Table of Contents
Introduction
Are you a tech expert or do you work in a technology-driven environment? Are you looking for an e-learning platform where you can hone your skills or learn new ones to secure that job or get that promotion? If this is you, this article is for you.
Udacity is a massive open online course platform (MOOC) with the aim of teaching and training people in diverse careers in technology and business. Udacity is a reputable platform with over 200+ course offerings on data science, programming, business analytics, and more.
What is Udacity?
Udacity is an online learning platform that provides an array of programs called “nano degrees” for beginners and experts in the field of technology and business. With Udacity nano degrees, individuals and businesses can gain practical knowledge in high-demand skills and get certificates at the end of their course.
In-demand skills such as artificial intelligence, data science, business analytics, and more are offered on the Udacity platform.
Udacity is a reputable platform because it partners with some of the world’s tech-driven companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Accenture, and more. The Udacity nano degree courses are taught by industry experts and can be learned quickly.
The Udacity nano degrees are subscription-based, but there are over 200 free courses on the platform you can go for before committing yourself. The platform offers monthly and annual subscription packages for individuals and businesses. It also has a customized package for groups.
There is a cancellation and refund option on the platform, but you must cancel within 2 days of making payment and you will get a refund within 7 days.
Who Is Udacity For?
Udacity offers courses to two sets of people:
Individuals: Anyone who desires to learn new skills or gain knowledge in technology and business can sign up for Udacity courses. You will have access to both free and paid courses, depending on your preference.
Business: Udacity offers reputable courses customized for companies and industries to equip their employees with adequate knowledge. With Udacity for Business, companies and industries get round-the-clock mentor support to keep track of the team’s learning.
Udacity for Enterprise is also built for companies and organizations with large workforces (from 1000+ to 5000+). If you are interested in this learning path, you can register your interest, and the Udacity support team will reach out to you.
Popular Programs and Courses
In this Udacity review, let’s look at some popular programs and courses offered by Udacity in their various Udacity schools. Here are seven Udacity schools and their popular programs and courses:
Artificial intelligence
one of the fastest-growing technologies of our time. Udacity AI School provides AI training and machine learning courses with a focus on deep learning, computer vision, AI product management, and more. Popular programs in the AI school include: This nano degree program offers intermediate courses that give learners a solid understanding of artificial intelligence. The courses under this program are Introduction to Deep Learning, Convolutional Neural Networks, and more. The program runs for 4 months, with each course spanning 4 weeks. Courses are taught by senior leaders in AI and machine learning.
Business:
The Udacity School of Business prepares students for the business world through business training in user research, design, distribution, and analysis. Popular programs in the School of Business include:
The Business Analytics program is for beginners and is aimed at equipping learners with the basics of spreadsheets, tableau, SQL, and more. You will complete a short project at the end of the course, which will be reviewed before a certificate is issued.
Business analytics is taught by professional data scientists and leaders of corporations. Over 1200 learners love the program. The digital marketing nano degree program on Udacity is also a popular program as it launches beginners into the world of digital marketing. The program spans a 6-month period with courses in social media marketing, search engine optimization, digital advertising, and so on. Over 1,000 people have gone through this program and left positive reviews. Digital marketing experts and industry leads are instructors in this program.
Autonomous systems:
have been designed in sensors and self-driving car engineering with industry experts like Mercedes Benz, Nvidia, and McLaren.
Popular programs in this school of autonomous systems include Intro to Self-Driving Cars: It is an intermediate program that runs for 3 months on the Udacity platform with courses in Bayesian training, working with matrices, C++ basics, and more. Over 350 students have enrolled in this program. Robotics Software Engineer: This program brings together computer vision, machine learning, and more to build bots for the future. It is an advanced 3-month program with courses ROS Essentials, Mapping and SLAM, and more.
Cloud Computing
In recent times, cloud computing has been sought after by small and big companies alike.
This has led to demand for DevOps Specialists, Cloud Developers, and more. A popular program in Cloud Computing is; Cloud DevOps Engineer: It is an intermediate program with a 3-month span. Courses on the Cloud DevOps Engineer include; Cloud Fundamentals, Microservices at Scale using AWS and Kubernetes, and more.
Cybersecurity
In the School of Cybersecurity, you can develop skills in ethical hacking, security engineering, enterprise security, and more.
Programs are taught by industry leaders in cybersecurity and ethical hacking. Common programs are; Introduction to Cybersecurity Ethical Hacker.
Data Science
The School of Data Science equips learners with skills in data streaming, data visualization, data analysis, and more.
The popular programs in this school are Data Engineering with AWS: Learn Data Modeling, Cloud Data Warehouses, Automate Data Pipelines, and more in Data Engineering with AWS program.
It is an intermediate nano degree program that runs for 4 months and is taught by experienced Data and Software Engineers from top Universities and Tech companies.
You will receive a certificate upon completion of the program.
Data Analyst:
Become a professional data analyst by taking the data analyst program on Udacity. This nanodegree program is an intermediate program that runs for 3 months with courses in, Introduction to Data Analysis with Pandas and NumPy, Data Visualization with Matplotlib and Seaborn, and more.
Programming
The Udacity School of Programming offers computer programming courses in iOS, JavaScript, Android, C++, and more. Popular programs in this school include:
Introduction to Programming: This is a 5-month nanodegree program for beginners.
In this program, you will take courses on web development, programming with Python 1, Python 2, and more.
The Introduction to Programming course is taught by industry leaders and professionals.
The program is reviewed by over 1,300 learners with a rating of 4.8 stars on the platform. C++: C++ is a high-level programming language in engineering.
The C++ is an intermediate nanodegree program that runs for 3 months with courses in C++ Foundations, Memory Management, Concurrency, and more. The courses under this program are taught by professionals in the engineering field.
