Udacity launches ‘Digital Freelancer' Nanodegree programme in MENA

Programme in collaboration with ‘Maharat min Google', specifically designed for students to learn skills, tools needed to launch successful freelance careers

Udacity announced the launch of a new Nanodegree programme for the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region—the Digital Freelancer Nanodegree programme.
According to the announcement, the programme was built in collaboration with ‘Maharat Min Google', Google's digital skills-building programme for Arabic speakers. This new Nanodegree programme will help empower aspiring learners in the region, to acquire the skills necessary to succeed in the global digital economy, with a special emphasis on women, and young workers just now preparing to enter the workforce.
MENA has one of the largest and fastest growing populations of young people on the planet, and yet youth unemployment rates are notably high—currently at 30% in some markets. The region also has one of the lowest rates of female economic participation in the world. Given these challenging statistics, it's clear dramatic steps must be taken to ensure that this vast generation of young talents can participate economically, and has access to the necessary learning opportunities they'll need to succeed in the modern hiring landscape.
According to the World Economic Forum in their report The Future of Jobs and Skills in the Middle East and North Africa, online freelance work is rapidly emerging as a viable means of employment and economic advancement.
The new programme would be accessible to aspiring freelancers from any background, who can enrol and learn the core skills necessary to succeed in the world of online freelancing.
"Success as a digital freelancer requires not just having the skills to complete certain projects; one must also know how to find, win, and manage those projects. Graduates will become their own bosses, and while that has a lot of perks—flexibility, independence, mobility, versatility—they must be able to both promote their abilities, then deliver on them." said the statement.
The course materials are in Arabic, and the curriculum is tailored expressly to meet the needs of aspiring digital freelancers in the MENA region. The full programme consists of one month-long term, at a cost of $150.
Moreover, the statement indicates that Udacity's goal is to ensure that students learn real-world skills and emerge from the programme with significant career advantages.
Udacity is a global, online, lifelong learning platform connecting education to jobs and providing students with skills to advance careers.