University of Michigan students now have free access to job and skill training through Google.
Students enrolled at the university’s three Michigan campuses can access career certificates and artificial intelligence courses at no cost. The university’s Michigan Center for Academic Innovation is partnering with Google to provide the free courses to more than 66,000 students at the Ann Arbor, Dearborn, and Flint campuses.
Google Career Certificates cover cybersecurity, data analytics, digital marketing, user experience (UX) design, project management, and other topics.
“Designed and taught by Google employees, with input from top employers, each Google Career Certificate includes rigorous tests of mastery,” university officials said in a release.
AI and Prompting Essentials courses cover “foundational AI skills, AI best practices and how to use AI responsibly,” officials said.
The university already partnered with Google on an online course for its Data Analytics Certificate. That course, "Data Analytics in the Public Sector with R," is taught by UM information associate professor Chris Brooks and health policy professor Paula Lantz.
Faculty and students also already have access to AI tools like U-M GPT and Maizey, and Google’s Gemini and NotebookLM.
“This partnership represents a powerful step forward in preparing U-M students to lead and thrive in a dynamic global workforce.,” James DeVaney, the UM center’s founding executive director, said in a statement.
“A Michigan degree plus additional, career-relevant open online courses and Google Career Certificates available at no cost through Michigan Online are a truly unbeatable combination,” DeVaney said.
“Through this partnership, we’re advancing our work to enable UM students to enter the workforce with the skills employers are looking for and accelerate their career potential,” Lisa Gevelber, founder of Grow with Google, said in a statement.
UM students can enroll through Michigan Online, the university’s online learning platform, using their university credentials.
Thousands of free online courses, including 280 created by UM faculty, are available to enrolled students through Michigan Online, according to the university