How to Open a Udacity Account
Opening a Udacity account is very easy. Follow these simple steps to open an account:
- Go to the Udacity website
- On the far right corner, click on the “Get Started” option
- You can sign up using Facebook, Google, or your email
- If you choose the email option, a mail will be sent to your email address for verification
- After verification, complete your registration by adding your first name, last name, and password
- Click on the “Log In” button and start learning.
Learning Experience
Here’s how your dashboard looks when you open an account:
This is the Learner’s dashboard after signing up on Udacity. You can check your “current learning” and “completed” programs. To enroll in a new program, just click “Browse the Catalog.”
This is the program catalog where you can choose your preferred course or program. On the left side of the dashboard, you can choose whether to enroll for free courses or paid programs. The paid courses are the nanodegree programs.
Use the “Discover” option to see all the schools of learning, popular programs, and featured programs.
This is what a teaching video looks like. Programming in Python is a free course on the Udacity platform.
Your learning experience with Udacity is an unforgettable one, this is because of the level of real-world applicability of the courses.
This is what a teaching video looks like. Programming in Python is a nanodegree program on the Udacity platform. If you have questions or comments about your program, you can type a message to the Udacity GPT and can also speak to a mentor by clicking, “Go to Knowledge.”
A summary of each video is added underneath for easy learning. You can also click on the “Previous” or “Next” buttons to go forward or backward in your learning. After completing your program, you can then “Give Page Feedback.”
Assignments are given in the form of short projects at the end of your program to check your understanding of the courses. Also, these projects enable real-life applications of the course for better understanding.
How to Find the Best Course on Udacity
To find the best course suited to your needs as an individual or as a business, here are a few tips:
- Use the filter column on your dashboard to filter for Price, School, Skill, Difficulty Level (beginner, intermediate, or advanced), Duration, and Type.
- You can also make use of the search box to search for specific courses or sort the courses by most popular, highest rated, and recently updated.
Click on a program to read the program’s syllabus and course materials. You will see the breakdown of the program and how long each course will last.
- Watch the introductory video to the program. Every program starts with an introductory video that informs you on what to expect in a course program.
- Check the instructors at the bottom of the program information. Go ahead to read their bio.
Read the Udacity reviews from learners. This will encourage you to take or discard a program.
Udacity Pricing and Payment Options
The Udacity pricing model is a subscription-based model with monthly and annual payment options. Udacity also offers scholarships and has a refund policy.
Udacity Individual Plans
Click on the “Plans” option to choose a payment plan, either monthly or annually. The individual plans go for $149 monthly or $1434 annually. There’s a promo going on at the moment where you save 40% on AWS skills.
Udacity Business Plans
Udacity Business Plans are divided into three:
1. Udacity Business Team
2. Udacity Business Team Pro
3. Udacity Business Enterprise
These are the prices for the Udacity Business plans The Udacity Business Team plan is $249 monthly and $2390 annually per user for up to 50 users. The Udacity Business Team Pro is $3830 per user annually only. Up to 50 users can subscribe to this plan The Udacity Business Enterprise is custom-made and, therefore, does not have a specific price. You will need to contact Udacity Support and a member of the Team will reach out to you.
Udacity Scholarships
Udacity offers scholarships to students who can’t pay for their program. There are many scholarship opportunities on the platform that are helping thousands of students across the globe pay course fees. Click the “Scholarships” option on your dashboard to check current scholarships. All scholarships on Udacity are sponsored by third-party organizations such as Google, Accenture, AWS, and more.
Refund Policy
Udacity has a 7-day refund policy when you buy a program. Therefore, you have to go through the program videos and materials as soon as you are given access. Once, you are dissatisfied with what you see, you can request a refund.
Is Udacity Accredited?
Udacity programs are not accredited.
Is Udacity Certificate Recognized?
Because Udacity is not accredited, their certificates may not be recognized by state and federal organizations. However, Udacity’s courses are developed in partnership with corporations like Amazon, Accenture, Microsoft, Nvidia, Google, and Facebook. These corporations require tech and business experts to take care of their businesses; this is why Udacity is known for programs in tech and business.
With a Udacity certificate, you can land a good job in the tech sector, as their programs provide practical knowledge in the field of technology.
Is Udacity Reputable?
Udacity is definitely a reputable online learning platform that gives beginners inroads into the tech world and trains experts to deliver their jobs better. With over 6.5 million learners reaching 195 countries and an 80% positive outcome, Udacity stands tall in the online learning space.
Udacity Pros and Cons
Pros
- User-friendly interface – very easy to navigate and use
- High-quality courses co-created with top tech companies like Microsoft and Amazon
- Over 200 free courses are offered on the platform
- Access to their career services once you are enrolled in a nano degree, including cover letter and resume reviews, as well as LinkedIn and GitHub reviews.
- Certificates upon completing your program
- Udacity nano degrees provide hands-on project reviews. So, you can apply your knowledge practically.
Cons
- Udacity subscription packages are expensive, at $249 and above monthly
- The platform does not have a downloadable app, so it cannot be used on phones
- Programs are limited to digital and business courses
- Udacity offers vocational training, so their certificates are not accredited and may not be recognized by all companies.
Conclusion
Udacity programs are structured to equip you with job-ready skills in tech and business.
Udacity nano degree programs span from artificial intelligence to data science, programming, and more, taught by industry experts.
The platform allows you to learn at your own pace at all times with access to mentorship, career services, and real-life projects. You can subscribe to a plan using a credit card or PayPal with a 7-day refund policy after payment.
Unfortunately, the certificates lack accreditation, and not all employers may accept them.
The subscription fee is also on the high side compared to other platforms like Coursera and Pluralsight.
