Going back to college is a reminder that tuition can cost more than a house. But what if you could access almost the same education without the charge? MIT's OpenCourseWare, while not an exact replica of a college course, is the closest thing you'll get to going to school for free.
Since 2002, OpenCourseWare has published and digitized course materials from private and public universities. Materials vary from complete syllabi and lecture slides to video lectures and assignments. Unlike MOOCs, OpenCourseWare lets students learn at their own pace and have more control over their areas of study. It typically has structured lesson plans, too, so students register the material as they would in an actual classroom setting.
MIT isn't the first university to freely offer its course materials (the University of Tübingen in Germany did so in 1999), but it has inspired many schools to follow in its footsteps. Since its founding, more than 250 universities and organizations around the world have adopted OpenCourseWare principles to freely publish materials -- most of which are licensed under Creative Commons.
We've rounded up some of the best in the gallery above. Take a look and let us know which ones are your favorites.