Khan Academy Calculus versus Accredited Calculus Academic Credits

If you wish to complete a Calculus course online, make sure you take this course from a regionally accredited college/university so that the credits you earn from this course will actually transfer to your home college/university.

The free courses available from the MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) like edX, Coursera, Udacity, Khan Academy, MIT Open Courseware, etc. are really excellent courses, but they do NOT result in transferrable academic credits from an accredited university!

There are more than a few actual colleges/universities offering Calculus courses online. Be careful as you investigate these courses - they may not fit your needs for actual course instruction and timing. Most require you enroll and engage your course during their standard academic semesters. Most will have you use a publisher's "automated textbook" which is .... um .... well, if you like that kind of thing, then you have a few options over there at those schools.

Distance Calculus is all about real university-level calculus courses - that's all we do! We have been running these courses for 20+ years, so we know how to get students through the these courses fast fast fast!

Here is a video about earning real academic credits in Calculus from Distance Calculus @ Roger Williams University:

Earning Real Academic Credits for Calculus

Applied Calculus vs Calculus I

Distance Calculus - Student Reviews

Date Posted: Jan 19, 2020
Review by: William Williams
Student Email: wf.williamster@gmail.com
Courses Completed: Linear Algebra, Probability Theory
Review: I have difficulty learning calculus based math, akin to dyslexia when examining the symbolic forms, equations, definitions, and problems. Mathematica based calculus courses allowed me to continue with my studies because of the option of seeing the math expressed as a programming language for which I have no difficulty in interpreting visually and the immediate feedback of graphical representations of functions, equations, or data makes a huge impact on understanding. Mathematica based calculus courses should be the default method of teaching Calculus everywhere.
Transferred Credits to: Thomas Edison State College

Date Posted: Jun 24, 2026
Review by: Anonymous
Courses Completed: Calculus I
Review: As a full-time business owner completing an Executive MBA, I needed to satisfy a calculus prerequisite without putting my work on hold. Distance Calculus made that possible. The fully self-paced structure let me work early mornings and weekends around an unpredictable schedule, which a fixed-semester classroom course never would have allowed. The course covered the core business calculus material thoroughly — derivatives, optimization, integration techniques including u-substitution, the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, improper integrals, and numerical methods. The LiveMath computer algebra environment was central to the experience: it forced me to build each step explicitly rather than just arriving at an answer, which actually deepened my understanding of the mechanics. Communication through the student portal was responsive when I had questions. For working professionals who need a rigorous, accredited calculus course on a flexible timeline, I'd recommend it.
Transferred Credits to: MIT Ebma

Date Posted: Apr 6, 2020
Review by: Paul Simmons
Courses Completed: Multivariable Calculus, Differential Equations
Review: I took Multivariable and Diff Eq during the summer. The DiffEq course was awesome - very useful for my physics and engineering course. I was unsure about Mathematica at first, but I got the hang of it quickly. Thank you Distance Calculus!
Transferred Credits to: University of Oregon

Distance Calculus - Curriculum Exploration

Polynomial Functions

P5: Polynomial Functions:

P5.1: Algebraic Development

P5.2: Polynomial Data

P5.3: Polynomial Equations

P5.4: Polynomial Graphs

P5.5: Fundamental Theorem of Algebra

P5.6: Polynomial Functions Revisited

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Distance Calculus - Student Reviews

Anonymous☆☆☆☆☆

Posted: Dec 31, 1969

Anonymous☆☆☆☆☆

Posted: Dec 31, 1969

Aiden B.★★★★☆

Posted: May 6, 2025

Courses Completed: Calculus II, Multivariable Calculus

Is the course perfect? No. However, it was by far the best option available. I have learned quite a few things not normally taught in a Calculus course. However, the course lacks a lot of paper solving and integrating, which is to be expected in an online course.

Bradley R.★★★★★

Posted: May 18, 2025

Courses Completed: Probability Theory

A great way to learn probability theory through visualizations, code, and math. Rather than just solving equations through pencil and paper, this course helped me to see how how probability distributions form and behavior through simulations and visuals. I would recommend this course to anyone looking for a way a more interactive way to learn mathematics and at their own pace.

Transferred Credits To: none yet

Bill K.★★★★★

Posted: Dec 20, 2019

Courses Completed: Calculus I, Calculus II, Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra

I took the whole calculus series and Linear Algebra via Distance Calculus. Dr. Curtis spent countless hours messaging back and forth with me, answering every question, no matter how trivial they might seem. Dr. Curtis is extremely responsive, especially if the student is curious and is willing to work hard. I don't think I ever waited much more than a day for Dr. Curtis to get a notebook back to me. Dr. Curtis would also make videos of concepts if I was really lost.

The course materials are fantastic. If you are a student sitting on the fence, trying to decide between a normal classroom class or Distance Calculus classes with Livemath and Mathematica, my choice would be the Distance Calculus classes every time. The Distance Calculus classes are more engaging. The visual aspects of the class notebooks are awesome. You get the hand calculation skills you need.

The best summary I can give is to say, given the opportunity, I would put my own son's math education in Dr. Curtis's hands.

Transferred Credits To: None

Lucas L.★★★★★

Posted: Jun 25, 2026

Courses Completed: Multivariable Calculus

The professor as well as the TAs give great feedback when you need help with problems and the videos are great at explaining concepts. Return time on work is good and the work is not too much to handle.

Transferred Credits To: University of Wisconsin

Hari K.★★★★☆

Posted: Jun 24, 2026

Courses Completed: Linear Algebra

This course gives a perspective on Linear algebra that no traditional course does. I’d say i gained much more intuition for this subject from the DC course than my friends who took traditional courses elsewhere. As a cs major, this version of learning with visualization has helped me a lot in understand ML models. However the course doesn’t have videos for the last 2 chapers so i had to self learn with the mathematica notebooks. Response times are a little slow but since it’s a remote class, i guess it’s justified. Overall amazing course and definitely take this over traditional lin alg classes.

Julia★★★★★

Posted: Jun 24, 2026

Courses Completed: Calculus I

As a full-time business owner completing an Executive MBA, I needed to satisfy a calculus prerequisite without putting my work on hold. Distance Calculus made that possible. The fully self-paced structure let me work early mornings and weekends around an unpredictable schedule, which a fixed-semester classroom course never would have allowed.
The course covered the core business calculus material thoroughly — derivatives, optimization, integration techniques including u-substitution, the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, improper integrals, and numerical methods. The LiveMath computer algebra environment was central to the experience: it forced me to build each step explicitly rather than just arriving at an answer, which actually deepened my understanding of the mechanics.
Communication through the student portal was responsive when I had questions. For working professionals who need a rigorous, accredited calculus course on a flexible timeline, I'd recommend it.

Transferred Credits To: MIT Ebma