Learn the Internet of Things and Explore the Future of IoT Systems

The Internet of things (IoT) is a new approach to the world around us. Learning IoT, you can contribute to remaking the world into a more modern, more high-tech, and more automated version of itself. The replacement of older methods with the Internet of things has various material benefits, such as energy-saving smart homes and autonomous vehicles. 

As you can imagine, it takes a lot of human capital to bring this modernized and more comfortable world into being. If you’re curious about the Internet of things and IoT courses, this article will give you the tools you need to learn about this life-changing technology and help realize its possibilities for the future of humanity. 

What Is IoT?

The Internet of things (IoT) is an ecosystem of interconnected objects that share data through Wi-Fi or other wireless networks without the need for any human interaction. With the greater availability of more efficient, more powerful, and faster sensors, it has become easier than ever to connect devices.

There will be more than 27.1 billion connected IoT devices by 2021. IoT has become a cheap and effective means of merging devices together and making them work in sync. Home automation systems work on this principle to help people save time. Other common examples of IoT devices include smartwatches and smart glasses.

What Jobs Use IoT?

The demand for IoT engineers has increased tremendously in recent years, and it will only grow further as our expanded interconnectivity changes the way we work with computers, conduct business, and transfer data. Individuals with a good understanding of such things have several options for jobs.

• IoT Engineer. This is the most obvious job title for someone with knowledge of the Internet of Things. An IoT engineer works with both hardware and software to make sure that all the devices are connected securely and are efficiently transferring data with low latency. 
  
  
• Software Engineer. Sometimes software needs to collect its data from multiple sources, and a good software engineer should understand IoT well enough to deal with the nuanced mechanics of collecting data across different sensors and devices.
  
  
• Data Analyst. One of the functions of IoT systems is to generate and analyze information. The data generated from different sensors is subjected to analysis, and a data analyst is needed to examine data sets of different sizes, filter out irrelevant data, and use what’s left to make actionable insights.
  
  
• Data Security Specialist. Everything being connected to the Internet has huge implications for our information security. With hackers on the prowl, we need folks who can protect our IoT devices from attack.
  
  

Steps to Learn IoT

IoT is easy to learn, with educational resources on the topic in abundant supply. But in case you’re at a loss about where to get started, we’ve got you covered. Use this step-by-step guide to learn IoT from scratch and master the Internet of things in no time. 

Step 1: Find Resources

The first step is to gather good resources to learn from. With nothing more than an Internet connection, you can find free or low-cost online courses on Udemy and Udacity, or you can watch a free tutorial on YouTube. To accelerate the learning process, you can pair the video lectures with one of the great books that have been written about IoT.

Step 2: Take Up Small Projects

Perhaps the most important step is to learn by doing. Try to apply what you’ve learned from online courses and books with a self-guided project. One example of an IoT project is to build an application that collects data from sensors. From there, you can move your way up to more complex projects. 

By taking up projects of increasing difficulty, you can practice old skills and develop new ones at the same time. This practical method is the fastest way to learn anything. No course or book can compete with this kind of hands-on experience.

Step 3: Take Part in Hackathons

You can improve your efficiency and get a better understanding of IoT by taking part in a hackathon. Hackathons are coding competitions that help you gauge where you stand in relation to other programmers. The pressure of these competitions, moreover, simulates the stress of working in a real-world, IoT workplace. 

Step 4: Earn a Certificate

Other than being proof of your skills and experience, certificates add a lot of weight to your resume. By passing an exam and earning a certificate, you will have more credibility when it comes time to apply for IoT jobs. Getting that first job is the only real way to become a professional IoT engineer, so you should take advantage of every edge you can find.

The Best Online IoT Courses

Since IoT is a budding field, it should come as no surprise that there are courses available at every level, from beginner to advanced. To save you the trouble of looking for Internet of things courses, we have compiled some of the best ones below.

An Introduction to Programming The Internet Of Things (IoT)

• Provider: University of California, Irvine (Coursera) 
• Level: Beginner
• Duration: Self-paced
  
  

Offered by the Division of Continuing Education at UCI, this course covers everything from design to deployment. With an emphasis on embedded systems, it teaches students how to use Arduino and Raspberry Pi to develop a system of interconnected smart devices. No prior experience with IoT is necessary, and you’re free to learn at your own pace.

Complete Guide to Build IoT from Scratch to Market

• Provider: Udemy
• Level: Beginner 
• Duration: 5 hours
  
  

This is one of the best courses available on Udemy for learning the Internet of things. You don’t need a background in technology to take this course, and in it you will learn how to build IoT devices using Arduino, C and C++, and Arduino IDE.

Intel Edge AI for IoT Developers Nanodegree 

●       Provider: Udacity 

●       Level: Intermediate 

●       Duration: 3 months,10 hours per week 

This course explores cutting-edge AI applications for the Internet of things. The nanodegree program is set up for you to master the Intel Distribution of OpenVINO Toolkit, which you will use to investigate the role that computer vision and deep learning will play in IoT’s future.

Internet Of Things MicroMasters Program

• Provider: Curtin University (edX) 
• Level: Expert
• Duration: 10 months, 4-6 hours per week
  
  

This curriculum, which comes with a certificate of completion, is actually a series of six advanced courses. Think like a graduate student as you learn how to design your own cutting-edge IoT project.

Why Learn IoT?

Every single device connected to the Internet contributes to the ecosystem of IoT. Looking at the current tech-scene, it’s safe to say that this technology is future-proof. From smartphones, to smartwaches, to smart cities, everything is connected through the magic of IoT. That being the case, why wouldn’t you learn the Internet of things? 

IoT is here to stay and is unlikely to die out like other technologies. If you’re not convinced, then just read the signals in the free market, according to which the average salary for an IoT engineer is a whopping $117,000. Considering the skill-to-pay factor, IoT is one of the best career investments you could possibly make.