISON. She’s never let me down.