Fundamentals of Computing

I suggest taking a series of programming courses like the Fundamentals of Computing Specialization that Rice University offers through Coursera.

Although they describe it as a program with seven classes, it's really three classes divided into two sections each plus a capstone exam. It takes about 8 months to complete. Two months to do each two-part class and then some waiting time before the next class starts.

IMO, the goal for doing this program or any of the others out there is to show an increasing mastery of programming skills. Taking some unrelated classes would be less impressive to me as a hiring manager, unless you can explain how what you learned in one class helped you in the next one.

I agree with /u/thc1967, a degree in programming isn't necessary.

Are you in Chicago by any chance? My company has a Solutions Engineer role open, and the last two people to hold the position did not have coding experience going into it. We're fully remote for the foreseeable future anyway, so if you're interested in chatting send me a DM.

But aside from that, with how technical your background is a bootcamp seems excessive. I'd recommend giving something like this Coursera sequence a try. The format was a little different when I did it, but I finished it up in about six months while working full-time.

50 here, too, and also just now picking up programming after a lifelong love of computers :)

May I recommend this specialization? It's been a godsend for me!

Coursera has a lot of other Python courses and specializations, but this one spoke to me, and I'm loving it so far. Feel free to message me with any questions! Also, it's really nice to meet another 50 year old who's finally jumping into programming. Very encouraging, indeed :)

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

Qu'est ce que vous pensez des certifications en ligne type Coursera?

J'hesites à payer pour des cours de bases de programmation sachant que je suis pas du tout dans le milieu (Doctorat Bio) et que, en vrai, si je maitrise excel, ça suffit (mais a priori on manque de scientifique qui fassent autre choses que de l'analyse de données, et ça m'excite un peu plus que le bench et les experiences qui marchent jamais).

Je ne m'attends pas que me faire un portfolio de mini projets SEUL soit très sexy dans l'académique/pharma, donc j'aurais besoin de payer pour avoir la certification (mais je peux me faire des idées, je demande).

Sachant que c'est 41€/mois, pendant 6/9 mois (ya 7 cours d'un mois à peu près dans le programme que je voudrais suivre, l'investissement mérite que je me renseigne.

I would highly recommend the fundamentals of computing specialization on Coursera, especially the introduction to python courses. The projects you do in those courses are really engaging and at the end of it you make an asteroids-style game. To go from nothing to being able to put a game together is a great confidence builder.

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

Nice. I did a similar one on Coursera (I think?) for Python. On a related note, any of the Rice University comp sci courses on Coursera are probably going to be good.

I'm not really sold on the whole Coursera paid specializations thing, but this one from Rice would probably be quite good. Python instead of C#, but really the fundamentals and general architecture are the important bit. Syntax and language specific nuances build on that. Also, doing a modern C# course might end up biting someone in the ass when they have to go back to the Crestron Compact Framework sandbox :D

If you think you might like it then go for it If you you won't like it but like the job prospects, then consider that there are other it industry jobs that you could do eg. Business Analyst

Also you can try before you buy there are free online intro to cs courses: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

If you are new to CS, you could take this Coursera course offered by Rice: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

It's how I learned to program and it was REALLY fun because the instructors are engaging and you get to implement classic arcade games. It's also very thorough.

If you are already skilled, you could develop some personal projects that you could add to your portfolio, like a Twitter bot or something.

What assortment of MOOCs and CC Courses can make me Viable?

I have a B.S. in Finance & Accounting and a Juris Doctorate. Work as an attorney.

I am interested in OMSCS but have essentially zero experience. I have begun this MOOC nanodegree offered by Rice University:

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

The nanodegree covers 2 courses in Python, 2 courses in Computing Principles (includes Data Structures), and 2 courses in Algorithmic Thinking.

I am also enrolling in 2 courses in Java online at my local community college, over the upcoming two accelerated semesters (includes object oriented programming).

I am wondering what else you think I should consider doing in order to be a viable candidate.

ME here. I took the Fundamentals of computing courses made by Rice University on Coursera. Really, really high quality stuff, and fully designed for remote/e-learning. Some of the best education dollars I ever spent. It's not a "python course" but you effectively learn python.

It's not a book, but wanted to share. When I took it there were 3 courses plus capstone, looks like they split it up into more (it was pretty dense, so makes sense to me).

link

It isn't C# but this java course is what I would recommend anyone wanting to learn programming, even if their goal is C# since java and C# are pretty similar but I don't know of a similar resource.

mooc.fi/english java 1 & 2

Unlike most courses this uses a plugin IDE that runs your submitted code through many different tests forcing you to write decent code. After you pass a challenge it then lets you see the source code from the creator to compare. I felt I improved drastically after going through java 2 and a lot of people from /r/learnprogramming also recommend mooc.fi/english java courses frequently.

