Cohort 3 of NITDA-Coursera Scholarship for Nigerians: Why and How You Should Apply

Want your skills to pay the bills?

You must’ve heard that high-income digital skills are usually learnt from premium (paid) courses. Well, what if you have the chance to learn these skills on a scholarship?

It’s an empowering season for Nigerians with the NITDA-Coursera Scholarships for capacity building. In case you’re wondering, NITDA stands for National Information Technology Development Agency. As for Coursera, it is a global virtual learning platform that lets students access courses from Ivy League universities and award-winning instructors across the globe.

NITDA-Coursera Scholarship Cohort 3

Generally, Coursera courses are free to audit (you can go through the modules and some quizzes), but if you want a globally-recognized certificate from them, you’ll need to pay. With the NITDA-Coursera scholarship, you don’t need to pay a single kobo! 

In this article, SmartBukites will show you why and how you should apply for the NITDA-Coursera Scholarship. Whether you’re a recent graduate, a tech-enthusiast or an unemployed youth, there’s a learning track for you!

Why the NITDA-Coursera Scholarship?

NITDA is on a mission to empower 1 million Nigerians with digital skills. Wouldn’t you want to be among them? 

Just recently, NITDA launched a fully-funded Blockchain Training for 30000 Nigerians, especially youth. Just weeks afterwards, the Nigerian legislature legalized cryptocurrency! Isn’t that enough to let you know that a digital revolution is going on in Nigeria?

Well, don’t be left out! If you missed the Blockchain training, you definitely shouldn’t miss at least one of the upcoming NITDA-Coursera scholarships. 

Coursera is one of the most standard digital learning platforms that boasts of an interactive learning experience. Coursera courses are quite self-paced, though with a timeline to encourage participation. You get the chance to download resources, complete quizzes and interact with your coursemates. What’s more, you’ll be entitled to a world-class certificate on graduation!

The Cohort 2 NITDA-Coursera Application has ended, but here’s the good news…

Applications are welcome for the Cohort 3 Application between 24th January and 10th February, 2024!

Cohort 3 NITDA-Coursera Scholarship Application Details

With the help of these scholarships, Nigerian nationals will be able to earn professional certifications from some of the top US colleges and tech giants in the world (such as Meta, Google, and IBM). Candidates must choose one certification program from each of Categories A and B that they want to enrol in.

Scholarship Details:

Applicants need to choose one certification program from both Category A and Category B.

  • Category A (IT Career Pathway): Consists of 20 professional certification programs that will help you kickstart a successful IT career. Each program includes a series of related courses that give you in-depth knowledge and practical skills for employment. You’ll receive a certificate of completion for each individual course, but the professional certification is earned when you finish all the required courses in the program.
  • Category B (Complementary Skills Pathway): Already a techie? The Category B learning track offers 4 certification programs to enhance your IT skills and improve your use of digital productivity tools, entrepreneurship, or freelancing skills.

Every scholar will have a Coursera license for six (6) months starting from Monday, 10th February 2024 for Cohort 3.

NITDA-Coursera Category A Courses

If you’re a newbie to Tech, or you want to learn an entirely new digital skill, consider enrolling into the courses in the Category A learning track. In the list below, each course is accompanied by a program link which you can go through to learn more about the professional certification(s) before making your choice:

NOTE:

Successful applicants will receive a Coursera license in their provided email in the form of a joining link. They will then be able to join the program and enroll on a course by clicking on that link. Each scholar will have access to the Coursera license for a period of six (6) months. Scholars are expected to use this time to complete as many professional certifications as possible, but they can only be enrolled in one certification at a time. 

