Whether it’s for professional development or personal enrichment, the summer is when many of us take a course or two. Fortunately, for those of us looking to take a course just for personal growth, Yale (and many other universities) publishes the entire contents of many of their courses online.

Even though you can’t get university credits for working through the Open Yale Courses, it’s a great way to brush-up on topics that you might be teaching in the fall or learn more about a topic that you have a natural interest in. For example, I don’t foresee myself teaching psychology anytime in the near future, nonetheless I’m loading-up my iPod with the lectures from The Psychology, Biology, and Politics of Food. I plan to take in those lectures over the next four weeks as I’m flying from place to place.

Check out the list of 35 courses available through Open Yale Courses and see if there’s something new that you want learn about before school starts again in the fall.