As part of its efforts to lessen the digital divide and promote inclusivity across the tech industry, Nokia has offered over 300 scholarships for Nanodegree programs, which are fully online and can be completed alongside further studies or full-time work, with a focus on students and career changers from underrepresented communities.
Under the program, core tech competencies such as cloud computing and programming, artificial intelligence, and data science will be covered from elementary to advanced levels.
Nokia will be working together with online learning and talent transformation platform Udacity and Blacks In Technology (BIT) Foundation. Udacity, whose Nanodegree programs are fully online and designed to be completed alongside further studies or full-time work, making them accessible to anyone regardless of their position or profession. Scholarships are open to applicants based anywhere in the world, to both students and industry professionals who wish to further develop their technology skills. Scholarship recipients will also have access to support and networking provided by the BIT Foundation, including mentorship, tutoring, and post-completion career support resources. Nokia will also work closely with its African-American employee resource group ABLE (Advancing Black Leadership and Excellence) to further promote the initiative.
The successful candidates will be able to select courses on topics such as AI Programming with Python, Java Programming, Data Structures and Algorithms, Intermediate Python, and Cloud DevOps Engineering.
Commenting on the development, Karoliina Loikkanen, global head of sustainability at Nokia said, “We are committed to creating technology that helps the world act together, but to do so, the technology industry must reflect the world around us. This initiative further expands our activities to drive greater inclusion and diversity through concrete actions that provide opportunities to underrepresented communities.”
Meanwhile, Dennis Schultz, executive director at the BIT Foundation said, “Education is one of the most important ways for us to help remove the barriers to diversity in tech. By providing access to resources that are designed to nurture and develop people’s skills, we can help get more Black talent into the technology space.“
“We have joined forces with Nokia and Blacks In Technology Foundation because we believe that it is vital to continue to create opportunities for underrepresented groups to build careers in the field of technology,” said Gabe Dalporto, CEO at Udacity. “Democratizing access to digital skills training will create life-changing opportunities for people, and these scholarships will ensure we continue to take measurable steps to increase the participation of Black people in the technology sector.”
Applications are now open. For more information about the scholarship program and how to enter, visit: https://www.nokia.com/about-us/sustainability/improving-lives/tech-and-underrepresented-communities/
