Professionals develop their digital skills to fuel their careers with University of Manitoba Extended Education.
Develop digital skills and expertise with University of Manitoba Extended Education
Explore Micro-certificate in Artificial Intelligence: Machine Learning Solutions
As Artificial Intelligence becomes more prominent, a suitable knowledge of AI may be one of the basic things you will need to advance your career, according to Siddh Sheth.
The graduate of University of Manitoba Extended Education’s Micro-certificate in Artificial Intelligence: Machine Learning Solutions discovered the program by googling AI and Machine Learning programs near him. It was the first one he found.
“So I said, why not? I wanted a program from a good school and UM has a good brand. I wanted my employer to sponsor my learning. And they paid for it,” says the UM alum who also holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Artificial Intelligence: Machine Learning Solutions is a micro-certificate for every professional looking to understand the possibilities of AI and Machine Learning and what they can do for their business or organization, no coding required. It’s one of several Extended Education program and course options designed to improve your professional process and technology management to move forward in your career.
As Arooj Ahmed Quereshi, instructor and content provider for one of the program’s three courses, says, “This new technology, AI, is here and I think everybody should be aware of it so they can make good use of it.”
Solving business challenges
That’s just what Sheth plans to do.
As a business systems analyst at New Flyer, he is applying what he learned. Sheth will now work on various AI projects, automating the routine and tedious tasks so staff can focus more on speaking with customers. The process will become optimized, better.
“I was amazed by the knowledge I gained. Now I can link AI to a business application to get rid of a business problem. It is a very good way to impress the boss.”
Jessica Charney is also applying knowledge she gained from this program in her work as a learning and development specialist with Birchwood Automotive Group.
“I am now able to do a deeper dive into the research side to make sure that the AI that we are using is ethical,” Charney says. “For me, personally, I feel that AI is a way to advance the human experience, and how we interact with each other. I think it’s just enhancing how humans go about their day-to-day lives.”
Don’t be afraid
When many people think of Artificial Intelligence, they think of that scary robot assassin in the Terminator movie. But don’t be afraid, says Briana Brownell, instructor and content provider for the program. AI is good for every industry and savvy professionals must be aware of the technologies and how they can determine effective solutions to their most important business challenges like retaining customers, making better products, reducing risk, marketing effectively, innovating and leading in their marketplace.
“This mission is critical for most industries now. There is a push to have technology infrastructure, the ability to collect and analyze data quickly, and to create solutions,” says the founder and CEO of Pure Strategy Inc. noting examples of AI and Machine Learning in action are all around us providing us with relevant data from Netflix recommendations to Facebook news, and even auto-correcting us on our phones.
Artificial Intelligence is the backbone of all advances in technology, says Cuneyt Akcora, program consultant from the Faculty of Science. Over time, any intelligent developments in computer science are AI-related. If you want to use them, you need to know the basics.
A new kind of literacy
“I see it as an important new kind of literacy. If you don’t understand AI and Machine Learning, others have an advantage over you. You don’t need to program but you need to understand,” says the professor of computer science and statistics.
For example, if you work in human resources, algorithms on job search websites narrow down applications for specific jobs. You need to know how they are figuring this out.
“Understanding AI will help you and your company in most of the jobs today,” says Akcora.
“I very much like the practical aspects of this program. It is not coding, and not using data searches. Coding is often automated these days. It is about understanding the decisions made by AI, understanding the main direction, where to focus, the tools needed to know.”
As seen in the Winnipeg Free Press