AI-Ready California
AI-Ready California
Gain the AI skills every professional needs—in just a few hours, and at no cost.
Free, online AI literacy training designed to help Californians confidently and responsibly use AI at work, in school and throughout their careers.
Earn an AI literacy microcredential from San Diego State University
- Free statewide program
- 100% online and self-paced
- Complete in about 2–4 hours
Program Benefits:
- Stay competitive in an AI-powered workplace.
- No technical background required: Start with AI basics and move into applied activities.
- Learn practical AI skills you can use immediately: Explore AI for writing, communication, productivity, job search, workplace tasks, and more.
- Free. Fully online. Self-paced.
- Complete the program in just a few hours.
- Earn a sharable AI literacy microcredential.
Overview
AI-Ready California is a fully online, free program designed to meet the growing demand for AI skills in California workplaces. Learners don’t need any coding or technical skills to be able to succeed–just a curiosity and desire to understand what AI is, use AI tools responsibly, and apply practical AI skills with better judgment for greater success.
AI-Ready California is a first-in-the-nation statewide pilot developed through the California State University-Industry AI Workforce Acceleration Board in partnership with SDSU, the California Labor & Workforce Development Agency, California Community Colleges, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Instructure.
The program features fully online, self-paced coursework that allows for total flexibility. You’ll be able to learn the basics about how AI systems work, ethical considerations, and how to use AI for a number of tasks.
Curriculum for the program is designed with the help of employer engagement, ensuring that what you learn aligns with current workplace needs. Upon completion of the program, you will earn an AI literacy microcredential from San Diego State University that you can use to strengthen your resume, bolster your LinkedIn profile and demonstrate your new AI literacy and capabilities.
Is This Program Right for Me?
This program is designed with AI beginners in mind. Whether you have limited experience with AI prompts, or have never touched an AI chatbot before, this program is a great way to get started.
Working professionals seeking new skills. Professionals in any field can benefit from learning more about how to utilize AI in their work.
Learners who want to use AI effectively. Al tools can help with a variety of tasks, but it’s important to understand how to use them ethically and responsibly.
Adult learners balancing work and life. The program is broken down into short, accessible learning units that allow for you to complete them on your own time, from anywhere.
What Will I Learn?
The AI-Ready California program will teach you about:
- The Foundations of AI: how AI systems work, data basics
- Ethical Considerations: bias, environmental impact, privacy, responsible use
- AI Use in Job Searches: resume building, interview preparation, job matching tools
- AI Use in the Workplace: writing, communication, task automation
What Will I Be Able to Do?
After completing the program, you will know how to:
- Use AI responsibly and ethically
- Improve workplace productivity
- Recognize risks, including bias and misinformation
- Understand how AI works and better evaluate AI-generated information
- Use AI with confidence
You will gain future-of-work skills that will help you succeed in an increasingly AI-driven workforce and pick up some civic good use practices to help ensure your use of AI is responsible and ethical.
FAQS
No, AI-Ready California is designed for learners with little to no previous experience with AI.
This program is completely free.
The learning goals of the program focus on giving you a foundational understanding of AI systems, necessary ethical considerations, and how to use these tools for job searches, as well as in the workplace.
The program is self-paced and you’re able to complete it on your own schedule, but you should expect to take two to four hours to complete the program.
Upon completion, you’ll receive a foundational AI literacy microcredential.
Increasingly, employers across sectors value professionals who can use AI responsibly and to improve productivity, solve problems more efficiently and adapt to rapidly changing technologies. AI-Ready California offered through SDSU helps you to meet these emergent workplace demands.
San Diego State University has been a national leader in AI education through research, workforce training and responsible AI implementation. AI-Ready California builds on years of work developing AI curriculum, conducting AI research and helping students, faculty and professionals use AI effectively and ethically while connecting students through SDSU Global Campus, which offers hundreds of undergraduate, graduate, and advanced certificate programs in an online and/or hybrid modality.