My Udemy coursesJohn Bandler’s courses at Udemy on Law, Cyberlaw, Cybersecurity, Privacy, Policies, Learning

I now have six courses on Udemy covering law, cyber, and learning. (Udemy is a learning platform where anyone can build a course, and anyone can take a course.)

I realized I had invested a great deal of time building knowledge, content, and resources in my formal (but part time) teaching of students at the undergraduate, graduate, and law school level.

I decided to start putting some of them out to a broader audience.

Then I wrote a book on policies and decided to build a course on that.

So now I have courses on:

  • Law
  • Cyberlaw
  • Cybersecurity
  • Privacy
  • Policies
  • Learning.

Quick links to and descriptions of my Udemy courses

Here are links to the courses on Udemy (remember to check below and other places for a coupon code)

Coupon codesUdemy coupon codes for John Bandler's courses

Here are my coupon codes to my Udemy courses (embedded in the link if you click it, check expiration):

Remember to check for periodic coupon codes from Udemy, and shop around so you get the best price. Coupons expire and have redemption limits. Udemy has periodic sales and does "dynamic pricing" which means the displayed list price fluctuates. More on pricing later.

If you are a current or past student of mine at an academic institution, contact me for a free coupon code. I am not allowed to mention this on the Udemy site, so hopefully you see it here.

More on each course

1. Introduction to Law

For non-lawyers to learn about law. Every citizen and resident of the U.S. needs to know about law because we are a nation of laws, it is in the news daily, and citizens have important duties to uphold. I break it down into simple terms.

It is about 27 lectures, for a total of almost four hours, with an outline handout and links to resources on my site. I update it periodically.

2. CIPP/US for law students and lawyers

For lawyers and law students to learn about privacy and prepare for the CIPP/US exam. Its about 27 lectures and just over 7 hours. It includes an outline handout and links to my site and helpful IAPP materials. I aim to keep it updated. Non-lawyers are taking it too.

3. How to learn, study, take an exam, write, and research

Learning, studying, exam taking, writing, and researching are skills we all can (and should) improve upon. There are no magic tricks, just solid principles followed by your solid effort. This is a free course with just under 2 hours of lecture content and an outline handout. (Free course)

4. Cybersecurity and Cybercrime Prevention for your Home and Organization

Cybercrime is rampant, we all need to improve how we protect against it, comply with legal requirements, and improve the efficiency of our information assets. There are no magic tricks, just solid principles followed by your solid effort. This is a free course with just under 2 hours of lecture content and an outline handout. (Free course for now)

5. Cyberlaw: Law for digital spaces and information systems 

Cyberlaw is important just like regular law is important. So let's learn about it. Cyberlaw is built on a foundation of traditional law, plus data law, and thinking how to apply it all in an organization. (Free course for now)

6. Policies and Procedures for Your Organization, Build solid governance documents on any topic ... including cybersecurity

A methodology to build and update policies and procedures for any type of organization and any type of document. With some sections and chapters specific to cybersecurity. Based on my 2024 book.

Why did I build them?

I built them because I had content and knowledge to share. I have spent many years of teaching and building courses and trainings for academic institutions and professional audiences on topics such as cyberlaw, cybersecurity, cybercrime, privacy, policies, and more. I speak to learners at the undergraduate, graduate, law school, and professional level, and each semester and each speaking engagement I refine my materials.

I have been doing this since 2017, speaking and teaching over many iterations, putting effort into my materials, refining them each semester. While teaching students, I realized many--in fact all of us--can improve our skills for learning, researching, and writing. So I created resources for that.

But I only reach a relative few number of people each year and I decided I should try to reach more.

People should have solid, reliable information about:

  • Law
  • Cyberlaw
  • Cybersecurity
  • Cybercrime
  • Privacy
  • Criminal justice
  • Organization governance and policy work
  • Basic skills for learning, writing, researching
  • Other topics.

I tried Udemy as a platform to share. In this online setting, my lectures are planned, recorded, and then available for anyone who desires to see it, anywhere in the world. The content I have built over the years becomes available to more people. Maybe they will benefit from it.

And I don't have to grade (a part of formal teaching which is not fun).

Value for the student

I think my courses offer excellent value. I am qualified to teach them, I put a lot of effort into them, and I provide quality information in a simple, straightforward, and streamlined manner. We cover a lot of material in a short time. You have the rewind button, supplementary free articles that I have written, refined, and continually improve, and the ability to ask questions.

It's not right for every person. But it is right for some. It's not entertainment and it doesn't suit everyone's preferences.

