There is a free online hunter's ed course with approval in some states. If you need a certificate, however, you will have to pay $15 or so. If you want the knowledge for knowledge's sake, then you can take the course for free. The course isn't long -- it's like a short book. There are interactive quizzes. You take a multiple choice final exam at the end. I thought the course was OK. It made me realize I just didn't want venison badly enough that I'd go through all that trouble.

There are also in-person courses. If they're anything like the online course, I don't think it would be worth the trouble to go in person.

What's RPAL?