Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to start learning? Follow these easy steps to learn in-demand skills that equip you for today’s workplace.

1. Select the learning pathway you’d like to complete, such as Digital Literacy and Productivity. You will be routed to a LinkedIn Learning website where each course in the learning pathway is available.
2. Sign in with your LinkedIn account.
3. Start learning.

You will need a LinkedIn account to participate in the AI Skill-A-Thon. Don’t have a LinkedIn account? Follow these steps to register for a free LinkedIn account. 

1. Select the learning pathway you’d like to complete, such as Digital Literacy and Productivity. You will be routed to a LinkedIn Learning website where each course in the learning pathway is available.
2. Go to Sign In → Join Now. Do not select Start Free Trial.
3. Add your email address, create a password, and select Agree and Join. 
4. Enter your first and last name.
5. Proceed through LinkedIn’s Verification check, which makes sure you are a real person.
6. Type in the code from your confirmation email. Select Agree & Confirm.
7. You will be redirected to the LinkedIn Learning pathway you selected.

You don’t have to register for LinkedIn to complete each learning pathway. However, registering for LinkedIn provides you with exposure to job opportunities. It also allows you to earn credentials that are visible on your LinkedIn account and demonstrate proficiency in your newly acquired skills.

All Community Skills Initiative courses are free. At no point should you enter a credit card. If you hit a paywall that won't allow you to take a quiz, make sure you have signed up for a free LinkedIn account (see How do I set up a free LinkedIn account in the FAQ above for more detail). Please ensure the course you're taking is part of the Community Skills Initiative, as courses outside of our platform may not be free and won’t count toward the AI Skill-A-Thon. If you are still having trouble after taking these steps, try asking for assistance through LinkedIn's help chat.

CSI offers 16 English learning pathways with 191 courses, and 11 Spanish learning pathways with 151 courses for this AI Skill-A-Thon.

A total of 578 points are available for the English pathways and courses, and 304 points for Spanish pathways and courses.

View the full list of courses and pathways here.

Yes, but you cannot earn more than a total of the max points available in a single language, which is 578 points in English.

Anyone can access the learning pathways and earn certificates. However, AI Skill-A-Thons are being hosted by 5 organizations across the country. Only people who live in the service area of each organization and are at least 16 years old can register for the AI Skill-A-Thon. Scroll down to the "Find a partner" drop down at the bottom of any Community Skills Initiative page to see if there is an organization hosting an AI Skill-A-Thon near you.

For each course and learning pathway you successfully complete, you will receive a certificate of completion or Career Essentials Certificate through LinkedIn. To earn points, you must complete a two-step process:

1. Download every certificate you earn from LinkedIn.

2. Upload every certificate you earn to the Community Skills Initiative website using the Submit Your Credential form on your local AI Skill-A-Thon page.

To earn points for the AI Skill-A-Thon, you need to download your certificates of completion from LinkedIn. Then, you will upload these certificates to the Community Skills Initiative website. Here’s how to download your certificates.

1. As soon as you complete a course, you will be prompted to get your certificate. Click on your LinkedIn Learning Certificate. You will be prompted to post your certificate or Download Certificate Only. Click download and save the pdf to your desktop, where it can later be submitted to the CSI website in order to get credit for that coursework. You may also choose to post your completion of the certificate to your LinkedIn profile allowing you to share your accomplishments on your profile.

2. To download a certificate of completion for a course at a later date, log in to your LinkedIn account, click view profile, and scroll down to “Licenses and Certificates” where you can view completed coursework and pathways. Click on “Show Credential” for the course that you want to download. This will bring you to your LinkedIn Learning account with the certificate displayed. Click “Go to Course”. Click “Certificates” then click “LinkedIn Learning Certificate”. From here you will be prompted to post your certificate to LinkedIn or Download Certificate Only. Click download pdf and save the pdf to your desktop, where it can later be submitted to the CSI website in order to get credit for that course.

3. To download a certificate of completion for a learning pathway at a later date, log in to your LinkedIn account, click view profile and scroll down to “Licenses and Certificates” where you can view completed coursework and pathways. Click on “Show Credential” for the pathway that you want to download. This will bring you to your LinkedIn Learning account with the completed pathway of interest. Next, click “Download Certificate”, which will download a pdf certificate for that pathway to your browser. Now you can save the pdf to your desktop and where it can later be submitted to the CSI website in order to get credit for that pathway.

To earn points for the AI Skill-A-Thon, you must upload you Career Essentials Certificates, certificates of completion, or professional certificates to the Community Skills Initiative website.

To do this, go to AI Skill-A-Thon, then scroll to Submit Certificates. Select the CSI partner you registered with. Select your competition category and enter the competition ID that was emailed to you at the time of your CSI AI Skill-A-Thon registration. Enter your first name, and enter your last name. Enter the email address you used to register for the AI Skill-A-Thon.

Enter the competition category. You can select from Pathway if you completed an entire learning pathway, those are worth 10 points. Or, you could enter a course for individual courses, which are worth one point. With exception of AI courses, which are worth 10 points per course.

Enter the exact course name on the certificate. I recommend looking at your downloaded certificate, highlighting the name, and copying and pasting the name of the course into the course name category. Next, look at the completion date, and enter this completion date. You must choose a date between September 1, 2024, which is a start of the AI Skill-A-Thon, and September 30th, 2024, which is the end of the AI Skill-A-Thon. Any certificates with a date other than those dates will not be accepted.

Also, enter your certificate ID, which can be found at the bottom of the certificate. Again, it's easier to copy the whole ID, paste it into the submission form, and delete the unnecessary information. Next, attach your certificate. You will have to scroll up to see the drag and drop form. Drag and drop you certificate into the upload form. Select upload, and then review the form to make sure that you haven't missed any important information.

Once you're sure everything is correct, select submit. You will receive a thank you for submitting the form, and you will be sent a copy of the form that you submitted via email.

Yes, quizzes and exams are part of learning pathways and individual courses. You must complete chapter quizzes in order to earn certificates of completion for courses, and you must complete an exam in order to earn Career Essentials Certificates and professional certificates for most learning pathways.

• Courses teach content related to a specific in-demand skill.
• Learning pathways are a series of related courses that can be completed to earn a Career Essentials Certificate or professional certificate.
• Certificates of completion are awarded when a participant completes a course. Participants will download their certificates of completion from LinkedIn Learning and upload them to the CSI website during the AI Skill-A-Thon competition. ‍
• Career Essentials Certificates and professional certificates can be earned at the end of the learning pathway after taking an assessment.

Winners of the 2024 AI Skill-A-Thon will be notified by mid October.

The total number of certificates you've submitted is documented in a chart at the bottom of every submission confirmation email.

If you think a certificate is missing from this chart, contact your local program manager. They can review your total submissions and make sure all your certificates are accounted for.

Also, make sure that you copy and paste your competition ID correctly into every submission form. Even an extra space or misplaced hyphen can cause the certificate submission chart to display incorrectly.

Content will be available until at least September 2025 so that you can keep learning even after the AI Skill-A-Thon ends.