Learning Python as a Non-Programmer

If you’re anything like me, then you’ve been trying to learn to code for years. Maybe you signed up for AP Computer Science in high school because all your friends told you it was an easy course (it wasn’t), then years after the trauma subsided, you decided to enroll in an online coding course like Codecademy, thinking it’d help you change careers and become a coder (it didn’t), then tried to download an app to help you practice Python every day (you didn’t).

After 10 years, you’re still a beginner, but you feel like you’ve tried everything. What else can I do?

Well, I’ve got just the course for you - Python for Non-Programmers on Linkedin Learning!

Let me tell you why I love it.

  1. It’s created by an instructor who is self-taught. In his Linkedin Learning bio, Nick Walter mentions that he taught himself to code using YouTube videos and online tutorials. Have you done this too? I know I have, and have found a lot of hard-to-follow information as a beginner. This means he knows our pain!
  2. For each concept, he goes through an example, then provides another practice example for us to complete. At this point, he will say “Pause the video and complete this exercise”. I’ve seen some instructors do this as well, but then, the course ends! There’s nothing afterwards! How am I supposed to know if I did it right, if there’s a better way, or get help if I’m stuck? Not with Nick! He goes on to explain the exercise, and I find these ones to be most valuable for my learning.
  3. He has actually 3 doable projects that relate to the contents previously introduced! And is not a HUGE reach for a real beginner to get there. There are many, many courses for “beginners” that I’ve taken, and after teaching variables, loops, and booleans, jump right into a project like “Determine if input word is palindrome”. Personally, I felt sooo lost. But not with Nick’s mini projects! I felt empowered, and even went further to build on these projects as I went!
  4. He touches on topics that are complex for beginners, like dictionaries and functions, but takes his time explaining them. I don’t feel like the information was glossed over or missing.
  5. Related to this, the topics he touches on are actual cornerstones that further Python is built upon. There’s really little fluff in this course and every topic is vital to Python mastery.

Here's a look into what the course covers:

So I’ve praised this course a lot, but what are the downsides? Well,

  1. He doesn’t have a part II for the course!!! So we have to all take this course, like it, so Nick HAS to continue making these Python courses for Non-Programmers.

If you’re wondering how to get access to Linkedin Learning, see the last section of my post [How I Taught Myself SQL Using LinkedIn Learning] (https://www.kathychiu.com/blog/01-how-i-taught-myself-sql).

If you try out Nick’s course, Python for Non-Programmers, on Linkedin Learning, I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Also, if you have any courses that you’ve taken and helped you solidify your Python learning, please do share! I’m always in the market to continue my learning.