11 Best + Free Drawing Courses & Certificates [2021]

  • 1. Introduction to Graphic Illustration [Kadenze] - Best Free Course
  • 2. Drawabox [drawabox.com] - Best Practical Course
  • 3. Figure Drawing Crash Course [YouTube] - Best Crash Course
  • 4. The Art & Science of Drawing / BASIC SKILLS [Udemy] - Best Paid Course
  • 5. How to Draw [YouTube] - Best NEW Course
  • 6. Drawing Lessons for Beginners [YouTube]
  • 7. Interactive Computer Graphics [Coursera] - Best Advanced Course
  • 8. Figure Drawing Fundamentals Course [Proko]
  • 9. How to Draw the Costumed / Draped Figure [New Masters Academy]
  • 10. Drawing Fundamentals with Thomas Fluharty [Schoolism]

As featured on Harvard EDU, Stackify and Inc - CourseDuck identifies and rates the Best Drawing Courses, Tutorials, Providers and Certifications, based on 12,000+ student reviews, public mentions, recommendations, ratings and polling 5,000+ highly active StackOverFlow members. Learn more

💻 Which Drawing Course Provider is best for me?
  • Udemy and Eduonix are best for practical, low cost and high quality Drawing courses.
  • Coursera, Udacity and EdX are the best providers for a Drawing certificate, as many come from top Ivy League Universities.
  • YouTube is best for free Drawing crash courses.
  • PluralSight, SkillShare and LinkedIn are the best monthly subscription platforms if you want to take multiple Drawing courses.
  • Independent Providers for Drawing courses & certificates are generally hit or miss.
💼 What is Drawing used for?
Drawing helps us become more creative and successful. ... Drawing teaches us that many mistakes can be fixed and many mistakes are good because they help us discover new ideas. 4. Drawing teaches us how to think better because when we draw our mind is always thinking about new ways to draw things.
💰 How much do Drawing developers make?
$18,500 - $24,499
7% of jobs
$24,500 - $30,499
12% of jobs
$31,500 is the 25th percentile. Salaries below this are outliers.
$36,500 - $42,499
14% of jobs
The average salary is $46,457 a year
$42,500 - $48,499
10% of jobs
$53,000 is the 75th percentile. Salaries above this are outliers.
$54,500 - $60,499
8% of jobs
$60,500 - $66,499
3% of jobs
$66,500 - $72,499
2% of jobs
$72,500 - $78,499
1% of jobs
$78,500 - $84,500
1% of jobs
US National Average$18,500 $84,500$46,457/year
📃 Is a Drawing Certificate worth it?
Yes and No. Certified Drawing developers on average make more money. Having a Drawing certificate greatly increases the chance of landing an interview and can open otherwise closed doors. Coursera, Udacity and EdX offer excellent certificate options for impressing your future employers. Eduonix, Udemy and several other providers offer certificates, but they aren't as reputable. If you have a Computer Science Degree, certificates are not as important. Still, many employers won't care about certificates, but rather your interview skills, experience and/or skills assessment.
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11 Filtered Courses
Best Free Course

1 )

Introduction to Graphic Illustration (2015)

0.0
The Cornish College of the Arts created this Kadenze course to build Photoshop and Illustrator skills among students. By focusing on a series of projects, the course shows students how to utilize the software resources that can bring their visions to life. Spread over 5 week-long sections, the course is budgeted for 50 hours of total learning time. It is available for free and can be taken for college credit for $300.
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Pros
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    • Class is centered around a final project to ensure students develop the practical skills necessary to succeed in graphic illustration.
    • Course can be taken for fun, for a certificate or for college credit.
    • Course does a great job of teaching what makes a good illustration just as much as the mechanics of crafting the illustration.
    • Considering it is a college course, the lack of instructor participation is alarming. This is largely a self-study course.
    • Despite being an introductory course, it assumes proficiency with Photoshop and Illustrator.
    • Course does not provide supplemental information for utilizing the tools covered in the material.
Drawabox
provider
Best Practical Course

2 )

Drawabox (2015)

