Generative AI: Prompt Engineering Basics Course Syllabus

Overview: This course provides a comprehensive introduction to prompt engineering with generative AI, designed for beginners. You'll explore core concepts of Large Language Models (LLMs), learn essential and advanced prompting techniques, and gain hands-on experience using leading AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Bard. Through practical exercises and a final project, you’ll develop skills to optimize AI-generated content for real-world applications in writing, problem-solving, and business. Estimated time to complete: 15-20 hours.

Module 1: Introduction to Generative AI & LLMs

Estimated time: 2 hours

• Understand the fundamentals of Generative AI
• Learn how Large Language Models (LLMs) generate human-like text
• Explore differences between GPT models, Claude, and other AI tools
• Discover real-world applications of AI-powered text generation

Module 2: Prompt Engineering Fundamentals

Estimated time: 4 hours

• Learn how prompts shape AI responses
• Identify types of prompts: instructional, role-based, and contextual
• Practice writing effective prompts for improved output quality
• Experiment with basic techniques across ChatGPT, Claude, and Bard

Module 3: Advanced Prompting Strategies

Estimated time: 5 hours

• Master zero-shot and few-shot prompting techniques
• Apply chain-of-thought prompting for complex reasoning
• Guide AI responses for specific industries and use cases
• Optimize prompts for concise, informative, and creative outputs

Module 4: Practical Applications & Ethical Considerations

Estimated time: 5 hours

• Apply prompt engineering to content creation and coding
• Solve real-world problems using AI interactions
• Learn best practices to reduce AI biases and misinformation
• Understand ethical usage and responsible deployment of generative AI

Module 5: Capstone Project: Optimizing AI Prompts

Estimated time: 6 hours

• Create customized prompts for real-world scenarios
• Experiment with prompt structures to improve AI efficiency
• Develop a portfolio showcasing your prompt engineering skills

Prerequisites

• Basic computer literacy
• Familiarity with web-based applications
• No prior AI experience required

What You'll Be Able to Do After

• Understand how generative AI and LLMs work
• Write effective prompts to improve AI-generated responses
• Apply advanced techniques like chain-of-thought and few-shot prompting
• Use prompt engineering in business, writing, and problem-solving contexts
• Recognize ethical limitations and responsibly use AI-generated content