New year, new skills: Transform your career with upGrad

If there’s one thing we’ve learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s that digital transformation can help industries and sectors emerge stronger despite the significant challenges of the past two years. 

With giants like China and India looking to power their future economies with technology, fields such as data science, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are gaining prominence as in-demand skillsets. As industries transform and businesses scale up, they require more workers with the right know-how. In addition, the talent gap for management roles is widening, leading to more opportunities for professionals to rise up the ranks with the help of upskilling.

In the wake of the pandemic, the unprecedented slowdown of industries like tourism and hospitality has resulted in many professionals transitioning into new careers. At the same time, online learning has become more accessible and sophisticated, as learning institutions adapted and found new ways to harness technology to deliver content. Gaining new competencies and exploring new skillsets has never been easier. 

ARM YOURSELF WITH IN-DEMAND SKILLS 

Cognisant of this trajectory, Temasek-backed edtech platform upGrad is poised to enrich professionals looking to fast-track their careers in an evolving job market through the acquisition of relevant skills. 

Mr Liviu Nedef, upGrad’s vice president and head of marketing, Asia Pacific, said that today’s dynamic economic environment has led to a need for working professionals to develop new skills in order to access roles in the tech, data and digital domains. 

Some of upGrad’s most popular courses are those in innovative technologies such as data science and AI, both of which are critical to Southeast Asia’s economic transformation. Industries as diverse as entertainment, education, banking and manufacturing are tapping the power of data science to drive growth, while the use of AI has been ramping up throughout the region.

According to Mr Nedef, data science-related career pathways have become very popular in the last five years. “Data has become the fuel that powers all types of businesses across industries, helping organisations better understand their customers, facilitating decision-making throughout companies and driving business strategy forward. Data science enables companies to efficiently generate and leverage data from multiple sources to derive valuable insights that inform the next set of management actions,” he explained.

For professionals who want to learn new data analytics skills and lay a solid foundation for their career, upGrad offers a comprehensive nine-month fully online Professional Certificate in Data Science and Business Analytics from University of Maryland, a top 100 global university; and a six-month online Data Analytics Certificate from Caltech, a renowned university ranked sixth in the QS Global World Rankings 2022. 

Those who wish to deepen their experience and knowledge in data science may benefit from pursuing the 18-month fully online Master of Science in Data Science from Liverpool John Moores University – ranked among the top 1 per cent of global universities, or the University of Arizona’s MSc in Data Science. The latter counts as one of the top 100 universities globally. 

Also from Liverpool John Moores University is the Master of Science in Machine Learning and AI, which gives students the opportunity to work on more than 15 industry projects, multiple programming tools and a dissertation, along with the acquisition of natural language processing, reinforcement learning and deep learning skills.

Additionally, learners will gain full alumni status from the universities upon graduation.

LEARNING WITH EASE AND FLEXIBILITY

The approach that upGrad adopts ensures that users benefit from real learning for the real world – the platform’s 100 per cent digital in-house content, pedagogy and research harness deep knowledge from global industry experts, who also conduct 70 per cent of the teaching. 

In total, upGrad has close to 100 courses across management, data, technology and information technology. Courses last between two months and three years, with credentials ranging from certificates to doctorates. The upGrad learning experience comprises online modules, projects and assignments, master classes and live sessions that feature industry-driven case studies. 

According to Mr Nedef, upGrad offers working professionals the flexibility to learn and earn at the same time, with no need to put their current jobs on pause. 

Mr Nedef said: “On average, our degrees require 10 to 15 hours of study time a week. One of the great advantages of our digital platform is the flexibility of learning. We make this convenient for our learners by providing plenty of options to learn anytime, anywhere.”  

What further differentiates upGrad is what Mr Nedef calls ‘upGrad buddies’ who coach and help learners throughout the duration of their courses. Participants have access to one-to-one mentorship sessions with senior industry professionals, career counselling by experts and end-to-end career support service.  

“With two million learners across the world having used our platform and programmes, 80 per cent of our learners are experiencing positive career outcomes – a statistic that was recently audited and confirmed by business management consultancy Deloitte,” said Mr Nedef. 

Founded in 2015 in India, upGrad is one of the pioneers in the online education space, and has since expanded globally with a presence in Europe, the United States, Middle East and most recently, in Asia Pacific. 

ONWARDS AND UPWARDS

As we enter the new year, this could be the opportune time for workers to consider professional pathways and equip themselves with knowledge and skills that could bring their career to the next level. 

“UpGrad offers future-ready courses that combine the best university-style processes with the wonders of online technology and industry-relevant content,” said Mr Nedef. “Our purpose is to change the lives of millions of working professionals in our region for the better, by helping them to accelerate their careers and shape the workforce of the future.”

Learn more about upGrad’s courses on data science and technology, and its other offerings.