In 2017 over 73 million people in Africa accessed the internet for the first time. This trend will continue growing forward and in a bid to prepare the continent for this boom, Google is partnering with Udacity and Andela to help provide the digital skills that will be necessary to ensure Africans can experience the internet tailor-made to meet their needs.
Google’s statement on the scholarship program:
There are now about 435 million people on the continent using the Web to engage, connect and access information online. That’s a good thing! But with this growth comes an increased need to scale efforts to make the Web more relevant and useful to African users. This will require more skilled hands working with individuals and local businesses to develop content and platforms that will support Africa’s digital growth.
The scholarship program will equip 15,000 Africans with skills in web development and Android development. The program is open to both aspiring and professional developers in Africa. The minimum age for entrants is 18 years. During the application, applicants will also choose between two programs: Web development or Android Development. Here is how the scholarships are going to be distributed:
The training will be conducted online via Udacity’s training website. Andela’s Learning Community will provide support to students but only to students in Nigeria and Kenya.
Of the 15,000 scholarships 10 000 will be given to beginners with little to no programming experience and they will learn android beginner courses along with a basic introduction to HTML and CSS.
The remaining 5,000 applicants need to have over a year’s experience in professional developer roles. Their scholarships will include Android fundamentals for intermediate and be building offline web applications respectively. All the courses will be taught in English.
The top 500 at the end of the challenge will earn a full Nanodegre Scholarship to one of four Nanodegree programs in Android Development or Web Development.
This program is in line with Sundar Pichai’s (Google CEO) pledge to provide digital skills to 10 million Africans and provide mobile developer training to 100 000 Africans. Applications for Google Africa Scholarship Program close on the 24th of April.
Scholarship
The program takes place 100% online. You can work from wherever you want to, as long as you have access to a working internet connection. Depending on where you live, you may also choose to participate in optional in-person meet-ups with your scholarship classmates.
Benefits
- Learn valuable skills to launch or advance your career as a mobile or web developer;
- Master world-class curriculum developed with experts from Google and Udacity;
- Join a rapidly growing community of mobile and web developers.
Eligibility
The Scholarship is only open to individuals who:
- At the time of entry are at least 18 years of age on the date of entry; and
- Are residents of any jurisdiction from any country in Africa that does not otherwise ban participation in the Contest or where Udacity is otherwise unable provide its services by applicable laws.
Judging Criteria
The winners will be selected by Udacity in its sole discretion. Judges will evaluate each Participant’s coursework in eligible courses and Nanodegree programs and select winners based on the following criteria:
- Satisfactory completion of the application for the Scholarship
- Demonstrated ability to successfully complete or make substantial progress in online courses like those offered on Udacity.com
- Sufficient prerequisite knowledge necessary for the programs
- Review of the content of all applications will be evaluated based on the quality and thoughtfulness of their responses.
- Submissions should incorporate the following elements that the judges will use as criteria when selecting contest winners: Goal Orientation and Desire to Make an Impact, Demonstrated Determination and Diversity of Perspective.
Application
The application is straightforward, and should take 10-15 minutes. There is a single application for all, whether you’re interested in Mobile or Web, and whether you’re a beginner or already have experience. Answer what you can, to the best of your ability, and Google will do the rest!
Sign up to apply
