During these uncertain times, we’re all looking for a way to stay positive. And Yale (yes the Ivy League university) is offering those practicing social distancing the chance to take one of its most popular classes online: the Science of Well-Being.The best part? It's absolutely free.
Dr. Laurie Santos, a professor of psychology at Yale University, started her Psychology and the Good Life course in 2018. The course combines positive psychology with the real-life applications of behavioral science. In short, it provides students with science-backed information on how to be happy. The class has become one of the most popular courses in Yale’s history, with one in every four students signing up each semester.
Due to the influx of enrollment, Santos designed an online version of the course, called The Science of Well-Being, available through the learning platform Coursera. The course is available for free to both Yale and non-Yale students.
Since the coronavirus pandemic, the class has seen a major spike in popularity. In just the last two weeks, over 300,000 people have enrolled, which is over 15 times the monthly average, according toToday.
"This is a physical health crisis but also a mental health crisis," Santos toldToday. "People's routines have completely changed. People are social distancing, they are not allowed to do the one main thing they do when things are stressful, which is often go hang out with their friends often in public spaces." Her course aims to help.
For all the information on the course and how to enrollvisit Coursera. We’ll see you in class.