Fundamentals of Computing Specialization This Specialization covers much of the material that first-year Computer Science students take at Rice University. Students learn sophisticated programming skills in Python from the ground up and apply these skills in building more than 20 fun projects.

As someone who has disliked pretty much any language that differs too much from java I never really gave python a chance until I found An Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python (the first two courses in this specialization) because the teachers and projects were amazing. In most courses I wouldn't really bring up the teachers but these ones were funny and really felt like they enjoy their jobs so it was pretty engaging, especially for aspiring gamedevs since they have multiple game projects like rock paper scissors, pong, asteroids, etc.

Honestly I think I would suggest doing both the java and python courses, possible starting with the python Fundamentals of Computing Specialization since you mention that language specifically and its more enjoyable.

If you're new to programming I like:

1. Introduction to Computer Science and Programming Using Python
2. Fundamentals of Computing Specialization

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It's hard for people to understand such an awesome language like Python if they don't have a good understanding of computation.

As someone who worked for a college for 7 years, she is taking the wrong course. She should be taking this one instead. It is tailored for people who are new to computer science and includes Python.

Ha, I've been doing these courses and they have projects that go with them. After I finish them, I will move onto self directed projects.

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

Planning a course list for undergraduate self study 'degree', and would like your input.

Hello, yet another one planning on Bachelors level studies online with heavy emphasis on machine learning and data science, i've been trying to put together a list of courses for my self to complete (and get a fancy certificate for completed courses) using coursera. So far I've come up with following list:

Learn to Program: The Fundamentals and Learn to Program: Crafting Quality Code (University of Toronto - https://www.coursera.org/learn/learn-to-program / https://www.coursera.org/learn/program-code )

Introduction to Discrete Mathematics of Computer Science (University of California, Sand Diego High School of Economics - https://www.coursera.org/specializations/discrete-mathematics )

Data Science Math Skills (Duke University - https://www.coursera.org/learn/datasciencemathskills ) Introduction to Logic (Standford University - https://www.coursera.org/learn/logic-introduction )

Data Structures and Algorithms (University of California, San Diego, High School of Economics - https://www.coursera.org/specializations/data-structures-algorithms )

Fundamentals of Computing (Rice University - https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals )

Machine Learning (Stanford University - https://www.coursera.org/learn/machine-learning )

Deep Learning (deeplearning.ai - https://www.coursera.org/specializations/deep-learning )

Software Design and Architecture Specialization (University of Alberta - https://www.coursera.org/specializations/software-design-architecture )

Natural Language Processing (High School of Economics - https://www.coursera.org/learn/language-processing )

Data Science Specialization - (John Hopkins University - https://www.coursera.org/specializations/jhu-data-science)

When it comes to math, physics and possibly electrical engineering I've considered relying purely on khanacademy to fill in the gaps I have at moment.

So here's the main question, is there something you guys/gals can see that is "wrong", is there something that's missing or just would be nice to add on top of that?

Any comments/critique/your opinions are most welcome!

I did a lot of python through the MOOC platforms. I even ended up as a volunteer teaching assistant for a while.

If you're open to suggestions I found these two courses particularly good:

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals#courses

https://www.coursera.org/learn/learn-to-program https://www.coursera.org/learn/program-code

it always depends on the course

I did the first two course in this specialization

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

it was totally worth it

I've done courses in R and Data Science taught by Harvard professors and learned a lot

I've taken statistics courses that were totally worth it

I took one course Game Programming in C# that I thought was awful

there are plenty of C# tutorials on youtube for free

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=C%23+tutorial

and on Udemy on sale

https://www.udemy.com/courses/search/?ref=home&src=ukw&q=C%23

These 2 should be good and suit your needs :

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

https://www.edx.org/course/cs50s-introduction-to-computer-science

After doing the second one you may be interested in some web programming and this one is the natural follow up :

https://www.edx.org/course/cs50s-web-programming-with-python-and-javascript

I took a full specialization on Coursera (https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals#courses) which teaches some data structures and focuses 2 courses on Algorithms.

CS50x (on edX) teaches some data structures as well. This course is awesome (IMHO). They now have many other courses that branch out, but you'll learn sort of all of the "basics" from each section of CS.

