GCP – Google Cloud offers new AI, cybersecurity, and data analytics training to unlock job opportunities

Google Cloud is on a mission to help everyone build the skills they need for in-demand cloud jobs. Today, we’re excited to announce  new learning opportunities  that will help you gain these in-demand skills through new courses and certificates in AI, data analytics, and cybersecurity. Even better, we’re hearing from Google Cloud customers that they are eager to consider certificate completers for roles they’re actively hiring for, so don’t delay and start your learning today. 

Google Cloud offers new generative AI courses

Demand for AI skills is exploding in the market. There has been a staggering 21x increase in job postings that include AI technologies in 2023.1 To help prepare you for these roles, we’re announcing new generative AI courses on YouTube and Google Cloud Skills Boost, from introductory level to advanced. Once you complete the hands-on training, you can show off your new skill badges to employers.

Introductory (no cost!): This training will get you started with the basics of generative AI and responsible AI.  

Intermediate: For Application Developers, and you will learn how to use Gemini for Google Cloud to work faster across networking, security, and infrastructure.

Advanced: For AI/ ML Engineers, and you will learn how to integrate multimodal prompts in Gemini into your workflow. 

New AI-powered, employer-recognized Google Cloud Certificates

Gen AI has triggered massive demand for skilling, especially in the areas of cybersecurity and data analytics,2 where there are significant employment opportunities. In the U.S. alone:

There are over 505,000 open entry-level roles3 related to a Cloud Cybersecurity Analyst, with a median annual salary of $135,000.4

There are more than 725,000 open entry-level roles5 related to a Cloud Data Analyst, with a median annual salary of $85,700.6

Building on the success of the Grow with Google Career Certificates, our new Google Cloud Certificates in Data Analytics and Cybersecurity can help prepare you for these high-growth, entry-level cloud jobs. 

A gen AI-powered learning journey 

What better way to understand just how much AI can do for you than integrating it into your learning journey? You’ll get no-cost access to generative AI tools throughout your learning experience. For example, you can put your skills to use and rock your interviews with Interview Warmup, Google’s gen AI-powered interview prep tool.

Talent acquisition, reimagined 

And while we’re at it, we’ll help connect you to jobs. Our new Google Cloud Affiliate Employer program unlocks access for certificate completers to apply for jobs with some top cloud employers, like the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Rackspace, and Jack Henry.

We’re also taking it one step further. Together, with the employers in the affiliate program, we’re helping  reimagine talent acquisition through a new skills-based hiring effort. This new initiative uses Google Cloud technology to help move certificate completers through the hiring process. Here’s how it works: Certificate completers in select hiring locations will have the chance to take custom labs that represent on-the-job scenarios, specific to each employer partner. These labs will be considered the first stage in their hiring process. By matching candidates with the right skills to the right jobs, this initiative marks a major step forward in creating more access to job opportunities for cloud employers.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury will start using these new Google Cloud Certificates and labs for cyber and data analytics talent identification across the federal agency, per President Biden’s Executive Order on AI.

“In an age of rapid innovation and adoption of new technology offering the promise of improved productivity, it is imperative that we equip every worker with accessible training and development opportunities to understand and apply this new technology. We are partnering with Google to provide the new Cloud Certificates training for our current and future employees to accelerate their careers in cybersecurity and data analytics.” – Todd Conklin, Chief AI Officer and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection, U.S. Department of the Treasury 

No-cost access for higher education institutions worldwide

To expand access to these programs, educational institutions, as well as government and nonprofit workforce development programs across the globe, can offer these new certificates and gen AI courses at no cost. Learn more and apply today. 

And in the U.S., learners who successfully complete a Google Cloud Certificate can apply for college credit,7 to have a faster and more affordable pathway to a degree.

“Purdue Global’s students have benefited greatly from the strong working relationship between Purdue Global and Google. Together, they were the pioneers in stacking Grow with Google certificates into four types of degree-earning credit certificates over the past two years. We believe these new Google Cloud Cybersecurity and Data Analytics Certificates will equip our working adult learners with the essential skills to move forward and succeed in today’s cloud-driven market.” – Frank Dooley, Chancellor of Purdue Global 

Take the next steps to upskill and identify cloud-skilled talent  

We’re helping to prepare new-to-industry talent for the most in-demand cloud jobs, expanding access to these opportunities globally, and pioneering a skills-based hiring effort with employers eager to hire them. Here’s how you can get started:

Learners: Preview the courses and certificates on Google Cloud YouTube and earn the full credential on Google Cloud Skills Boost to give yourself a headstart in the race to hire AI talent.  

Higher education institutions and government / nonprofit workforce programs: Apply today to skill up your workforce at no cost. 

Employers: Express interest to become a Google Cloud Affiliate Employer and be considered for our skills-based hiring pilot to connect with cloud-skilled talent.

1. LinkedIn, Future of Work Report (2023)
2. CompTIA Survey (Feb 2024)
3. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024)
4. (ISC)2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study (2022)
5.  U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024)
6. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024)
7. The Google Cloud Certificates offer a recommendation from the American Council on Education® of up to 10 college credits.