AWS AI & ML Scholarship - Everything you need to know

The official website contains almost everything about the scholarship. But I will tell you more in this blog post as a recipient of the Summer Scholarship 2023.

What is AWS AI & ML scholarship?

The AWS Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) Scholarship program, in collaboration with Udacity, aims to help underserved and underrepresented high school and college students learn foundational ML concepts to prepare them for careers in AI and ML.

Each year, 2,500 scholarships are awarded to students seeking to learn and apply ML skills. Recipients will receive Udacity Nanodegree scholarships, mentorship, and career development opportunities by opting into the scholarship program on AWS DeepRacer Student.

This scholarship from AWS (Amazon Web Services) provides you with an opportunity to enroll in a Nanodegree Program by Udacity which is worth ₹58257. This is great, right?

What is the timeline?

The scholarship has two cohorts: the Summer Cohort, which begins in June, and the Winter Cohort, which begins in October. The application process opens about five months before each cohort. For instance, the application for the Summer Cohort of 2023 opened on February 2nd, 2023. The selected candidates received an email on June 12th and the cohort started on June 14th.

How to apply?

Now, let’s get to the most important question and the reason why you are reading this blog post.

There are three simple steps:

1. Complete the learning modules on the AWS Deep Racer Student platform. You will be automatically redirected to this platform when you start applying through the scholarship website.

2. Train a reinforcement learning model on the same platform and compete in the AWS DeepRacer Student League Season. Qualify the criteria for the race.

3. After finishing the first two tasks on time, you will be pre-qualified for the scholarship and receive a code. Use this code to complete the application form.

Done!!

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More details about each step

1. Learning modules

   Lesson 1: Introduction to machine learning

   In this lesson, you will learn the fundamentals of the machine learning (ML) process and explore case studies using ML. When finished, you will understand when and how machine learning can be used to solve a problem.

   Level: Beginner

   Estimated time required: 10 Hours

   No. of chapters: 12

   You have to finish these learning modules. They are really easy and fun, I promise.

2. AWS DeepRacer Student League

   Race against other students at the national, regional, and global levels every month to earn points, prizes, and bragging rights!

   You will see some races on the Deep Racer platform. You need to join the race that is mentioned on the scholarship website. Train your model on the same track. It is an unsupervised model that should run on the racing track without going off-track. You also need to meet the criteria of the race and try to get a good rank, this may increase your chances of getting the scholarship.

   Know more about training the Deep Racer model here.

3. Application form

   Once you are pre-qualified (the confetti on the home page looks very satisfying), you can start filling out your application. There you will have to submit your personal and educational details as well as an essay on "Through this program, I hope to accomplish..." or something similar. Essays are usually a key factor for an application, and I believe this program is no exception. So, make sure you write your essays with care.

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What do you get from this scholarship?

Once you get the scholarship, you can enroll in the AI Programming with Python Nanodegree program by Udacity. This is a self-paced program that takes near about 15 to 19 weeks to complete. Check out the syllabus here.

You will also have a session lead throughout the program, who will conduct weekly sessions with a small group of 8-10 batchmates. This is one of the best parts of the cohort, the leads are industry specialists and very helpful. You will get to learn a lot from the sessions.

The Nanodegree program has two projects that you need to complete to graduate. The projects are very cool and you will get to explore machine learning concepts and their real-world applications.

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I hope this blog post has given you a clear idea of how to apply for the scholarship and what to expect from the program. If you are interested in learning AI and Python, don’t miss this opportunity. Apply now and join the community of learners and leaders. Good luck!