Question 1

When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?

Accepted Answer

Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:

Question 2

What will I get if I purchase the Certificate?

Accepted Answer

When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.

Question 3

Is financial aid available?

Accepted Answer

Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can't afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you'll find a link to apply on the description page.

Question 4

Do I need to know how to program or have studied computer science in order to take this course?

Accepted Answer

No, definitely not! This course is intended for anyone who has an interest in approaching problems more systematically, developing more efficient solutions, and understanding how computers can be used in the problem solving process. No prior computer science or programming experience is required.

Question 5

How much math do I need to know to take this course?

Accepted Answer

Some parts of the course assume familiarity with basic algebra, trigonometry, mathematical functions, exponents, and logarithms. If you don't remember those concepts or never learned them, don't worry! As long as you're comfortable with multiplication, you should still be able to follow along. For everything else, we'll provide links to references that you can use as a refresher or as supplemental material.

Question 6

Does this course prepare me for the Master of Computer and Information Technology (MCIT) degree program at the University of Pennsylvania?

Accepted Answer

This course will help you discover whether you have an aptitude for computational thinking and give you some beginner-level experience with online learning. In this course you will learn several introductory concepts from MCIT instructors produced by the same team that brought the MCIT degree online.

Question 7

Where can I find more information about the Master of Computer and Information Technology (MCIT) degree program at the University of Pennsylvania?

Accepted Answer

Use these links to learn more about MCIT:

Computational Thinking for Problem Solving

Course Features

Course Description

Module 1: Pillars of Computational Thinking

Module 2: Expressing and Analyzing Algorithms

Module 3: Fundamental Operations of a Modern Computer

Module 4: Applied Computational Thinking Using Python

Course FAQs