Are Udacity Nanodegrees worth it for finding a job?

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Holger Waedt


I am referring to the front-end web developer nanodegree, as I am doing this course right now.

In summary: The nanodegree is worth in several ways:

1. The nanodegree gives you a 360 degree view of today’s front-end web development. The course starts with the obvious, what you would probably teach yourself anyway, such as html, css, javascript. And moves to industry’s best practices: using libraries (jquery, bootstrap), html5 and how to tackle responsive web design challenges. Of course, you can read all this up in the internet, but there is an information overload. The nanodegree teaches you what you need to know, in a condensed way, from industry experts.
2. The nanodegree addresses the unknown-unknowns. The above-mentioned 360 degree view does not only cover what you already know that should be covered (the known-unkowns) but teaches you crucial things that you probably have not yet come across: browser rendering optimization, javascript code reuse patterns and design patterns …
3. The nanodegree teaches example- and project-based. When you are finished with the program, you have built a handful of projects: This 1. gives you confidence that you can actually apply your newly acquired skills in a meaningful way, 2. The projects are blueprints for your own projects later on (if you want to develop a website for a friend, just take one of the projects from the nano-degree course and change it to your liking), 3. These projects look neat in your cv.

Keep in mind, even though a nanodegree is a solid foundation, it is up to you to make something out of it. There is far more to learn about front-end web development.

After finishing the nano-degree, do project work. Start small, pro bono, and scale up later. How's about developing a one-page website for your neighbor's cousin? Volunteer to make the website mobile ready for the sports club you attend. Is there a charity event planned in your neighborhood? Offer them your services as a web developer.



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Allan Reyes


Disclosure: I wrote this when I was still a student/graduate. Since then, I realized that I believed in Udacity's mission so strongly that I applied for a job there--and got in! Everything below this line is the unedited original.

I wrote a related Quora answer recently: Allan Reyes' answer to What is the value of a course completion certificate from Udacity?

Basically, a Nanodegree "diploma"--by its own--is more about how much the employer knows about this relatively new program. Honestly, most employers won't know about it. More importantly, I think the portfolio of projects you produce while going through the Nanodegrees speaks volumes more about your capabilities than any credential ever will. I think if you put it on your resume, you definitely need to expound on what you did and what you shipped!



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Chuy Medina


I am in no way, shape, or form attempting to discredit these nanodegree programs at all, for I have taken many Udacity courses and I was enrolled in the front-end web developer degree program and I loved it. I guess what`s bothering me a bit is that every single success story I hear about is coming from people who already had bachelor degrees in respected fields or from respected universites. What about people with no bachelors AT ALL, but with a passion for software, web, ios, android, and machine learning development and engineering. Am I missing something? I`ve always heard that you don`t need a bachelors to get into development and obtain a successful career that you love, but I feel a little unsure because college didn`t work out for me, and I want to pursure Nanodegrees.



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Sebastian Thrun


We believe our more advanced Nanodegrees certainly are. In fact, we issued a Job Guarantee. If you can’t find a job upon graduation, and we can’t for you either, we pay you back your full tuition. Through our Talent Source program, we work closely with companies to get our Nanodegree students a job. You can take our Android Nanodegree and pay about $2,000 and be trained for an entry-level Android job or more. Kushal in India landed a job at Flipkart after taking our Android Nanodegree. These jobs start at $80K in the United States and command even more in Silicon Valley. In fact, if you look at our Nanodegrees today, we have a salary tool embedded that shows you how much you might be worth. Give it a shot!



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