The National Program under the "4IR Academy" initiative has officially begun. The first 7,500 individuals who registered have started free online courses on the Coursera platform. 

Implemented through a joint effort by the Center for Analysis and Coordination of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) under the Ministry of Economy and the Education Development Fund under the Ministry of Science and Education, the National Program offers free access to Coursera’s educational platform for the initial group of participants. For a duration of six weeks, users will be able to take an unlimited number of courses at no cost.

In the next phase, additional registration opportunities will be opened to allow more participants to benefit from the program. Over the course of one year, the program aims to enable tens of thousands of Azerbaijani citizens to access courses on Coursera—the world’s largest online learning platform.

The primary goal of the program is to accelerate the country’s transition to a digital economy by enhancing knowledge and skills in technologies related to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), and by supporting the development of a skilled workforce in this domain. All Azerbaijani citizens — regardless of age or employment status — are eligible to participate.

Participants can access courses offered by nearly 350 top universities and leading tech companies worldwide, including Oxford, Stanford, Yale, Duke, University of London , University of Edinburgh, University of Manchester, University of Michigan, Johns Hopkins University , University of Illinois, University of Florida, University of Sydney, as well as Microsoft, Google, Meta, IBM, AWS, Oracle, GitLab, Intel, SAP, and Salesforce. More than 8,000 specialized courses and programs are available, covering a wide range of topics such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, data analytics, blockchain, cloud technologies, programming languages, leadership, personal development, and communication skills.

Those who successfully complete the courses will receive internationally recognized certificates issued by Coursera.

Under the partnership with SOCAR, PASHA Holding, bp, and JOCAP, the 2,500 most popular courses on Coursera are now accompanied by AI-powered Azerbaijani subtitles, making the content more accessible to local learners.

Additionally, the platform offers an AI-based tool called “Hiring Solutions”, which enables local employers to access information about participants who have completed relevant courses and invite them for job opportunities. Users can also benefit from the Coursera Coach, an AI-driven guide that helps learners select courses aligned with their education and career goals.

It’s worth noting that during the initial phase of the 4IR Academy last year, 10,000 participants took advantage of free Coursera access over the span of one year. Together, they completed more than 32,000 hours of coursework and earned over 4,200 international certificates. In 2024, the project received Coursera’s “Outstanding Achievement Award” in the Artificial Intelligence Innovation category.

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