4 New Specializations Launching on Coursera

[Carolyn]

Coursera are adding more career-relevant content to the their catalog, including courses and Specializations in new areas like startup valuation, marketing analytics, and UI design. Every course is taught by leading instructors from the world’s top universities; Specializations are designed to build your mastery of a particular topic, and include hands-on projects to help you demonstrate that you’re ready for the next step in your career.

The following programs allow you to earn a Specialization Certificate from Coursera and the providing institution. Join now and pay in advance to receive 10% off.

Please note: You can access the course content in the Specializations for free by enrolling in each course separately and then selecting the audit option.

The following new Specializations are now open for enrollment:

Investment and Portfolio Management
By Rice University

In this four-course Specialization, you’ll learn the essential skills of portfolio management and personal investing.

All investors – from the largest wealth funds to the smallest individual investors – share common issues in investing: how to meet their liabilities, how to decide where to invest, and how much risk to take on. In this Specialization, you will learn how to think about, discuss, and formulate solutions to these investment questions. You will learn the theory and the real-world skills necessary to design, execute, and evaluate investment proposals that meet financial objectives. You will begin with an overview of global financial markets and instruments that characterize the investment opportunities available to today’s investor. You will then learn how to construct optimal portfolios that manage risk effectively, and how to capitalize on understanding behavioral biases and irrational behavior in financial markets. You will learn the best practices in portfolio management and performance evaluation as well as current investment strategies. By the end of your Capstone Project, you will have mastered the analytical tools, quantitative skills, and practical knowledge necessary for long-term investment management success.

To see an overview video for this Specialization, click here!

Data Analysis
By PwC

If you are a PwC Employee, gain access to the PwC Specialization and Courses for free using the instructions on the PwC L&D Spark page or simply search "Coursera" on PwC Spark.

This Specialization will help you get practical with data analysis, turning business intelligence into real-world outcomes. We'll explore how a combination of better understanding, filtering, and application of data can help you solve problems faster - leading to smarter and more effective decision-making. You’ll learn how to use Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and other common data analysis and communication tools, and perhaps most importantly, we'll help you to present data to others in a way that gets them engaged in your story and motivated to act.

In the final Capstone Project, you'll apply the skills you’ve learned by working through a mock client business problem. You'll analyze a set of data, looking for the business insights. Then you'll create and visualize your findings, before recording a video to present your recommendations to the client.

Applied Data Science w/ Python
By University of Michigan

The 5 courses in this University of Michigan specialization introduce learners to data science through the python programming language. This skills-based specialization is intended for learners who have basic a python or programming background, and want to apply statistical, machine learning, information visualization, and text analysis techniques to gain new insight into their data.

Introduction to Data Science with Python (course 1), Applied Plotting, Charting & Data Representation in Python (course 2), and Applied Machine Learning in Python (course 3) should be taken in order and prior to any other course in the specialization. After completing those, courses 4 and 5 can be taken in any order. All 5 are required to earn a certificate.

Startup Valuation
By Yonsei University

The Startup Valuation and Financial Analysis Specialization teaches two of the most often used methods to find the value of a startup. You’ll learn how to find the value of founder’s ownership before and after additional funding, how to read financial statements and make pro-forma statements, and how to determine the financial health and status of a startup and estimate future earnings and value. You’ll then use various investment criteria, such as Net Present Value (NPV) and Individual Rate of Return (IRR), to make a decision about whether and where to invest your money.

Specific topics include: the time value of money, discounted cash flows method, multiple method, financial statements analysis, free cash flows, capital budgeting decision rules and current trends. The Capstone Project will find the value of startups using the methods taught in the course.