If you’re in the market for adding some artificial intelligence skills to your resume, you’re in good company: there’s never been a better time to add new skills to your resume, especially AI tools. Why? Well, just a few years ago, artificial intelligence was seen as a crucial skill in tech roles and tech roles alone; today, as AI has permeated practically every sector and proved to be a valuable resource in a wide range of fields, all professionals will benefit from adding some AI skills to their resume.
And that’s precisely why we’ve written this article: the first step is deciding to add AI skills to your resume, but the actual process of learning said skills can pose a bit of a challenge at first. For example, knowing exactly where to start, which tool to learn, and how to finetune your skills can be quite the mystery.
Luckily for you, in addition to launching our new AI school, where we’re collecting all the resources necessary for adding these sought-after AI skills to your resume in one place and facilitating your learning journey, we’ve outlined some of the most essential resources that will help you kickstart your career.
But first, let’s review some of the main reasons why learning AI skills could have such an incredible effect on your career, no matter the industry.
Why Learn Artificial Intelligence Skills?
Just a few years ago, the need to learn AI skills was limited to just tech roles, but that’s a belief that’s been left behind as AI tools have developed to benefit practically every sector. And as these tools become more user-friendly and require less technical knowledge, there’s been a rush as professionals from more and more industries seek to improve their day-to-day operations with the help of AI tools.
There are quite a few reasons to learn AI skills, regardless of your area of expertise, but we’ve highlighted some of our favorites here:
The best decisions are backed by data: one of the most widespread applications of artificial intelligence is data analysis and that’s because AI tools have the capacity to both collect and process large amounts of data, identifying patterns and trends in just a matter of seconds. And in any industry, professionals will benefit from better understanding their users and clients, meaning that data analysis with the help of AI tools is incredibly valuable.
Automation may be the key to success: imagine if all of your tedious and repetitive tasks were suddenly done for you in a fraction of the time it took you previously, freeing up your time for the more exciting and innovative aspects of your role. If you learn how to automate some of these processes, you’ll find your time freeing up and those tedious tasks behind you.
AI leads to more personalized customer experiences: no matter your industry, you know that clients respond more positively to personalized and unique experiences that make them feel special. And with the help of AI, you can start providing these custom user experiences to every single customer, leading to an increased sense of brand loyalty.
The future of everything is with AI: a few years ago, AI skills were deemed helpful but not necessary for tech roles; today, however, all roles will benefit from some sort of knowledge about AI and by taking the initiative to add these skills to your resume now, you’ll be separating yourself from the competition well ahead of time.
Now that we’ve covered why it’s a good idea to learn artificial intelligence tools to kickstart your career in any field, let’s dive into some of the essential resources for learning AI skills to ensure that you’re able to add these skills to your resume as soon as possible.
Resources for Learning AI Skills
As you can probably imagine, there are quite a few ways to hone your artificial intelligence skills, but it can be challenging to sift through all the options and choose the right one. And while we’d like to tell you exactly which is best for you, the ideal resource depends on your experience level with AI, your field, your budget, available time, and other factors.
Therefore, we’ve put together some of the best ways to learn AI skills and hope you can choose the one that best works for you.
Self study
As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly popular, more and more online resources will become available meaning learning on your own is a legitimate and solid way to fine tune your AI skills. Moving at your own pace and focusing on the areas that interest you, you’ll be able to ensure your AI knowledge reflects your specific interests and needs, instead of learning things that aren’t relevant to your career growth at that moment.
Self study isn’t for everyone, however, and it’s important to consider both the pros and cons of it:
Pros of self study: by creating your own learning journey, you won’t be limited by time restraints or someone else’s curriculum; you’ll be able to try out different areas and tools to find the one that best fits your needs before you commit to an expensive or time-consuming course.
Cons of self study: it can be challenging to keep yourself honest and on track, meaning you’ll have to be very motivated and on top of your studies to ensure that self study is an effective learning method for you.
Joining a community
Wouldn’t it be nice to learn from like-minded individuals who are also set on improving their AI skills to further their careers? Well, with the help of online communities such as GitHub forums or LinkedIn newsletters, in addition to attending virtual or in-person talks or meetups, you can not only enrich your AI knowledge, but create a community to help you both personally and professionally.
If you’re considering joining an AI community, make sure you consider both sides:
Pros of joining a community: surrounded by others who are also focused on improving their AI skills, you’ll be inspired to work harder and learn from those who come from different backgrounds, maybe learning new applications of these AI skills.
Cons of joining a community: by working with others, you’ll be limited to the areas that others want to study; if you’re interested in a newer or more niche area of AI, for example, you may struggle to find the community you seek.
Online courses
If you’re looking for a more focused and guided way to learn about artificial intelligence skills, online courses are your best bet. These short and affordable courses focus on one skill in particular and its applications in a certain area, such as AI in digital marketing or AI for data analysis, helping you get exactly what you need from it without spending too much time on other topics.
Sounds like a good fit? Take a look at the pros and cons of online courses:
Pros of online courses: in addition to offering a more formal certification upon completion that you can show to prospective employers, you’ll benefit from this more formal way of learning that will cover all the necessary aspects of mastering this AI skill.
Cons of online courses: if you’re in the beginning stages of your AI journey, the more rigid setup of an online course may limit you in figuring out exactly what you want to learn; unless you’re sure about the exact tool you want to learn or the area in which you want to apply your AI knowledge, make sure to thoroughly research before starting.