Edutainment?

If you are looking for entertainment, comedy routines, sensationalism, fancy graphics, and awesome video editing, my courses are not for you.

I provide no-nonsense information and knowledge with bullet point PowerPoint slides, trying to pack the most important nuggets into a lecture which might run 10 to 20 minutes. That can exceed some attention spans and be boring for some. I get it.

I am not an entertainer, and I never will be. I will never have a Netflix comedy special, I will never perform in SoFi stadium much less sell it out. I can barely edit a video (though some day I hope to gain competence there). I simply provide a lecture on a topic with my PowerPoint as a visual aid, and provide supplementary reading materials. That's pretty much it.

The courses aren't for everyone, but are for some. Sort of like this country song from Brothers Osborne.

Who are these right for?

These are right for people who want some no-nonsense solid information, without any frills, and have a decent attention span with some time to invest.

As above, these courses are not right for everyone. It's just a PowerPoint I created and my lecture, plus additional resources from this website (which includes where you can find even more authoritative external references).

See the promo video and sample some of the videos. If it is right for you, welcome! If not then pass it by -- or get your money back promptly and go find something that works better for you.

Pricing

I did not do this for the money, and I will not get rich off of it. But you may need to pay something so let's talk prices.

Udemy requires any course over 2 hours to charge at least $19.99 -- it cannot be free and it cannot be set at lower than $19.99.

Then Udemy engages in dynamic pricing. I set my paid courses at the minimum allowable of $19.99 but Udemy may vary that price and display a higher price or lower price and a "sale" price. They control those fluctuations and the displayed price, not me.

Now let's talk perception. Many people are under the assumption that anything free is not valuable. Sometimes that is true. Some learners who obtain free access to a quality course (like mine) do not value it as much as a student who paid for it. People's perceptions of value are influenced by many things, and are not necessarily based in fact. Influences include displayed price, and whether they make a conscious choice to pay for it. In other words, human perception may not accurately detect substance, and price is a factor in that perception.

I worry my free courses may be perceived as being less valuable. Udemy does not promote them, learners may not see them, or may sign up and not engage with the course. So these free courses may not stay free forever.

I do not intend to take any money from current or past students at formal academic institutions, and nor do I intend to market paid courses towards schools where I teach. Thus:

  • If you are a current or past student of mine at an academic institution, contact me for a free coupon code.
  • If you are a current student at one of those institutions where I currently teach, I can also give you a free coupon code.
  • I am not allowed to mention this offer on the Udemy site.

Value for me

The value for me is knowing (or hoping at least) that I am providing valuable knowledge to a broader audience on important subjects.

I have built and refined many resources each semester and only small groups of students experience them in the classroom. Within these small groups I realize that not every student reads all the course materials or pays attention in class. It seemed wasteful that this knowledge and materials would sit dormant when the world needs reliable, factual, logical, sensible information.

Some people want and need reliable information and Udemy is a platform where I can distribute put my information. That is valuable to me. There is a lot of misinformation out there, and some make decisions out of fear or anger, or don't understand law. If they don't understand law, they don't understand the framework of our government.

Even more valuable to me is when I hear a learner took my course and found value in it and that it helped them. Sometimes that is with an individual note. Sometimes it is with a public positive five-star review or other acknowledgement that helps spread the word. If you have constructive and kind feedback, I appreciate hearing that too.

Yes, I do receive author royalties and commissions for the course, but that is pretty small ("de minimis" as some say in law).

Udemy

The Udemy platform has their own rules and policies. If you have an account with them and use their platform, or take my course on their platform, you are agreeing to Udemy's terms of use and privacy practices. That is between you and Udemy.

I built my course and I am responsible for my content, but I do not run their platform, I just use it. I need to abide by their rules too.

While we are talking about content and terms of use, see my own disclaimers about my content as well. For example it is not legal advice nor consulting advice, just knowledge, and you assume all risks and I disclaim all liability. We all need to improve our knowledge of law, but sometimes people need individual legal counsel.

Conclusion

With Udemy, my content has a broader platform now beyond the undergraduate, graduate, and law schools where I teach.

It is incredible that my totals are over 3,500 students and over 1,300 hours taught as of November 2024, the numbers keep rising, and the feedback is mostly positive (but sometimes not, and I realize my courses are not for everyone).

Links

This page is hosted at https://johnbandler.com/udemy-courses. Copyright John Bandler, all rights reserved.

Page posted 4/5/2023 building on other material. Updated 11/22/2024.