Blockchain is gaining a lot of attention lately because it seems to have the potential to change the ways the data is handled, and also change the ways of conducting business. After the success of bitcoins, blockchain has proven itself to be extensively versatile and secure, that it’s being used by enterprises in a variety of industries.
It has been predicted that by 2023, global spending on blockchain solutions will increase from $1.5 billion in the year 2018 to $15.9 billion. According to Gartner, it is expected that in the commercial world, the value of blockchain technology will exceed $3 trillion by 2030.
Blockchain is providing incredible career prospects to professionals, especially the recent graduates. There are various forms of learning blockchain today, through online courses, self-made tutorials, and a Blockchain Bootcamp. Bootcamps are a new and effective method of learning Solidity, Ethereum, and Smart Contracts.
As the popularity of bootcamps is rising, we bring to you some of the best bootcamps in the States that you can join to learn blockchain. Before that, let’s give a quick look to what exactly Blockchain is.
What is Blockchain?
- Blockchain is a database that stores information electronically in a digital format.
- It can be used to store different types of information, but till now the most common use has been as a ledger for making transactions.
- Blockchain allows the data to be stored and distributed but cannot be altered, deleted, or destroyed. Thus, it guarantees the fidelity and security of a record of data.
- It is different from a typical database because of the way the data is structured. In spite of using tables, it stores the data collectively in a block, which is then closed and attached to a chain of blocks.
- It is a decentralized database that is managed by multiple participants and thus is also known as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT).
That was a simple way of understanding blockchain if you are reading about it for the first time.
Currently, blockchain technology is most commonly used as a digital ledger for transactions, thus many financial firms, insurance agencies, investment banks, etc. are harnessing blockchain to conduct their business.
Even institutes are teaching blockchain along with other financial technologies, through FinTech courses or short courses on blockchain and cryptocurrency. Simplilearn Online Bootcamp is one such example.
Now, let’s check the different blockchain bootcamps in the USA.
Caltech Blockchain Bootcamp – Simplilearn
This is currently the most popular Blockchain bootcamp in the USA as it is being offered by 2 popular names, Simplilearn and Caltech University.
- This blockchain course has been covering multiple aspects of Hyperledger, Ethereum, Ripple, and various other multichain blockchain platforms. It also covers some aspects related to Bitcoin. However, one should understand – “Bitcoin is not Blockchain”. It is just a currency which has been developed using blockchain.
- Caltech has around 46 faculty members with a Nobel Prize till date, thus making this course more worthy and popular.
- Some of the key skills learned here are Cryptography, Distributed Ledgers, Transaction Workflow Networks, and Consensus.
- You get to work on tools like Ethereum, Hyperledger, Fabric, Multichain, Solidity, etc.
- This is currently rates as the #1 blockchain bootcamp course.
Northwestern FinTech Bootcamp – Online
It is a part-time course of 24-weeks, offered by Northwestern University, Chicago through online classes. The application for the boot camp will start on July 6, 2022.
- This boot camp provides all the knowledge one needs to move toward the financial technology industry.
- The curriculum is project-based, thus the students will get hands-on training and experience with popular tools and methods like Python programming, financial libraries, machine learning algorithms, Ethereum, and Blockchain.
- From the Blockchain section, the students will be introduced to Solidity, Ethereum, Smart Contracts, Consensus Algorithms, Transactions, Validation, Distribution Ledger, Cryptocurrency, Truffle Suite, Ganache, etc.
- After completion of this course, students will be able to build an Ethereum blockchain and understand how exactly transactions are validated on a distributed ledger.
Blockchain Fundamentals – UC Berkeley (edX)
It is a 3-month online course offered by UC Berkeley through edX. The students can take the course at their own pace and the fee is nearly $180.
- The course will deal with core topics related to cryptocurrency, including bitcoin and blockchain technology.
- It will help explore the main ideas, technologies, and ecosystem surrounding blockchain technology from both technical and non-technical standpoints.
- The students will learn the key strengths and motivations of DTL and also will understand the underlying mechanisms of how they function.
- They will learn enterprise-level blockchain implementation and understand the struggles of scaling blockchain and potential solutions.
- They will be able to formulate their own informed blockchain mental models, hypotheses, and use cases to understand the industry.
FinTech Boot Camp – UNC Charlotte
It is a part-time course of 24-weeks offered by UNC Charlotte. It is designed to provide students with the knowledge and experience to understand financial technologies and blockchain.
- The students will learn financial theory, tools, and technologies vetted by current practitioners and critical to ongoing competitiveness in the field of finance.
- They will learn programming with popular languages like Python in the financial landscape.
- They will be able to understand how financial institutions are using machine learning, cloud, and database to leverage information.
- They will learn to prepare smart contracts with Solidity and also to build their very own cryptocurrency.
Blockchain Applications Certificate – Duke University
It is a 3-4 month intermediate level course conducted by Duke University through Coursera. The course is offered in an online format and costs a total of $750.
- This course will provide the students with all the knowledge and skills to use blockchain to solve real-world financial market challenges.
- The syllabus will include 3 main topics: Foundation of Blockchain, Transactions on the Blockchain, and Solving Problems with Blockchain.
- Students will learn skills like Machine Learning, Blockchain Technology, Cryptocurrency, Cryptography, Blockchain Applications, Solution Development, Secure Software Development, and Financial Technology Deployment.
Blockchain is one of the fastest growing skill sets and thus there is an increasing demand for blockchain developers. So if you are someone who has a knowledge of programming languages and coding, and knows how to create data structures, then this is a great opportunity. The above-mentioned boot camps will provide all the teachings within 6 months of duration or even less. Blockchain could be difficult to grasp but is totally worth the perseverance.