0.0
In a world full of tutorials and technical instruction on how to use computer tools to do just about anything, Drawabox simplifies everything and starts at the true beginning of developing a fundamental skill. This course teaches you how to draw. While that seems simple in presentation, the lessons are thorough and will take you from a place with absolutely no drawing skills to adeptness in physical drawing.
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    • Unlike many other courses, this does not get lost in using tools.
    • The drawing methods are truly universal. Students will be able to apply them to virtually any drawing project.
    • Course naturally builds on previous concepts to help students develop true proficiency in drawing.
    • The teaching approach is built on rigor. Students who shy away from that rigor will fail.
    • Lessons are physical. Students will spend substantial time warming up and going through rote movements.
    • Lessons stop short of teaching portraits. Some students will be disappointed.
Best Crash Course

3 )

Figure Drawing Crash Course (2013)

0.0
This YouTube tutorial provides eight easy lessons that teaches students the fundamentals of drawing the human form. By staying focused, the tutorial can help people who struggle with drawing to corner a skill that might otherwise elude them.
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    • This is one of the most accessible tutorials on YouTube. Its very easy to follow successfully.
    • Students will see rapid improvement in their drawing skills, maintaining a high level of encouragement throughout.
    • Course does not stop with static human figures. It covers dynamic poses as well.
    • Course does not step outside of the human topic. Students will not learn how to draw in general.
    • Course is built on a specific approach to drawing. Artists who are trying to expand their repertoire will be frustrated.
    • Despite being a short tutorial, lessons will feel slow at times.
Best NEW Course

5 )

How to Draw (2019)

0.0
Drawing tips and tricks applicable to any program or medium!

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Overall Score : 99 / 100

6 )

Drawing Lessons for Beginners (2016)

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Important tutorials for anyone wanting to learn how to draw with pencils.

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Overall Score : 99 / 100

Interactive Computer Graphics
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Best Advanced Course

7 )

Interactive Computer Graphics (2015)

4.2
Computer graphics can be a powerful tool for supporting visual problem solving, and interactivity plays a central role in harnessing the users' creativity. This course will introduce various interactive tools developed in computer graphics research field with their design rationales and algorithms. Examples include enhancements to graphical user interfaces, authoring tools for 2D drawings and 3D animations, and interactive computer-aided design systems. Rich live demonstrations and course assignments will give you insights and skills to design and implement such tools for your own problems.

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Overall Score : 86 / 100

Figure Drawing Fundamentals Course
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8 )

Figure Drawing Fundamentals Course (2013)

0.0
This course is approachable enough for beginners and detailed enough for advanced artists. My philosophy is to teach timeless concepts in an approachable entertaining way. I believe that when you are having fun, you learn better. I take pride in producing high quality videos that you will enjoy watching and re-watching.
This premium video course includes extended versions of free videos, many examples of each lesson and critique videos. Videos are uncensored.

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Overall Score : 99 / 100

How to Draw the Costumed / Draped Figure
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9 )

How to Draw the Costumed / Draped Figure (2018)

0.0
Learn how to draw the costume and props from reference or from imagination in this immense course by three senior New Masters Academy instructors - Disney art director Bill Perkins, film and game character designer and figure painter Charles Hu, and internationally renowned draftsman Glenn Vilppu. Drawing from live models and photo references, as well as master drawings of the past, you will learn to capture expression, emotion and weighting of the pose as well as shapes and rhythms created by the costume folds. Bill Perkins teach you the action analysis study developed in Walt Disney Studios for animators. Charles Hu will demonstrate how to directly sketch costumed figure using many different media and how to apply language to your drawing. With Glenn Vilppu you will learn the seven major folds as well as approaches for using drapery to push the gesture of the pose and showing the form beneath in the case of clothing, as well as how different weights of fabrics behave differently. This course is perfect for fine artists, entertainment designers, comic & anime artists, and animators as well as portrait painters or for anyone who wants to draw or paint drapery from observation or imagination.

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Overall Score : 99 / 100

Drawing Fundamentals with Thomas Fluharty
provider

10 )

Drawing Fundamentals with Thomas Fluharty (2012)

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Every great artist begins with the fundamentals. In this course, award-winning illustrator, Thomas Fluharty, will coach you in the foundational skills that he employs to draw. You will learn how to see your subject, effectively use tones, perspective, and composition, and much more. So whether you're a young artist just beginning your artistic journey, or an older artist who has never been formally trained in fundamentals, in sharing with you his vast experience, Thomas will help make drawing simple.

This course consists of five video lectures presented over six weeks.

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Overall Score : 99 / 100

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