Google Ireland and Bank of Ireland have teamed up to offer up to 10,000 fully funded scholarships for the Google AI Professional Certificate. The program is open to Bank of Ireland SME customers and their staff.
The scholarships are delivered through the Grow with Google program and hosted on Coursera. There are no fees and no previous AI experience required.
Vanessa Hartley, VP of EMEA LCS and Head of Google Ireland, announced the partnership on LinkedIn. She said it was designed to give businesses practical AI skills for day-to-day use, not "heavy theory."
The certificate covers seven courses and takes less than 10 hours to complete in full. Each module takes around one hour and can be done at the learner's own pace, online and asynchronously.
What the Course Covers
The program starts with AI Fundamentals, which introduces key AI concepts and prompting basics. From there, learners move into practical workplace skills.
Later modules cover research using tools like Deep Research and NotebookLM. Learners are shown how to generate summaries, test ideas and support decision-making.
The writing and communication module helps workers turn rough notes into clear messages for different audiences. It also covers preparing for presentations and anticipating questions.
A content creation module covers images, video and presentations. The data analysis course introduces visualization, formulas and using Gemini inside Google Sheets.
The final module focuses on app building, introducing what the course calls "vibe coding." This lets non-technical employees build simple custom tools for repetitive tasks without writing code.
What Businesses Get
Participants who complete all seven courses receive a Google certificate. The scholarship also includes 90 days of access to Google AI Pro at no cost.
Hartley said the package comes with a digital toolkit built to help businesses automate invoices, admin and correspondence. The toolkit is described as "ready to use" for business owners.
ThinkBusiness, which published an FAQ about the program, called it "a direct investment in national digital literacy" with "no hidden fees or catch."
The course is designed for non-technical professionals and uses everyday language throughout. No coding or computer science background is needed to take part.
Registration is open now to eligible Bank of Ireland SME customers and takes under two minutes to complete. Up to 10,000 licenses are available for businesses and their staff.
