Microsoft usually has some interesting announcements at the PASS Summit, and this year was no exception.  I’m writing a set of blogs covering the major announcements.  Next up is the Microsoft Professional Program for Big Data.

A few months back, Microsoft started the Microsoft Professional Program for Data Science (note the program name change from Microsoft Professional Degree to Microsoft Professional Program, or MPP).  This is online learning via edX.org as a way to learn the skills and get the hands-on experience that a data science role requires. Here you can check about best data science courses that can help you to understand become expert of it.   You may audit any courses, including the associated hands-on labs, for free.  However, to receive credit towards completing the data science track in the Microsoft Professional Program, you must obtain a verified certificate for a small fee for each of the ten courses you successfully complete in the curriculum.  The course schedule is presented in a suggested order, to guide you as you build your skills, but this order is only a suggestion.  If you prefer, you may take them in a different order.  You may also take them simultaneously or one at a time, so long as each course is completed within its specified session dates.

Announced at the PASS Summit is the next program, called the Microsoft Professional Program for Big Data.  The Big Data program is still in development, and subject to change.  It will be launched in 2017.  Here is the tentative course list (UPDATE: course list as of 6/30/17):

This is a great set of courses for those of you looking to architect and build big data solutions.  Note you can concentrate on learning Microsoft technologies or take the open source path.

The next program after Big Data is expected to be for Front End Web Development.  There are also many other free courses from Microsoft that you can take at edX (see list).