Monday through Friday. 9 am to 7 pm. 35k a year. A 35k salary! You can’t get a masters degree with that and you can’t get a significant increase in salary without a better degree. I felt this 3 months into working my first full-time position at a startup. I started to panic. How long would I have to struggle before finding a balance of good pay along with good working hours?
Udacity provided an alternative. It was not a silver bullet to get me a better salary and a new job immediately, but their nano degree offered a certification that could elevate my resume and experience. I decided to make my evenings and weekend hours work for me! I have been through 1 out of 3 months of the Udacity Digital Marketing program and it has been stressful but worth it.
Here are my 5 reasons why!
1. The Projects Match Marketing Industry Assignments
You are given 7 projects which make you write content, promote content, and evaluate your performance for ways to improve. This matches the marketing industry pipeline to a tee. These assignments are great portfolio pieces and great talking points on an interview. Go to the website and scroll down to see the outline and projects.
2. The resources they point you to are Up-To-Date
3. Short engaging video content
70–80% of your learning through Udacity is video based. With an average of 3–4 minutes long per video, smooth motion graphics, and real-life examples showcasing the concepts, Udacity really delivers with their short and engaging content. Their quizzes then drive home the lessons and keep you informed of what you missed. You can also hear from the instructors.
4. They have a #networking slack channel
Looking for that 500+ on LinkedIn, the slack channel will get you there. With over 900 people in the same program as you, you’ve got a huge community. One downside is that they do not have meetups in every city to move the networking from digital to physical. But, check here for your city.
5. There is a week dedicated to building your portfolio!
Doing the work is great. Presenting the work is even better. Employers want to see your 3-month journey in a quickly digestible format, that’s why resumes are maxed 1-page long. Having time set aside to make that deliverable is how Udacity offers you time to present how you stand out amongst other nano degree holders. Here is a portfolio from a Marketing nano degree alumn and thoughts from another alumn on the program after graduating.
If you’ve read through this and are still undecided, consider that the Udacity program offers a 7-day cancellation period on enrollments.
At last, thank you for reading and good luck on your journey!
