In December 2020, Bitcoin Association launched Bitcoin SV Academy – a dedicated online education platform for Bitcoin, offering academia-quality, university-style courses and learning materials. CoinGeek’s Becky Liggero was one of the first to enrol and complete the certified introductory Bitcoin Theory course.
Bitcoin Association’s Liz Louw sat down with Liggero to get her feedback on the experience.
Becky Liggero reviews Bitcoin SV Academy’s Bitcoin theory certificate course
Becky Liggero’s professional background
Becky Liggero has been working in the iGaming industry for over 15 years. As an experienced reporter on the gambling industry, she’s confidently interviewed just about every one of the head honchos in her field. Around 2013, her employer, Calvin Ayre, started taking an interest in Bitcoin. 'We’re talking about the days of Roger Ver and Charlie Shrem. They were starting to attend gambling industry events to introduce using Bitcoin for payments and trustless gaming,' Liggero says.
'They never went into the details of the tech. It was very much like learning about this magic technology that does magical things,' she adds. Although she didn’t have a technical background in Bitcoin, when Calvin acquired CoinGeek.com in August 2017 Liggero was tasked with interviewing people about the technology for CoinGeek.com readers.
'In gambling, I could talk to people of any level of expertise and position. In Bitcoin, I didn’t really know anything about the field. It was a big hit to my self-esteem,' Liggero admits. Although her role had started demanding a deeper knowledge of Bitcoin, she didn’t have the bandwidth to tackle it on her own and figure things out.
'I hadn’t read the Bitcoin white paper, and I didn’t even really know where to start,' she says. Between 2019 and 2020, Liggero took a break from doing CoinGeek-related interviews. When she returned to CoinGeek.com in 2021, her employer encouraged her to dig into Bitcoin theory basics by taking the Bitcoin SV Academy's online course.
On her professional and personal motivations for undergoing the Bitcoin course
'Around the Christmas holidays, Calvin spoke to me. He said that there was so much happening in the Bitcoin space that the gambling industry should really know about,' Liggero says. Though her organisation allowed her to integrate the course into her work-day, she is confident that you could complete it on your own time - in the evening or over weekends. She recommends that students aim to complete the Bitcoin Theory course within a month or two, but feels that it would be ideal to condense it into as short a period as possible.
'My time at university was one of the most pleasant periods of my life.' Liggero thinks back fondly to days spent at the library and studying towards exams. Given her love of learning, she turned the task of completing the Bitcoin theory course into a personal challenge.
'I had been warned that the course wasn’t a joke, so I knew I had to understand the content before moving from one session to the next. I wanted to do well on the final assessment,' she says. Although she reached out to friends in the industry to discuss some of the course material, the Bitcoin SV Academy offers students methods for reaching out to clarify the content.
Feedback on the Bitcoin Theory course material
Liggero assumed that the Bitcoin Theory course would entail attending lectures but was glad to discover that all of the modules’ content was available in written format. 'I find it easier to absorb technical content when it’s written. Some sections are more difficult than others, so I could stop and reread each one until I was ready to move on.'
'There are some videos, but everything is written as well,' she adds, referring to the recap videos at the end of each section.
On preparing and acing the final assessment
To prepare for the final assessment, Liggero recommends taking detailed notes as you work through the material, following up on questions you get wrong on the end of module quizzes, and studying your notes and the course material before taking it on. 'It might be tempting to just skim through the material, hoping to guess the answer in the multiple-choice questions, but that would defeat the point of deepening your understanding about Bitcoin.'
'There are no trick questions, but some of them require you to fill in the blanks. Those are the time-consuming ones,' she warns. Though you are given unlimited attempts to pass the final assessment, Liggero passed with flying colours on her first try!
Are you thinking of getting Bitcoin certified?
Liggero is excited to recommend the Bitcoin SV Academy to others, regardless of their background or profession. 'I'm not a developer. I'm not a diehard Bitcoin industry person. I'm a gambling industry veteran. So if I can do this, you guys can do this. It's fun.'
'My dad taught me the importance of staying on top of the latest technology. Learning about Bitcoin allows you the opportunity to discover something that's going to be truly gigantic.' Liggero points to the mainstream media’s portrayal of Bitcoin as all about trading and getting rich overnight, which gives you little idea of the technology’s real potential.
That’s why she would recommend the course to anyone with interest in Bitcoin, whether your goal is to understand how it could affect your industry or you simply want to be able to talk about it at dinner parties or your next job interview.
'It's a great thing to understand, no matter where you are or what you're doing. And to have an opportunity to have it organised for you for free is awesome.'
Ready to get Bitcoin-certified?
Bitcoin SV Academy courses allow you to adapt the curriculum to your life. You can learn at any time convenient for you. They are self-paced, so you can go as fast as you want or as slow as you need. The engaging platform creates an exciting and connected experience wherever you are in the world.
If you are ready to learn about the design of Bitcoin and how economic incentives drive the development of the network, sign up for a free account now.
