UCLA Extension kicked off its summer quarter this week with two free online workshops as part of the institution’s UCLAxOpen program, a broad effort to expand access to professional and personal development opportunities for learners of all ages.

With nearly two dozen additional seminars planned for the summer months, UCLAxOpen’s current slate of programming offers anyone with an interest in design, education, entrepreneurship, or a host of other fields the chance to learn from leading industry experts at zero cost.

On June 28, UCLAxOpen’s college counseling conversation series got underway with an in-depth discussion on trends in college admissions with Jim Rawlins, associate vice chancellor of enrollment management at UCSD. The series continues July 11 with the journalist and New York Times bestselling author of “Smart About Money,” Ron Lieber.

UCLAxOpen arts and design programming also began this week with a workshop on how to build a career in graphic design taught by Scott Hutchinson, UCLA Extension’s program director for visual arts. Upcoming arts and design workshops will explore animation, AI-generated imagery and more.

The UCLA Extension Writers’ Program offers an extensive list of UCLAxOpen courses this summer, on everything from poetry and literary translation to resume writing and pitching for publication. The business and management program will host a workshop on women in technology, while UCLA Extension’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute will offer a six-week course on impressionist painters and the Parisian locales that inspired them starting August 10.

Additional programming for the summer quarter will run through the end of August, and include workshops on women in technology, understanding blockchain, the psychology of interior design, a view of non-Western perspectives of sustainability and much more.