Earning a certification during high school can significantly enhance your profile and give you a competitive edge when applying to college. If you’re keen on exploring computer science or even pursuing it as a career, certifications in the field demonstrate initiative and a proactive attitude toward learning. Certifications showcase your commitment to personal and professional development, which is highly regarded by college admissions officers, employers, and scholarship committees.

A combination of certifications, programs, and courses in your profile shows you’re well-rounded. In the field of computer science, it says you have a strong foundation of knowledge and that you are prepared for higher education and a career in the field. 

We’ve put together a list of 10 computer science certifications you can earn while in high school.

1. Introduction to Python Programming by Georgia Institute of Technology (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $537

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (4 courses) takes 5 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. No prior knowledge is required beyond basic arithmetic. Knowledge of high school-level algebra is desirable.

Note: This certification includes 4 courses, each 4-5 weeks long (5-6 hours a week). You can choose to do one, two, three, or all four. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

Georgia Institute of Technology offers several programs taught online via edX, including the Introduction to Python Programming certification course. In this course, taught by a senior faculty member, you will learn how computers interpret lines of code as well as the process of writing programs, evaluating outputs, and debugging code. By the end of the course, you will be able to create small Python programs that handle complex tasks, such as calculating interest rates, recommending outfits based on the weather, or grading based on percentages. Another certificate course offered by GT that you can consider is Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).

2. Fundamentals of Google AI for Web Based Machine Learning by Google

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $359

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (2 courses) takes 3 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. This is an introductory course, no prior knowledge is required. 

Note: This certification includes 2 courses, one 4 weeks long and the other 7 weeks (3-4 hours a week). You can choose to do one or both. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

This course, taught by Google AI experts, covers Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in a simplified manner. It explores the basics of AI, ML, and how these technologies integrate into our lives. The program focuses on TensorFlow.js, Google's ML library for JavaScript, offering a practical learning experience. It covers diverse topics, from defining AI and understanding its scope to exploring machine learning programming using neural networks. You'll develop skills to build applications using TensorFlow.js models, tackling real-world issues. From filtering spam comments to crafting smart security systems, you'll learn to apply models to solve problems.

3. Computer Science for Artificial Intelligence by Harvard University (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $467

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (2 courses) takes 5 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. No prior knowledge is required.

Note: This certification includes 2 courses, each 7-12 weeks long (6-30 hours a week). You can choose to do one or both. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

Harvard University offers several programs taught online via edX. This course, taught by some of Harvard’s senior faculty, provides a comprehensive learning experience in computer science, programming, and artificial intelligence (AI). It's designed to give you a solid foundation in programming fundamentals and advanced concepts integral to modern AI. You'll start by mastering common programming languages and then explore AI. You'll engage in projects, gaining insights into graph search algorithms, machine learning, reinforcement learning, and other pivotal AI topics. Harvard offers a few more computer science certificate courses worth considering:

• Computer Science for Web Programming

• Computer Science for Game Development

• Computer Science for Python Programming

4. Foundations of AI by IBM

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $268

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (3 courses) takes 4 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. No prior knowledge is required. 

Note: This certification includes 3 courses, each 2-8 weeks long (2-8 hours a week). You can choose to do one, two, or all three. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

This course is for students with no prior experience in AI, computer science, or data science. It's crafted to provide a comprehensive understanding of Artificial Intelligence (AI) basics, applications, and its influence across diverse industries. The program offers insights into AI concepts, applications, and terms like machine learning, deep learning, neural networks, and natural language processing. During the course, you will learn about IBM's Watson AI services, exploring their potential across various business contexts. By the end of the course, you will be able to construct AI-powered chatbots for websites without requiring coding skills.

5. Data Structures and Algorithms by Georgia Institute of Technology (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $537

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (3 courses) takes 5 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. No prior knowledge is required.

Note: This certification includes 4 courses, each 5 weeks long (9-10 hours a week). You can choose to do one, two, three, or all four. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

This course introduces you to data structures and algorithms, two fundamental pillars of effective programming. Designed to give you a deep understanding of various data structures and algorithmic techniques, it covers a wide array of topics, starting from the basics and progressing towards complex applications. You will explore linear data structures like LinkedLists, Stacks, and Queues, gaining insights into your performance and selection criteria for specific scenarios. As the program unfolds, it progresses to nonlinear data structures and their implementations and operations. The course emphasizes time complexity, iterative sorting methods, divide-and-conquer algorithms, and graph traversal strategies. This certificate mirrors Georgia Tech's CS 1332 course.

6. Learning Python for Data Science by Harvard University (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $672

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (3 courses) takes 6 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: No prior knowledge required.

Note: This certification includes 3 courses, each 7-10 (3-9 hours a week). You can choose to do one, two, or all three. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

This online program covers Python programming for data science. Comprised of three courses, this program employs a practical approach to learning. You'll explore Python's fundamentals, from syntax to functions, variables, conditionals, and loops. Moving forward, you'll explore probability, statistics, and data science applications using essential libraries like Pandas, NumPy, Matplotlib, and SKLearn. Led by Harvard faculty, this course gives you statistical knowledge, paving the way for advanced applications in machine learning and AI. It emphasizes applied learning, enabling you to tackle real-world data science challenges.

