I've become interested in programming, but most of my experience so far has involved building projects with AI. I've made some useful things, but I don't want to rely on AI without understanding the code it produces. I recently started the University of Helsinki Python course to move beyond "vibe coding" and develop a genuine foundation in programming. I'm still at the very beginning, learning about variables, user input, conditions, loops, strings, integers, and basic problem-solving. I'm trying to complete the exercises myself and use AI only for explanations or guidance when I'm stuck, rather than having it write everything for me. For people who have taken the course, is it suitable for someone starting almost from zero? Will it help me read code, debug basic problems, and work more intelligently with AI? Should I study anything else alongside it? I don't expect one course to make me an expert; I mainly want enough understanding for AI to assist me instead of doing all the thinking for me.
4 Answers
Starting with AI-assisted projects isn’t necessarily a bad thing if it sparked your interest in programming. The important next step is exactly what you’re doing now: learning the fundamentals so you can evaluate, debug, and modify generated code instead of accepting it blindly. Progress may be slow, but building that understanding is worthwhile at any age.
The course is a good fit for your current level because it assumes very little prior knowledge. Try to complete the exercises without AI whenever possible. Struggling with your own logic and debugging is where you develop the problem-solving ability that AI can otherwise mask. Using AI afterward to explain why your solution failed is much better than asking it to produce the solution.
There’s a big difference between asking AI to explain an error or a concept and asking it to write the entire program. The first can support learning if you’ve already made a serious attempt yourself.
Yes, it’s widely considered one of the strongest beginner-friendly introductions to Python and programming. It explains the fundamentals clearly and takes you through the material step by step. You should be able to build a useful foundation for reading code, understanding errors, and solving basic problems.
That’s exactly what I’m hoping for. I’ve already started and am beginning to understand concepts like strings, integers, equality checks, if statements, and loops.
It’s an excellent starting point, but finishing one course won’t prepare you for every kind of real project. Afterward, build a few small programs from scratch, such as a to-do list, calculator, or file-reading tool. Projects without step-by-step instructions will reveal what you understand and what you still need to practice. You may eventually want to add a book or another course, but there’s no need to overcomplicate things while you’re still learning the basics.
I know it will take time, but I’m happy to keep practicing. Even being able to understand what AI generates and make informed changes would be a major improvement for me.
I’m mainly using AI as a way to understand explanations when needed, not to complete the course exercises for me. My goal is to become less dependent on it.