September is the traditional back to school month and right now is a good time to do something that most developers find rewarding - sign up to learn something new. Whether you are embarking on a new career or just want to acquire new skills for your current job there's plenty on offer by way of online certification.

Thanks to its End of Summer Offer Udacity has a 70% discount off its regular prices plus another 15% to be applied when you pay upfront. This means that even for a 4-month course you could pay less than the $399 per month that is Udacity's "Pay as you go" rate. This offer runs until September 30th.

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There so much choice, it's difficult to know where to start. However let's choose SQL. In the recent IEEE Spectrum Top Programming Languages 2022, SQL came top for jobs and was identified as:

the second programming language everyone needs to know.

So why not brush up your skills in this area and gain a certificate that gives you an extra selling point?

At beginner level, Learn SQL is a 2-month program in which participants:

Perform analysis on data stored in relational and non-relational database systems to power strategic decision-making. Learn to determine, create, and execute SQL and NoSQL queries that manipulate and dissect large scale datasets. Begin by leveraging the power of SQL commands, functions, and data cleaning methodologies to join, aggregate, and clean tables, as well as complete performance tune analysis to provide strategic business recommendations. Finally, apply relational database management techniques to normalize data schemas in order to build the supporting data structures for a social news aggregator. 

As is the case with all Udacity programs the learning environment fosters a practical hands-on approach with real world projects, support from technical mentors and feedback from experienced reviewers. Services include GitHub review and Linkedin profile optimization.

If you are already beyond beginner level and looking for a program at Intermediate or Advanced Level then follow the links from my previous report, Data Scientist or Data Engineer? Choose Your Path On Udacity.  

For an alternative additional area of expertise Cybersecurity is "in demand". Udacity's offers a beginner level program - the 4-month Introduction To Cybersecurity by the end of which you'll be able to: 

• Evaluate specific security techniques used to administer a system that meets industry standards and core controls.
• Explain methods for establishing and maintaining the security of a network, computing environment, and application.
• Apply control techniques to secure networks, operating systems, and applications.

Going beyond this, at intermediate level there's a choice between two 4-month programs

• Security Engineer in which the focus is on how to protect a company’s computer systems, networks, applications and infrastructure from security threats or attacks. 
• Security Analyst in which you learn to identify, correct and respond to security weaknesses and incidents by determining appropriate security controls to secure a network, system or application and assessing security threats through vulnerability scanning and threat assessments.

At Advanced level the 2-month Ethical Hacker Nanodegree is a 2-month program intended to equip students with the skills they need to advance in their security career and become an ethical hacker or penetration tester.  You learn how to find and exploit vulnerabilities and weaknesses in various systems, design and execute a penetration testing plan, and report on findings using evidence from the project.

The other offer currently advertised on I Programmer, and due to expire on September 29th, is $100 off Coursera Plus, reducing the price of a pick-and-mix" annual subscription to $299 and you can find courses and Specializations on both the topics we've discussed. As many of them originate in universities you can might expect a more academic approach - but Coursera Specializations culminate in a Capstone project that requires put theory into practice and its Professional Certificates are also project-oriented.  

Of course you might prefer to expand your portfolio by adding a new programming language - Python or C++ perhaps. You might want to make a move from the desktop into the cloud or you might be interested in DevOps or in AI/ML. Whether Udacity or Coursera is the online learning platform you prefer, enrol now to take advantage of September's offers.

More Information 

Udacity 

Coursera Plus Offer

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