Google AI Essentials

Learning plan

About 8 hours of focused study, split into 3 phases. Pick your weekly pace and the timeline adjusts.

Estimated finish: 1 weeks

What the exam covers

Source: official exam guide. Weights can change, so check before you start.

Before you start

• No technical background needed. You only need a Google account and a browser
• A Coursera subscription (about $49/month) or financial aid for the graded assessments and certificate. You can preview the content for free

1. Week 1 · 3 h

   What AI is and what it can do at work (courses 1–2)

   • Explain the difference between AI, machine learning and generative AI, and give one example of each from your own job
   • Pick the right tool for a task (a chatbot like Gemini, a notebook tool like NotebookLM, or AI features built into Docs, Gmail or Sheets)
   • Spot where AI output needs a human check before it is used, such as facts, numbers, names and legal wording

   Hands-on: Pick three recurring tasks from your week (for example drafting a status email, summarising meeting notes and cleaning a spreadsheet). Do each one with an AI tool, time it, and write down what you had to fix by hand.

   Use: Course 1 – Introduction to AI · Course 2 – Maximize Productivity With AI Tools · Gemini

2. Week 1 · 2 h

   Prompting (course 3)

   • Write prompts that give the model a task, context, references and an output format, then iterate on weak answers
   • Use few-shot examples and chained prompts for multi-step work
   • Recognise hallucinations and verify claims against a source

   Hands-on: Upload two or three of your own documents to NotebookLM and ask it five questions. Check every answer against the cited passage, then rewrite one weak prompt with a role, context and output format and compare the results.

   Use: Course 3 – Discover the Art of Prompting · Google prompting strategies guide

3. Week 1 · 3 h

   Responsible use and staying current (courses 4–5)

   • Identify bias, privacy and security risks of using AI at work, and know what data should never go into a public AI tool
   • Apply a simple "human in the loop" check before sharing AI-generated work
   • Set up a habit for following AI developments (newsletters, release notes) and judging new tools quickly
   • Pass every graded quiz to earn the certificate

   Use: Course 4 – Use AI Responsibly · Course 5 – Stay Ahead of the AI Curve · NotebookLM

You're ready to book when…

• You can explain to a colleague what generative AI is and isn't good at, in two minutes
• You have a saved set of at least five prompts you actually reuse at work
• All five courses show as complete, with every graded assessment passed

Exam tips

• The whole program is about 8 hours, so you can finish it inside one billing month and pay $49 only once.