The Great Courses

The Great Courses, published by The Teaching Company, is a collection of educational audio and video lectures designed to impart knowledge in a wide range of topics. The Great Courses lectures, which are available in a variety of formats including CD, digital download, and streaming video, have been taught by an impressive roster of professors, scholars, professionals, and subject-matter experts from prestigious universities, museums, and other cultural institutions. The lectures within The Great Courses series have been taken by over 40 million people worldwide and have earned the company numerous awards including Career Progress’ “Best Places to Work” and The Washington Post’s “Top Workplaces.”

The Great Courses was founded in 1990 by Thomas M. Rollins, a lawyer and law professor by training. Rollins was inspired to create The Teaching Company after noticing that many adults canceled their enrollment in traditional college courses due to work and family obligations. He sought to make university and professional studies more accessible by creating a way to bring information and instruction to people in their own homes—without having to attend a college campus —and thus The Great Courses was born.

Initially, Rollins partnered with several universities, including Princeton and Stanford, to produce his series, but he soon expanded his offerings to include hundreds of courses on a variety of topics. Today, The Great Courses consists of more than 600 courses and thousands of individual lectures. These lectures are taught by a diverse group of professors, scientists, and other experts, including Pulitzer Prize winners, Nobel laureates, and NASA astronauts.

The Great Courses lectures are typically divided into eight- to 12-lectures, each delving into one particular area of study. The topics covered range from Historical Figures, Business Strategies, and Mathematics to Quantum Mechanics, Spanish Language and Culture, and Photography. In addition, the company offers Special Topics collections, which are self-contained series of lectures devoted to a single subject.

The Great Courses also offers a range of supplemental materials, such as textbooks, instructors’ guides, and audiobooks, to complement its lectures. Furthermore, the courses are currently available in six different formats, including CD, DVD, digital download, and streaming video. This variety of options allows customers to purchase, view, and listen to their materials in the manner that best suits their needs.

At The Great Courses, the belief is that learning can—and should—be enjoyable. By providing access to information and instruction from some of the world’s most renowned experts, The Great Courses strives to make learning an enjoyable, rewarding experience. With these goals in mind, The Great Courses continues to strive to bring ever-greater access to knowledge and understanding of the world around us.