Android, Android Basics Nanodegree program, Android Developer Nanodegree program, Featured, Student Success

Discover Your Passion

How one Udacity graduate’s life and career changed when he discovered Android!

Android App Developer - Udacity

I’d like to tell you about Ben Lewis. For years, he was a high school math teacher with a habit of spending his summer breaks trying to learn new skills. He was constantly in search of new tools that would aid him in the classroom, and he loved inspiring his students with unconventional approaches to mathematics. Then, during the summer of 2016, he stumbled upon Android app development. He could see potential right away—not only could he could pick up and share some app development skills with his students, but maybe he could even create a new app for his school. His wheels started spinning.

“While searching online for Android tutorials I discovered Udacity’s new Android Basics Nanodegree program. When I saw that it required no programming experience I thought it was perfect fit for me, so I decided to enroll.”

Featured, Student Success

A New “New Collar” Success Story

New Collar Success Story - Udacity

How three-time Udacity graduate Nick Hester turned a supposedly high-risk learning path into a rewarding new career

Whether you believe, as the World Economic Forum does, that we are entering a Fourth Industrial Revolution, or are simply witnessing the increasing impact of technology on the employment landscape, the central truth remains the same—the world of work is changing, and we’re all having to adapt. As new technologies emerge and new innovations are made possible, competition increases, and growth expectations go higher. This in turn drives up demand for employees who possess relevant skills. Because these skills are often comparatively rarefied—given the newness of the technologies—companies are being challenged to consider more unorthodox ways of attracting the right kind of talent.

When Nick Hester was an undergraduate just beginning to think seriously about his future, he couldn’t conceive of a career in web development. He had spent five years jumping between majors, and while he was starting to realize that technology held the most promise, he had no idea where to start. He tried computer graphics, but while it interested him at the hobby level, he didn’t see it as a career path. Then Nick discovered programming. He was immediately intrigued, but the same concerns bedeviled him:

“I knew I wanted to get into programming, however, I had this assumption that it was a field reserved for math prodigies and geniuses. I knew I wasn’t either of those.”

Deep Learning, Featured, Student Success

Me, My Neural Network, and Game of Thrones

Zack Thoutt - Game of Thrones - Neural Network - Udacity

Editor’s Note: This post is written by Zackarey Thoutt. He’s a Udacity Nanodegree program graduate. You may recognize his name, as he’s been all over the media lately. Vice’s Motherboard magazine put it like this: Neural Network Wrote the Next ‘Game of Thrones’ Book Because George R.R. Martin Hasn’t. Zack created that neural network, and in this post, he shares how it all came to be.

As I was getting ready to graduate from Udacity’s Deep Learning Foundations Nanodegree program, I began to wonder what to do next. I needed a new project to keep my skills sharp. One episode into Season 7 of Game of Thrones (I’m a huge fan!), the idea hit me—why not train a network to write new chapters for the book we’re all waiting for?

Digital Marketing Nanodegree program, Featured, Student Success

Shedding The Weight

How one Udacity graduate’s personal health journey led to a better life, and a brand-new career!

People come to Udacity for many reasons, but one thing that unites them all, is that they come to pursue self-empowerment through learning. Many are tackling obstacles that stand in their way. For some, a lack of in-demand skills is preventing career advancement. For others, financial hardship is limiting their opportunities. Still others are battling obstacles like gender, age, or race bias.

For Pascal Milfeit, the story was a bit different.

Pascal was facing an obstacle too, but in his case, the obstacle was himself. This is the story of how Pascal overcame difficulties he’d put in his own way, and built a new future for himself by embracing learning as a means to a new life.

Data Analyst Nanodegree program, Featured, Lifelong Learning, Student Success

Put Your Soul Into It: Lifelong Learning and The Pursuit of Happiness

Student Success - Lifelong Learning - Cloud Nine - Udacity

As a young professional in the banking industry, Jennifer Tsou worked as a Relationship Banker—providing personal financial counseling, assisting with lending services, and building relationships with customers. Her university education—focused on finance and economics—provided her with the tools she needed to be successful in her role. Her career in banking afforded her stability, and the opportunity to further develop her customer relations skills. Still, she often found herself questioning her path. She occasionally indulged herself by imagining doing something different with her life and career, only to remind herself she should be happy to have a job.

Something was definitely missing.

Featured, Machine Learning Nanodegree program, Student Success

Success and Service

How a Two-Time Nanodegree Program Graduate’s Involvement in His Local Tech Community Led to a Machine Learning Job with Disney

Success and Service - Machine Learning - Udacity

Success can be measured in many ways. For some, it’s about money, fame, status. For others, it comes down to whether you can check certain boxes—house, car, spouse, kids, job, etc. For still others, success is about service. For Michael duPont, it was through serving his community that he ultimately achieved his personal goals.

career change, Featured, Student Success

Curiosity and Career Change

How One Udacity Student Turned Her Curiosity About Programming Into A Whole New Career

Career Change - Udacity

Every day, we experience new things. New ideas, new people, new concepts, new technologies. Our curiosity gets triggered, and we make mental notes to investigate further. But how often do we actually follow up? What if we acted on just a few of those notes-to-self? What opportunities might we uncover for ourselves? Curiosity is the gateway to growth, but we must be vigilant, and encourage ourselves to act.