NITDA-Coursera Category B Courses

As a techpreneur already practising or earning with tech, you can enhance your earning and employability potential by joining the following learning tracks:

  • Career Readiness Pathway
  • Digital Readiness Pathway
  • Entrepreneur Pathway
  • Freelancer Pathway

Pro Tip:

You can track your progress while boosting your career and employment prospects with LinkedIn. Learn How to Prepare Yourself for the Career World with LinkedIn

Cohort 3 NITDA-Coursera Training Duration

The application period opens on Wednesday, January 24, 2024, and ends on Saturday, February 10, 2024. The training will start from 24th February, 2024 over a period of 6 months.

Review of Cohort 1 Learning Tracks for NITDA-Coursera Scholarship

This golden learning opportunity was brought to you by NITDA under the leadership of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy. The available learning tracks for the 2022 NITDA-Coursera scholarship are:

1. Tech Learning Pathway: 

As the name implies, this track is focused on specific areas of Information Technology (IT). These include data engineering, data science, data analytics, mobile and web development, IT security and infrastructure. You don’t have to worry about your data’s safety; rest assured that your data is protected!

2. Career Readiness Pathway: 

The Career Readiness Learning Path is targeted at recent graduates. It is designed to help them excel by gaining career readiness skills. These include self-awareness, career development, job search, job success, digital literacy, digital job readiness, and productivity tools, as well as emerging technologies including big data, artificial intelligence, and blockchain. 

3. Entrepreneurship Pathway: 

Do you own or manage a small business? Or perhaps you only dream of starting your brand? This learning path is for unemployed youths and start-up founders to learn digital entrepreneurship skills such as start-up finance, design thinking, communication skills, creative thinking, and product management. 

Application Procedure for the NITDA-Coursera Scholarship

The registration process is basically the same for all tracks.

You’ll need to simply click on the registration link to be directed to a webpage (form) asking you to input your details. At the top, you’ll see a brief description of the learning track you’re applying for. Therefore, crosscheck to avoid making mistakes.

Below are the required fields you should fill in for your application:

1. Full name 

[Insert your full name]

2. Date of birth: 

[Input your date of birth in the format: (M/d/yyyy)]

3. Phone number 

[Insert your active phone number]

4. Email address 

[Input your active email address]

5. Current address 

[Input your residential address]

6. State of Origin 

[Type in your state of origin]

7. Educational Qualification  

Choose from the options:

  • B.Sc.
  • Higher National Diploma
  • Primary School Certification 
  • Secondary School Certification
  • NCE
  • National Diploma
  • Masters
  • Ph.D. Holder

8. Employment Status

[Select from the options:

  • Unemployed
  • Employed 
  • Self Employed

9. Name of Organization/Institution

[State your place of employment. Not applicable if you’re not employed]

10. Have you ever completed a course in Coursera on any other learning platform?  

Choose from the options:

  • No
  • Yes

If yes, you’ll be required to share the link to your certificate(s)

11. If Yes, share the link to your certificate

[Insert the link to your Coursera certificate(s), if any]

12. In 2 sentences, tell us why you feel you are a strong candidate for the scholarship

[Here, you need to demonstrate your passion for your chosen learning pathway and why you deserve it in a very concise manner]

That’s all… After cross-checking your answers, you can submit!

Additional Tips for Your NITDA-Coursera Scholarship Application

  • Do not lie. Ensure that you fill in your correct details. Also, if you don’t have a verified certificate with a URL, don’t claim to have one.
  • Take your time to draft a strong personal statement recommending you for the scholarship.
  • Check your email (and/or SMS) regularly; you’ll most likely be contacted via email on admission.
  • Be dedicated to implementing the knowledge to be taught.

Ready to apply? Click on the NITDA-Coursera Cohort 3 Application Link.

Conclusion

So, there you have it! This is just one of the helpful articles by SmartBukites on career development. At Smartbukites, we provide you with authentic information on scholarship opportunities across the globe, among other resources. Stay connected to get enriched with valuable information!

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Author

Fatima Garba Yusuf is a wayfarer on the path of Knowledge. Keen about Reading, Writing and Research, she aims at using the tools at her disposal to create a positive impact on humanity.