Then I took 5 courses from here (https://ccse.kennesaw.edu/cs/programs/cert-csf.php). This is a University in Atlanta (where I live). Its specifically designed to bridge people from non-CS backgrounds into CS graduate programs. To be honest, the courses are not very good. The teaching is below average and you need to pay tuition. Taking these courses cost me a lot more than the OMSCS program will. I regret not trying to apply to OMSCS before taking them. I think you can probably put together a bunch of experiences and justify your breadth of knowledge. I would at least try to apply before spending time (a year it took) and money on courses you may not need. One lessson I did learn is that there are a lot of people with CS degrees that aren't very good at CS and that having a degree from GaTech will carry weight. The quality of education is leaps and bounds better.

For me though, I did https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals last year and I think it paved the foundation really really well. If you complete this specialization, I think CSE 6040 material all the way up until midterm 1 will be very easy for you. CSE 6040 midterm 2 material is all about numpy, pandas, SQL, and data manipulation and cleaning. Dataquest has a really good walk-through on all of it.

I would hold off on excel stuff unless you need it for your work. I doubt you will ever need to use excel in MM or anytime in the degree program.

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals#courses

Is this worth 45€ / month?

Its so hard to choose a good round up course on programing and python with so many out there...

As far as free options for learning programming, I would also recommend this Coursera series developed by Rice University:

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals

It's Python based and a good intro to programming principles.

Link to the course in question for others: Computer Fundamentals

It's a college level course so I presume it's of a high enough standard.
What is your objective, you want to get a job?

Apply for Financial Aid or a Scholarship – Coursera Help Center

If you want to learn a programming language I'd recommend to create a GitHub portfolio and upload all your work from the courses you do so at the end you have a portfolio of work to show to potential employers.

I took this course to learn Python when I was your age: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals I think the site now makes you pay to do the assignments, and the projects are definitely not related to ME, but the real focus is on basic programming concepts. If they still have it set up the same, you write code in python that is graded numerically by being evaluated through their site.

Sure, why not?

I've enjoyed the little bit of programming I've done (Python), but the job itself sounds very stressful. What if you have a problem you can't solve? What if you're behind schedule? It just seems like a constant source of anxiety; that and it seems I'd constantly be on the lookout for work as projects are completed. So how is it being a professional programmer? I'm taking this Python class. Maybe as my confidence grows and I tackle more complicated projects, I'd feel less intimidated. I started a project to convert an X-Box controller into a musical instrument. It was really absorbing. Don't think I ate for two days ... so I can see the appeal of programming, but there just seems to be a never ending amount of stuff to learn.

I'm mostly interested in networking, because it seems more predictable and limited than programming, and I think I can get up to speed in a few months instead of years; and there are certifications (CCNA) which I can take to an employer to say, I can do this. I'm starting with this intro to networking class. It doesn't get me anywhere near a CCNA, but it'll build a foundation so I don't get completely overwhelmed.

And I think to get started in the field, my most likely point of entry would be at a help desk somewhere. So I'm also taking Google's IT Support certification.

I'm working part time right now and don't have to worry about expenses, so I'm really plowing some effort into education.

What do you make of my plan and my assumptions?

If you really want to succeed in this you should start by learning programming. As you want to play with AI you can start by learning Python.

You can start from https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals here. These are free courses. The internet floods with information and I think it is a really good time to start learning something.

The RL algorithms we are talking about are not "plug and play" which means you have to know something to use them. Here is a link that lists some of the core algorithms you can learn easily https://spinningup.openai.com/en/latest/user/algorithms.html. But like I said in my previous comment you have a lot to learn to use these algorithms and you need to read a lot. You can download the said algorithms from here...

There is also the Open Source Society University, which is an self-learning guide from beginner to very advanced: https://github.com/ossu/computer-science/blob/dev/README.md

Before you start trying to get some money out of programming, I believe you should really understand some basics from these courses:

• https://www.coursera.org/specializations/python
• https://www.coursera.org/specializations/computer-fundamentals
• https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-to-computer-science-and-programming-7
• https://www.coursera.org/learn/programming-languages
• https://www.coursera.org/learn/programming-languages-part-b
• https://www.coursera.org/learn/programming-languages-part-c
• https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-computer-science-harvardx-cs50x

After this you should be able to start learning most programming languages with some level of confidence that you kinda know what you are doing, and my advice is that you should start learning by doing before going through more advanced topics, using any of the other resources other people have shared with you.

If you want any more advice regarding how to start, feel free to message me directly.