Project information
WatSPEED provides professional education designed to support the workforce of the future. Programs enable industry professionals to keep pace with emerging technologies and understand their impact on businesses, economies, the environment, and societies. Waterloo is at the forefront of an innovative approach to lifelong learning, helping the leaders of today and tomorrow navigate an ever-changing environment.
Overview
WatSPEED’s offering of the CompTIA Network+ certification is designed for maximum learner value.
- Features:
- Flexibility of independent study with asynchronous support, within cohort-based pacing to maintain learner accountability and maximum return on investment.
- Structured live sessions tailored to the learner group’s needs, ensuring human connection and personalized support.
CompTIA Network+ certification is an information technology (IT) certification exam that verifies professionals have the essential knowledge and skills in networking to develop a career in IT infrastructure. It prepares IT professionals to support networks regardless of the platform, providing the necessary foundation prior to specializing in a vendor solution. CompTIA Network+ is the only industry certification that covers both wired and wireless networks.
CompTIA’s Network+ validates the knowledge and skills needed to troubleshoot, configure and manage wired and wireless networks. CompTIA Network+ certifies a professional-level understanding of emerging technologies, including cloud and virtualization technologies.
CompTIA Network+ prepares candidates for the following job roles:
- Network administrator
- Network field technician
- Junior network administrator
- IT consultant
- Network field engineer
- Computer technician
- Help desk technician
- System engineer
- Network support specialist
- Network analyst
Intended audience and prerequisites
- CompTIA recommends learners have nine - 12 months of early career experience in the IT networking field prior to taking this program.
- For certification course details, please visit CompTIA Network+.
WatSPEED’s bundle includes all learning materials, plus the interactive labs. An exam voucher is included in the learner’s purchase price and will be issued upon completion of the program.
Requirements for interested parties
- Availability for the timeline outlined.
- Demonstrated experience/expertise in the subject and content outlined.
- Experience with CompTIA Network+ is strongly preferred.
- Ideal candidate is working in the industry and can draw explicit parallels from course content to industry applicability with concrete examples.
- Online teaching experience in both synchronous and asynchronous modalities, preferably within a lifelong learning environment.
- Fulfill the teaching duties as outlined to WatSPEED’s satisfaction.
- The absence of any of the above requirements does not exclude anyone from taking part in the project. Selections will be made based on appropriate fit, knowledge/experience, and availability.
Service and remuneration
| Activity | Remuneration |
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This course includes asynchronous and synchronous course instruction. The instructor will fulfil the following requirements:
*To maximize value and personalization, live sessions will not be pre-determined, but rather based on instructor’s observations from course activity and learner needs within the cohort. Supplementary lessons from live sessions must be recorded and posted for those not in attendance. |
Will be based on scope of engagement once identified. |
Start and end date of the project
- The first cohort of this course is expected to start in late January 2025.
- Cohorts will run for eight weeks, with duties expected of the instructor before and after the eight weeks such as preparatory/orientation duties and feedback/reporting/debriefing.
Application process
Applicants are invited to make an expression of interest by responding to this request for expression of interest (REOI) and following the outlined steps:
- Provide an expression of interest along with your resume by email to Marie Lippens mlippens@uwaterloo.ca as soon as possible.
- Be sure to highlight any technical qualifications related to this initiative including experience teaching CompTia's Network+ course as well as synchronous and asynchronous teaching experience.
- Applications will be considered as they are received. This request will remain open until the need is filled.
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Selected parties will be contacted for further information and possible engagement. All Parties expressing interest will be contacted with information on the results of the REOI and any immediate or future involvement with WatSPEED.
Note: If you have candidates from your internal or external network that you would like to nominate for this scope of work or with whom you would like to partner in the development, please highlight this in your expression of interest.
Confidentiality
Subject to the following, the expressions of Interest received in response to this REOI are solely for use by the members involved in the selection. Information provided will be retained by the deciding panel and will not be distributed outside their purview.
Legal/limitations
This REOI does not constitute a solicitation. This request is merely seeking an expression of interest in participating in the service requested.
Response to this request for expression of interest does not automatically ensure that submitting parties will be selected to participate in the subsequent phase of the project.