7. Quantum Computing for Everyone by the University of Chicago (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $359

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (2 courses) takes 3 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. Knowledge of Algebra I is required.

Note: This certification includes 2 courses, each 5 weeks long (3-5 hours a week). You can choose to do one or both. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

This online course introduces quantum computing. It aims to help you intuitively grasp quantum computation's physics, fundamental mathematical operations, and the essentials of programming quantum computers. Prerequisites are limited to basic algebra and programming skills, so it is accessible to pretty much anyone. The program is split into two courses. The initial course concentrates on utilizing one- and two-qubit operations to tackle problems. The second course dives deeper into quantum programming, offering a more comprehensive understanding of quantum programming languages and their role in implementing quantum algorithms. Through a step-by-step approach, you will gain the skills to maneuver quantum operations and apply them in quantum software development.

8. Google Analytics Academy (multiple courses)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: Free.

Dates: Self-paced. Each course takes 4-6 hours to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Some courses are open to beginners, while others require some prior knowledge. 

The Google Analytics Academy is designed for those keen to learn about Google's measurement tools, intelligent data collection, and data analysis. Multiple courses are offered in the academy, differing by difficulty level and subject matter. For example, the Google Analytics for Beginners course introduces the basic features of Google Analytics. It covers how to create an account, implement tracking code, set up data filters, analyze basic reports, and set up goals and campaign tracking. You'll learn how to navigate the Google Analytics interface and reports and set up dashboards and shortcuts.

9. Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming with Java by Georgia Institute of Technology (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $537

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (3 courses) takes 5 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. This is an introductory course, no prior knowledge is required. 

Note: This certification includes 3 courses, each 6 weeks long (5-6 hours a week). You can choose to do one, two, or all three. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

Georgia Institute of Technology offers several programs taught online via edX, including this one. This course, taught by senior faculty, introduces Java programming and object-oriented concepts. During the course, you will cover Java basics – the fundamentals of syntax, including data types, classes, conditionals, loops, arrays, methods, and input/output. You will create your own classes and learn about inheritance, abstract classes, and the Unified Modeling Language (UML). The course will explore interfaces, polymorphism, and algorithms, helping you evaluate them based on runtime complexity. By the end of the course, you will have a solid understanding of Java's foundational concepts and how to apply object-oriented principles effectively.

10. Generative AI with Large Language Models (LLMs) by AWS & DeepLearning.AI

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: Free.

Dates: It is a 3-week program; you can start it at your convenience. 

Eligibility & Prerequisites: Open to everyone. This is an intermediate course, so you should have some experience coding in Python to get the most out of it. You should also be familiar with the basics of machine learning, such as supervised and unsupervised learning, loss functions, and splitting data into training, validation, and test sets. Note: If you have taken the Machine Learning Specialization or Deep Learning Specialization courses by DeepLearning.AI, you’ll be ready to take this course.

Led by AWS AI experts experienced in deploying AI in business, this course focuses on foundational knowledge and practical skills in the latest Generative AI technology. Throughout the course, you'll understand the generative AI lifecycle, from data gathering to deployment and optimizing models for various use cases; you will gain insights into the transformer architecture, training processes, and adapting models for specific tasks; you will apply empirical scaling laws to optimize model performance across different data sizes and resource constraints; and you’ll learn to implement cutting-edge training, tuning, and deployment methods to maximize model efficiency.

Bonus - Virtual Reality (VR) App Development by University of California, San Diego (Online)

Location/Mode: Virtual.

Cost: $268

Dates: Self-paced. The entire certification (3 courses) takes 5 months to complete.

Eligibility & Prerequisites: For this course, students must have a solid C/C++ programming background (or Java), access to a relatively up-to-date computer (Windows, Mac OS, Linux), and have studied high school mathematics.

Note: This certification includes 3 courses, each 6 weeks long (5-12 hours a week). You can choose to do one, two, or all three. Your certification will be based on the courses you’ve completed. 

This online course focuses on Virtual Reality (VR) technology, guiding you through the creation and understanding of VR applications using Unity 3D and OpenGL. The course covers VR devices, software development, and effective 3D interaction techniques essential for successful VR applications. This course offers insights into the workings of VR technology, its hardware components, and the mathematics behind creating compelling VR experiences. You will acquire practical skills to design VR applications and understand the crucial features that contribute to their success. Moreover, the course extends to augmented reality (AR) applications.

These bonus programs are individual programs (not associated with a professional certificate course) in computer science. They do, however, offer a certificate when you complete it.

• Computer Science 101 at StanfordOnline (Stanford University)

• Programming for Everybody (Getting Started with Python) by the University of Michigan

• Introduction to Computer Science and Programming Using Python by MIT (Online)

Lumiere Research Scholar Program

If you are interested in doing university-level research in computer science, then you could also consider applying to the Lumiere Research Scholar Program, a selective online high school program for students founded with researchers at Harvard and Oxford. Last year, over 4000 students applied for 500 spots in the program! You can find the application form here. Also check out the Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation, a non-profit research program for talented, low-income students.

Stephen is one of the founders of Lumiere and a Harvard College graduate. He founded Lumiere as a PhD student at Harvard Business School. Lumiere is a selective research program where students work 1-1 with a research mentor to develop an independent research paper.

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