Artificial Intelligence is one of the most sought-after careers in the field of disruptive technologies. While the demand for AI professionals keeps growing at a steady pace, there is a huge shortage of skilled (read certified) AI professionals. If we see some data from the past couple of years, in 2019, the demand for AI talent grew 74 percent annually in the past four years. The most sought-after positions were Machine Learning Engineer, Data Scientist, Deep Learning Engineer, and Algorithm Developer. This demand had only increased in 2020; however, a recent survey says, organizations are now looking for more specialized skills, and around 70% of the organizations are looking for talent with 3-5 years of experience.
According to Statista, a leading market research organization states, the demand for Machine Learning skills in 2020 increased to 82%,but the supply was adequate to only 12%. Similarly, deep learning frameworks such as TensorFlow, Scikit-learn, etc., were in demand with 81%, but supply was adequate with just 13%. The demand for programming languages such as Python, R, Scala was increased to 72%; however, the supply was just 20%. All this signifies that the AI talent needs a push and fulfill the demands of the industry. Also, the need to have better-skilled professionals cannot be ignored in the AI domain for a better quality of product or project development and management.
There is an immense need to build an AI talent pipeline to churn out the best talent across organizations to fulfill the demand and also get a better-skilled workforce. This can only happen with proper training and imparting the best of AI knowledge through AI learning programs or industry-relevant certification programs.
Here I have listed the best AI certification programs in the world that can if simply put, cater to the AI domain’s current needs.
Without further ado, here’s the list of AI certifications.
1. Berkeley ExecED – Artificial Business Strategies and Applications: One of the best programs for those who wish to learn AI to implement them in their businesses. The program delivery includes live and recorded lectures, case studies, assignments, applied learning opportunities, and interactive discussion groups. The program consists of four live teaching sessions, real-world examples, and a capstone project.
Cost:The cost of the program is about 2,800 USD for two months online program. The program is segregated into 4 to 6 hours per week.
2. Professional Certificate Program in Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence by MIT: If you are seeking a machine learning program, this is one of the best programs offered by MIT. There are multiple elective courses offered along with the compulsory course, Machine Learning for Big Data and Text Processing. This program with electives will give you a solid understanding of AI and ML technologies and will clear the foundational and advanced concepts of the subject. The courses are short-duration with a minimum of 16 days, and you will receive a certificate at the end of the program.
Cost: The cost of the compulsory program is USD 2500 – USD 3500. Other elective courses cost, according to the program structure.
3. Artificial Intelligence Certifications from the United States Artificial Intelligence Institute (USAII™): The institute offers three major certification programs in artificial intelligence.
Certified Artificial Intelligence Engineer (CAIE™) is a beginner-level certification for people who want to head-start their AI career and AI professionals who have just begun their AI career.
Cost:The program fee is 581 USD only. The fees are all-inclusive that covers study materials, eLearning videos, workshops, practice codes, digital badge with lifelong validity.
USAII™ also offers Certified Artificial Intelligence Consultant (CAIC™), a certification for professionals in the mid-level of their AI career. The program is a self-paced program with the latest industry-relevant course curriculum that includes advanced machine learning, NLP, reinforcement learning, and more.
Cost: This program costs 689 USD. The fees are all-inclusive that covers study materials, eLearning videos, workshops, practice codes, digital badge with lifelong validity.
The next category of certification program offered by USAII™ is Certified Artificial Intelligence Scientist (CAIS™) – this program is exclusively designed for senior AI professionals and business leaders that covers advanced AI topics and AI strategy for business growth.
Cost: The program fee for this program is 793 USD. The fees are all-inclusive that covers study materials, eLearning videos, workshops, practice codes, digital badge with lifelong validity.
4. IBM AI Engineering Professional Certificate by Coursera: Another best of the best AI certification to launch your career as an AI Engineer.
This 6-course professional certificate is designed to provide you with the tools and techniques you need to succeed as an AI or ML engineer. If you spend 2-4 hours per week completing courses, each course will take 4-5 weeks to complete, and at this rate, the entire professional certificate can be completed in 3-6 months.
Cost: The cost of this program varies with the six certificates. Check out the Coursera website for more information.
5. SAS Academy – AIand Machine Learning Professional: The academy offers five online programs that include ML, Natural Language, and Computer Vision, and Forecasting and Optimization. The program teaches the theoretical foundation for techniques associated with supervised machine learning models. The program offers 12 months of unlimited access, 70 hours of cloud software access, and three certifications exam vouchers.
Cost: The fees for the programs are 1,295 USD per year.
These are some of the best AI certifications along with their cost and duration for preparing for the exams. I will suggest you visit their websites individually to collect relevant information before making any final decision. So take your pick and get going with your AI career.