WatSPEED reserves the right to change or cancel the requirement at any time during the REOI and/or communication process.
Project information
WatSPEED provides professional education designed to support the workforce of the future. Programs enable industry professionals to keep pace with emerging technologies and understand their impact on businesses, economies, the environment, and societies. Waterloo is at the forefront of an innovative approach to lifelong learning, helping the leaders of today and tomorrow navigate an ever-changing environment.
Overview
This is a course authorship opportunity. The WatSPEED Python level 2 course intends to build on comprehensive foundational learning in WatSPEED’s Python level 1 course, and bridge learners into high-value learning programs in back-end development, data science and AI.
Materials and activities/assessments to be authored for WatSPEED’s Python level 2 course will be designed for 100% online asynchronous learning. A custom development in OpenEdX will support superior UX for learners.
The ideal candidate is an expert in computer science, currently active in some industry-connected role related to back-end development, data science and/or AI development.
Intended audience and prerequisites
- Those who have completed WatSPEED’s Python I course and are looking for something more advanced.
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Those who want to move into data science, back-end development, machine learning and need a more solid foundation in python.
Requirements for interested parties
- Availability for the timeline outlined.
- Demonstrated experience/expertise in the subject and content outlined.
- Ideal candidate is working in the industry and can draw explicit parallels from course content to industry applicability with concrete examples.
- Online teaching experience in both synchronous and asynchronous modalities, preferably within a lifelong learning environment is preferred.
- Fulfill the duties as outlined to WatSPEED’s satisfaction.
- The absence of any above requirements does not exclude anyone from taking part in the project. Selections will be made on appropriate fit, knowledge/experience, and availability.
Service and remuneration
| Activity | Remuneration |
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Possible roles in the project. An applicant may express interest in one or both of the following: 1. Collaborate on curriculum development Advised by University of Waterloo faculty experts, Instructional Designers, and Subject Matter Experts in WatSPEED’s related programming (Python Level 1, Data Science, Back-end Development), develop a complete curriculum, course plan and applied projects list for the course to maximize learning value for WatSPEED clients and showcase skills acquired in the course that are personally applicable to the learner. 2. Authorship of the course Following the curriculum, course plan, and projects list, assemble case studies, real world examples, and/or other methods of applied learning strategies to be used in the Course that are industry-connected and relevant to learners. Work directly with WatSPEED’s instructional designer, project manager, and production team to design & author materials, including attending regular project meetings. Scope: Total learner effort in this course is the sum of self-study materials (readings, videos, practice), activities, assessments, and live help sessions. This course will not exceed five learner hours per week, to a maximum of 10 weeks running. Emphasis will be on practical/applied learning (active coding) with automated feedback. Authorship duties include the following tasks, working in close collaboration with an instructional designer and supported by an instructional media developer and learning technologies analyst/QA:
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Will be based on scope of engagement once identified. |
Start and end date of the project
- Curriculum development for this course is ready to begin as soon as a qualified candidate is identified.
- Authorship will follow, with timelines for development expected over Fall 2024 and ending in Winter 2025.
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The first cohort of this course is expected to start in late fall 2024.
Application process
Applicants are invited to make an expression of interest by responding to this request for expression of interest (REOI) and following the outlined steps:
- Provide an expression of interest along with your resume by email to Marie Lippens mlippens@uwaterloo.ca as soon as possible.
- Applications will be considered as they are received. This request will remain open until the need is filled.
-
Selected parties will be contacted for further information and possible engagement. All Parties expressing interest will be contacted with information on the results of the REOI and any immediate or future involvement with WatSPEED.
Note: If you have candidates from your internal or external network that you would like to nominate for this scope of work or with whom you would like to partner in the development, please highlight this in your expression of interest.
Confidentiality
Subject to the following, the expressions of Interest received in response to this REOI are solely for use by the members involved in the selection. Information provided will be retained by the deciding panel and will not be distributed outside their purview.
Legal/limitations
This REOI does not constitute a solicitation. This request is merely seeking an expression of interest in participating in the service requested.
Response to this request for expression of interest does not automatically ensure that submitting parties will be selected to participate in the subsequent phase of the project.
WatSPEED reserves the right to change or cancel the requirement at any time during the REOI and/or communication process.
