Yale Center for Teaching and Learning

Yale, Shiller Launch New Financial Markets Course for Public

Professor Robert Shiller, wearing a suit with a red tie and blue shirt, stands in front of a black board.
June 29, 2017

New Haven, Conn. — Yale University will offer a new “Financial Markets” course taught by Professor Robert J. Shiller on Coursera, an online education platform, on Friday, June 30. Shiller, a Nobel Prize-winning economist who co-developed the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, shares his knowledge of financial markets via this free, massive open, online course on Coursera.

“The original Financial Markets course was significantly focused on the 2008 [financial] crisis and what could go wrong in the markets,” said Shiller, the Sterling Professor of Economics at Yale University. “This course removes that focus and takes a broader approach to the markets, including the spectacular economic growth that we see in emerging countries.”

The previous edition of “Financial Markets,” launched on Coursera in February 2014, had more than 200,000 people enroll in the course from over 80 countries. Nearly 80% of learners lived outside of the United States and approximately 60% of learners were continuing their education beyond their Bachelor’s or advanced degree.

“Our mission is to provide access to the world’s best education, top universities, and thought leaders,” said Deanna Raineri, Chief Academic Strategist at Coursera. “We know that one of the best ways to accomplish this is by working with existing partners to help them keep-up with demand from learners and launch new editions of successful courses. This enables learners to achieve meaningful career, educational, and personal enrichment goals as the world continues to develop and change.”

Shiller worked with Yale’s Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) to create a course format for online dissemination. The course’s format features discussions with students, technical questions reviewed by Shiller with a teaching assistant, and quick definitions of key concepts explained by a teaching assistant. It will also include quizzes, lectures, and interviews with notable guests: Roger Ferguson, Lei Zhang and more.

Anyone can create a free account on Coursera to enroll in the course and watch videos. Learners who wish to earn grades and receive a Course Certificate upon completion will need to purchase the course for a small fee, or apply for financial aid.  

About Yale’s Center for Teaching and Learning:

  Yale University established the Center for Teaching and Learning in 2014 to support students and faculty across the campus. The CTL fosters excellence in teaching and learning at Yale by providing teaching consultations and resources, tutoring support for student learning and writing, global digital education opportunities, advancement grants to faculty and graduate students, and a host of other initiatives that promote Yale’s teaching mission. The CTL is responsible for Yale’s online course initiatives with 18 courses and one specialization on Coursera.org.