Why are Certification Programs better than MOOCs?

Why are Certification Programs better than MOOCs? Before we talk about why or how certification programs are better than MOOCs, let’s understand what MOOCs are.

MOOCs – Definition and What Does the Acronym Mean!

MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Courses. These courses are hosted on a portal and offer huge amount of reading material, in addition to the lectures and videos on specific topics. Thus, offering a chance to the users, to boost their learning and improve their skills.

The term MOOC first originated in the US in 2008 and to give a name to the courses that were free, easily accessible, and completely online. They became popular because they offered a chance to study with some of the top universities around the globe.

Currently both MOOC and Certification programs are enjoying huge number of patrons and gaining popularity. However, certification programs still fair better than MOOC in the corporate world.

Reason: Certification programs are validated by third party; they are usually vendor independent, and platform neutral.

For those seeking a data science career, data science certifications will give you an edge over your competitors and you will be an apple of recruiters’ eyes.

These are just few of the benefits of certification programs. Here are few more benefits of certifications, especially in the field of data science.

1.With data science certification the applicants will have a competitive edge over their peers and other applicants seeking a similar role.

2.Certification in data science will increase your efficiency thus increasing your productivity as well.

3.If you have been working in the role of data science professional and want to increase your earning potential, earning a data science certification will prove beneficial to you.

4.Data Science certification will help you increase your knowledge and build-up on your skills as well.

5.Last but not the least, data science certification will help you establish professional credibility, as they come with an expiry date. Implying: To stay updated you need to either reapply or apply for higher certification.

While data science certifications gained acceptance from the industry experts, and business houses, MOOCs popularity amid the recruiters declined drastically.

Some of the reasons why MOOC could not gain favor with both the recruiters as well as business leaders included – • Higher attrition rates amid the patrons. With no regulations on applying for the course, students/applicants were not liable to finish the course and left it midway.

• MOOC are not meant for students with disabilities. There is no provision for visually impaired or hearing-impaired students.

• The MOOC programs don’t offer any sort of personalized or individual attention to any student, even if a student is stuck at some topic or is not able to understand the topic.

• Lengthy reading material, no interactive sessions lead to boredom, which results in lack of attention by students/patrons • No prerequisites for signing up for the course. There is no age or skill restriction for MOOC, so anyone can sign and do the course.

• MOOC certifications have no expiry date implying that once you have done the course there will be no upgrades in the program.

To sum it up, data science professionals seeking a serious career in the field should opt for a professional data science certification and keep climbing the success ladder.