Project information
WatSPEED provides professional education designed to support the workforce of the future. Programs enable industry professionals to keep pace with emerging technologies and understand their impact on businesses, economies, the environment, and societies. Waterloo is at the forefront of an innovative approach to lifelong learning, helping the leaders of today and tomorrow navigate an ever-changing environment.
Overview
This course introduces the latest techniques, tools and applications of large language models. It will cover the history of natural language processors, the life cycle of large language models, and techniques such as fine-tuning and chain of thought prompting. The course will also cover constitutional AI, using search engines with large language models and inference and deployment.
DETAILS:
- The length of the course is 4 weeks and contains 4 modules.
- An LMS platform will house the course information, module content and quizzes. A discussion board will be housed in Slack requiring instructor monitoring and engagement.
- The practical exercises will be conducted using Google Colab and Open AI and feedback and grading will be required on the learning activities and final assignment.
- There is a 90 min live instructional session each week, in which the main topics and concepts are explained followed by a short Q&A session.
- The purpose of the course is to provide learners with foundational knowledge of large language models and how to apply them for improved performance.
COURSE OUTLINE:
Module 1: Basics of Large Language Models
Module 2: Prompt Engineering and Fine Tuning
Module 3: Picking the Right Tool for the Task
Module 4: Large Language Model in Larger Architectures
Intended audience and prerequisites
Intended audience
- Software engineers, programmers and developers looking to apply Natural Language Processors, machine learning and prompt engineering to their stack
- Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Engineers
- Data Analysts and Data Scientists
Prerequisites
- Proficient in reading and writing code in Python (understanding of different data types and the basics of object-oriented programming).
- Intermediate to advanced experience with data and machine learning Python libraries such as Numpy, Scikit-Learn, and Pandas.
- Comfortable working with web applications and big data.
- Experience working with API endpoints and the ability to write a simple Python code to send requests and parse responses from an endpoind.
Requirements for interested parties
- Broad Requirements
- Availability for the timeline outlined.
- Demonstrated experience/expertise in the subject and content outlined.
- eLearning/online learning experience, preferably within a lifelong learning environment
- Experience with Learning Management Systems (LMS)
- Specific Requirements
- The Subject Matter Expert should be able to provide some guidance and input to both learners and the WatSPEED community while having an in-depth understanding of the course outline, module objectives, learner objectives and outcomes, technology/tools for experiential learning opportunities, and assessment exercises to ensure learners have met criteria for acquiring WatSPEED certification.
- Knowledge in the field of large language models, natural language processors, and python is important. Instructors will be expected to engage in a debrief with WatSPEED staff for the purpose of evaluation and continuous improvement initiatives.
Selections will be made on appropriate fit, knowledge/experience, and availability.
Service and remuneration
Will be based on the scope of engagement once identified.
Start and end date of the project
The start and end date of the course is expected to be between March 2024 and May 2024. Expected involvement in the opportunity would be from just before to just after those identified dates.
Application process
Applicants are invited to make an expression of interest by responding to this REOI and following the outlined steps:
- Provide an expression of interest by email by no later than December 15th, 2024.
- Expressions of Interest must be sent to Edgar Vieira, Program Management Specialist at edgar.vieira@uwaterloo.ca.
- Please fill the form below with as much relevant/applicable information as possible.
- All inquiries relating to this REOI should also be directed to the above-mentioned email address.
Evaluation of submission
- Submissions will be considered as they are received.
- Stakeholders will convene to make selections.
- Selected parties will be contacted for further information and possible engagement.
- All Parties expressing interest will be contacted with information on the results of the REOI and any immediate or future involvement with WatSPEED.
Confidentiality
Subject to the following, the expressions of Interest received in response to this REOI are solely for use by the members involved in the selection. Information provided will be retained by the deciding panel and will not be distributed outside their purview.
Legal/limitations
This REOI does not constitute a solicitation. This request is merely seeking an expression of interest in participating in the service requested.
Response to this request for expression of interest does not automatically ensure that submitting parties will be selected to participate in the subsequent phase of the project.
WatSPEED reserves the right to change or cancel the requirement at any time during the REOI and/or communication process.