Nokia today announced that its certified training program in mobile software application development has been expanded to include Nokia Certified Training Centers in Finland, Korea and Australia, as well as California. Launched last year in Asia and more recently expanded to North America and Europe, the training program is now offered in 11 countries around the world. Professional training companies joining the program include FCS Partners (Finland), Hampex (Korea), Object Training (Australia) and IS Inc. (California).
The program's curriculum has also been expanded. Developed by Nokia in conjunction with select professional training companies, the courses are designed around Nokia's Developer Platforms - basic technical specifications that unite groups of devices, creating common platforms for developers. Augmented by Nokia tools, knowledge and other materials, the curriculum now features eight modular course topics, including new additions which debut this month, such as Series 80 C++ 2.0, MMS, and Nokia UIs and Usability.
"The volume opportunities created by Nokia's Developer Platforms are helping draw record numbers of developers into the mobile space," said Hamad Rashid, manager, Developer Training, Nokia Mobile Software. "Mobile is one of the hottest areas of growth in software development right now. Our training program is playing an integral role for many developers as they expand their skill set to include the mobile arena."
The number of students participating in Nokia developer training is expected to double this year as interest in mobile software continues to grow around the world. Enterprise developers in particular have shown strong interest in the program - the majority of students thus far have been corporate attendees. Following the extension of the training program into Korea, Samsung plans to enroll 600 of its employees in the classes.
Following the expansion announced today, Nokia training is now available in the United States, Germany, Italy, Spain, Finland, Austria, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and Hong Kong. Also announced today, a self-study kit will be available from Nokia during the second half of 2004. This will give students in countries without a Nokia Certified Training Center the opportunity to benefit from the valuable information taught in the classes.
