So, I took the decision to enroll myself into a certified online course. Because I wanted to boost my career and learn things that I have no prior knowledge about. And since I have a lot of time on my hands, Why not. I enrolled in the HarvardX program for data sciences By Rafael Irizarry.
I didn't know anything about data sciences. I didn't know how to code in R. And I had no clue about what I was getting myself into. But to be fair, this is a really impressive course. If you guys are planning to get a career in and around machine learning and data analytics then knowing some basics of building data structures and data sciences is really important.
I agree that Python is what most people recommend but trust me on this one, R is going to help you a lot. It's very easy to learn and has many data sets loaded into it. One can learn any language with relative ease but the logic behind a language is what many people struggle with.
What I really wanted to stress upon is that the coding in R is very easy. The logic can be easily grasped and applied with almost no effort. Yes, practice makes things much better but a lot of the coding can be learned from a single glance. The best part about R is that the three or four liner codes created using C++ or even Java can be simply done within one or two lines in R. It's really that easy.
If you're new into the coding world (like me) then you probably have to put in some extra hours. But trust me; it's going to be so worth it. The complete data science course contains ten segments that include topics like Visualization, Probability, Wrangling, etc. In the end, you would have to test all of your data science knowledge through a project titled: Capstone. The whole package would cost you around $450 but you can also do the segments separately for $50 each.
The most fascinating thing about this course is that you're allowed to study the complete course for free. But you won't be presented with a Harvard approved certificate at the end of it. My recommendation has always been to purchase at least one certified segment and then take it up from there. Note that you can take the remaining segments for free if you don't wish to pay for them. One doesn't need to be a college graduate to take up this course. But one should be familiar with junior high math problems in order to understand and solve data-related problems.
About the material and the method of teaching, I would say that Rafael Irizzary does a really good job. He's very direct in his delivery and his lectures can be understood easily. Harvard has partnered with EdX and Data Camp with all the lectures and assignments available to you on the EdX website. All you need to do is sign up and you're good to go. The minimum passing percentage to be eligible for a certificate is 75%. Don't let that scare you. You may attempt an assignment as many times as you like until you don't get your desired grade. But the important thing is to learn from your mistakes and not pursue the course just for the certificate. You must be comfortable answering questions when asked of. The lectures are very well presented and not too long. On average, a lecture would be about five minutes and sometimes even less. The study material is provided by EdX in between topics and the coding is displayed at the bottom of the screen. What I most loved is there is no ambiguity concerning any element in this program.
All in all, I would rate this course very high on my scale. The ease in which data science is explained can be hard to find elsewhere. Every day, the world is shifting a little bit more towards sophisticated fields like Machine Learning and A.I. It has become almost mandatory for people to learn such skills because they're going to be very helpful in the near future. Hence learning Data Science from Harvard has not only made me more capable but more prepared for the future. Thus, I recommend you all take at least one segment of the course before you change your mind.
