---
title: "Testing the Potential Benefits of  Continual Learning Opportunities Through MOOC"
description: "“Nanodegrees were not created to compete with universities, but rather to democratise access to higher learning through a model oriented towards results, realistic about employment market requirements, and in touch with..."
author: "Brandon Caruana"
published: "2021-02-02T00:00:00.000Z"
articleLink: "https://caruana.me/writing/2021-02-02-nano-degrees-test/"
---

# Testing the Potential Benefits of  Continual Learning Opportunities Through MOOC

![Testing the Potential Benefits of  Continual Learning Opportunities Through MOOC](https://caruana.me/assets/images/code-cayman-test.jpg)

> “Nanodegrees were not created to compete with universities, but rather to democratise access to higher learning through a model oriented towards results, realistic about employment market requirements, and in touch with the complex situation in which many students find themselves”
>
> <cite> - Sebastian Thrun, Stanford University professor, former head of Google Glass and the Waymo self-driving car, founded the Udacity online courses platform </cite>

#### EXPERIMENT

- The Code(Cayman).Commit program is a fully funded 1 year subscription to https://coursera.com combined with in person assistance from Code(Cayman) Volunteers and a support network with other commit participants.
- The Commit program has started at a small scale with 6 participants currently enrolled 
- There has been no major marketing behind this idea. 
- We need to test the first part of our theory, namely that attaining one or more nanodegree(s) combined with some other open-source or published projects and a local support network will help people build their technology confidence and intrigue whilst making them an attractive employable candidate.

#### STEPS

- Leverage the Code(Cayman) mentor and participant network to inspire, connect, support and incentivize the local labour market to pursue online learning and build skills that multinational organizations are looking for.
- Work with our overseas network to identify any opportunities for learners to find remote work opportunities
- Work with local businesses to understand the course content and how it will help them meet their requirements

#### MEASURE

- Figure out the proper sample size of Cayman labour force
- Measure number of nanocerts enrollment against sample size
- Measure how many participants finish the programs, how long they spend per week, what is the drop off rate
- Measure number of local companies considering nanodegrees as core competencies 
- Measure how nanodegrees combined with other knowledge / open source projects effects employability

#### COSTS  

- The commit program currently costs $40 per month payable to https://coursera.com. Code(Cayman) currently pays these fees and provides a dedicated volunteer to offer real time support / guidance when a learner is stuck on an assignment or expressing interest in next steps.
    - We can get these fees down if we offer it at scale across the island
    - We would need to strengthen our volunteer network to ensure continue support / guidance is always available
    - If this is going very well, we may need to consider funding for dedicated mentors.

#### CONCLUSION
- If successful, we would have the most cost effective way to bootstrap our retraining initiatives 
- Help inspire parents to ensure their children are more focused on the digital and STEM training 
- Create an inclusive and tech focused labour force that looks beyond Cayman borders for economic opportunity while also helping local businesses be more technologically advanced.

Written by: [Brandon Caruana](https://caruana.me)
Published on: February 2, 2021
Article can be found at: [https://caruana.me/writing/2021-02-02-nano-degrees-test/](https://caruana.me/writing/2021-02-02-nano-degrees-test/)