Graduate Certificates

[Motivated2move]

I am looking for a graduate certificate from an accredited college to diversify my background. Do you know of any quick, inexpensive options? I am open to any subject, must be online, and under 1 year to complete. Ideally under $3,000usd and 3 classes (or less).

[videogamesrock]

Most graduate certificates are 12 credits. However, Liberty has just about every graduate certificate at 9 credits with tuition at $550 a credit.

You can complete the certificate in 8 weeks.

[dfrecore]

You shouldn't get a grad certificate just to "diversify" your background. What is your BA in, and what do you want to show that you're learning for whatever opportunities you're looking at?

[alexf.1990]

I am looking for a graduate certificate from an accredited college to diversify my background.  Do you know of any quick, inexpensive options?  I am open to any subject,  must be online,  and under 1 year to complete.  Ideally under $3,000usd and 3 classes (or less).

I'll second dfrecore on this. A graduate cert isn't always the best way to diversify your background. If you tell us your goals, which BA you got, and what field you want to get into, we could provide a more thorough answer.

[cookderosa]

I am looking for a graduate certificate from an accredited college to diversify my background. Do you know of any quick, inexpensive options? I am open to any subject, must be online, and under 1 year to complete. Ideally under $3,000usd and 3 classes (or less).

Would this be instead of eventually pursuing a masters? I ask because many master's certificates aren't *that much* shorter than a degree - and if you get rolling, it would be nice to have the option to finish the degree. So, if you're starting from scratch, it might be nice to pick a certificate that fits inside of a full degree at the same school. This isn't uncommon, but there are a lot that DON'T do this, so you may want to think about it.

Also, if you don't *need* a masters, as in ever, why not get a Micromasters from edx? You can drop without a paper trail if you need to, and you'd be all in around $1000. Some, not all, will also allow you to roll the micromasters into an actual master's degree - which is always good for keeping your options open.

PS Grad work in ANY subject? That sends a funky message to me. Build your resume by making yourself more diverse for sure, but do so in a way that shows you have a plan and purpose for the time and money you're about to spend (because potential employers will wonder how well you'll use their time and money otherwise)

[Motivated2move]

Yes, you are all right, I do have a path in mind that complements my current situation. Ideally I would like to look at data or tech. I was favoring the data analytics cert at TESU but then it disappeared from their website. Computer science would really help but I would need guidance on where to start.

[dfrecore]

Yes, you are all right, I do have a path in mind that complements my current situation.  Ideally I would like to look at data or tech.  I was favoring the data analytics cert at TESU but then it disappeared from their website.  Computer science would really help but I would need guidance on where to start.

The TESU Data Analytics grad cert is no longer available.

If you have $3,000 to spend, I would suggest the WGU MS in Data Analytics.  If you could finish in a 6-mo term, it would cost $3,785.  Granted, it may be difficult to complete in 6 months, in which case I would suggest learning as much of the material as you could prior to starting, via MOOC or some other free/inexpensive methods.  That way, when you start, you're already familiar with the material, and can get through all 10 courses in 6 months (that would be approx 2.6 weeks per course, which is doable if you're not learning it from scratch).

[Lewis.Yim]

If you're looking for a Data Analytics certificate, you can go for the Udacity Nanodegree in Data Analytics. It is one of a few options to get admissions into WGU's Masters in Data Analytics program and will get your "brain wrapped around the topic". Of course, you need a Bachelors that's either NA or RA as a prerequisite.

[Motivated2move]

I just looked up the Udacity nano degree in Data Analytics and it seems like the logical next step. Thank you for the suggestions!

[dfrecore]

I just looked up the Udacity nano degree in Data Analytics and it seems like the logical next step.  Thank you for the suggestions!

Actually, it looks like you need the Programming for Data Science Nanodegree first, before you can take the Data Analyst Nanodegree (if you're not already familiar with Python and SQL).

But both of those actually sound interesting (to me), I may check them out myself!