Databricks Specialist Sessions: How to Register & Prepare

[Jim_Anderson]

If you're interested in advancing your skills with Databricks through a Specialist Session, here's a clear guide on how to register and what free courses you can take to prepare effectively.

How to Begin Your Learning Path

• Step 1: Go to the Databricks Training portal and create a free Academy account if you don't have one.
• Step 2: Complete the fundamentals courses (detailed below) and Get-Started Series/Get Started Days if you are a beginner in Databricks.
• Step 3: Consider taking related instructor-led - intermediate to advanced courses if you wish to deepen your expertise or obtain certification - contact your databricks account team for packages -  also available as self-paced. 
• Step 4: Register for your Specialist Session

How to Register for a Databricks Specialist Session

• Q&A Session Registration Pages: EMEA Timezone and AMER Timezone Specialist Sessions are once a month, with Databricks experts to ask questions during the recorded session.
• On-demand versions of the sessions are also available in the Databricks Academy (Customer Link - Partner Link) 

Subtitles in English, French and Spanish

Recommended Free Databricks Fundamentals Courses

Databricks now offers all self-paced training for free to all. 

Here are some of the best free introductory courses:

• Databricks Fundamentals: Understand the architecture and benefits of the Databricks Lakehouse Platform in about 60 minutes.
• Generative AI Fundamentals: A video series if you're interested in the AI/ML aspects of Databricks. 120 mins.
• AI Agent Fundamentals: An introductory course on building and applying AI agents for enterprises using Databricks, with demos on the Mosaic AI platform and Agent Bricks. 90 mins

Upcoming Specialist Sessions with recommended preparation courses:

Related Fundamental Sessions	Related Intermediate + Advanced Sessions	Specialist Session
Get Started with Databricks Platform Administration Get Started with Databricks for Data Engineering	Data Management and Governance with Unity Catalog Automated Deployment with Databricks Asset Bundles Full Courses Advanced Data Engineering Apache Spark Developer	Nov 25th 2025 - Managing Databricks at scale using Terraform EMEA | AMER
Databricks Fundamentals	Databricks Associate Data Engineering Courses Building Enterprise Applications with Databricks Apps	Dec 9th 2025 - Lakebase EMEA | AMER
Get Started with AI Agents on Databricks (self-paced)	Machine Learning Operations Advanced Machine Learning Operations DevOps Essentials for Data Engineering	Jan 15th 2026 - Agents at Scale: Ops for Faster Iterations EMEA | AMER

Extra Tips for Success

• Hands-on Practice: Use the Databricks Free Edition with sample datasets and labs.
• Consult Documentation: Supplement your learning with the extensive Databricks technical documentation and notebook galleries.
• Community Support: Leverage the Databricks Community forums for Q&A and study tips from peers and experts.

Quick Links:

• [EMEA Registration Page] [AMER Registration]
• [Get Started Series / Get Started Days]
• [Learning Catalogue]
• [Virtual Learning Festival] - complete a full persona-based course and receive a 50% off certification voucher (worth $100)

Start your journey now to maximize your Specialist Session experience with strong foundational knowledge!

[Raman_Unifeye]

Thanks for bringing it altogether. Very useful for the starters, especially.