data science online education
Posted in Big Data Data Science Data Science Education

STUDYING DATA SCIENCE ONLINE

This age is considered to be the Age of ‘Big Data’, much as the previous age was considered to be the Digital Age. Since the middle of the last century, the word Data has been used to mean computer information which is formatted in a special way that can be transmitted, stored and used for calculation. With the entry of the world of Big Data, the need for immense storage capabilities were felt and this situation continued until 2010. But now, ‘Hadoop’ and similar frameworks have solved the need for storage, and Big Data Processing is the next phase. The science derived from Big Data, called ‘Data Science’, is a new interdisciplinary field that uses Science to create methods, processes, systems and algorithms to extract insightful knowledge from large masses of both Structured and Raw Data. With the omnipresence of the Online, physically located schools for training are becoming time-consuming and therefore outdated. Online Schools for Data Science are now becoming accessible everywhere, and this gives our Generation X a wonderful opportunity to learn and practice a brand new profession, that is at the cutting-edge of information technology.

Why Is Data Science necessary?

Most of the Data that has been acquired, traditionally, has been comparatively small in size, and generally structured. Simple BI (Business Intelligence) tools were sufficient to process this Data. But as time goes on, the Data to be processed is mostly Unstructured Data, or at best Semi Structured. Data trends indicate that within the next few years, more than 75% to 85% of all Data will be Unstructured or Semi Structured. The bulk of this data will be generated from varied sources, with complex or no obvious interactions like — Financial Logs, Multimedia Forms, Text Files, Sensors, and direct inputs from instruments. This vast and varied mass of Data cannot be processed by the simple BI Tools that have been previously available. A vastly more advanced, complex and a complete science is required to tackle this Big Data. This is Data Science which can be used for predictive analytics. Weather Forecasting is a typical example. Data from multiple sources, such as, Satellites and Land Weather Stations, Ships and Aircrafts, Radars and Weather Balloons, can be collected and analyzed to build models that will not only forecast weather, but also help predicting the intensity, timing and route of major natural calamities. Customer’s preferences can be pinpointed from analysis of existing purchase history, age and income of the Customer. Companies also use valuable date to improve their products and services. For example adult apps like fuckbook and snapfuck among other local fuckbuddy apps can analyze data from their users to improve the functioning of their platforms. Data can be so pinpoint that they can specify to improve functioning for casual sex seekers using the mobile app in a specific location or age group of any other piece of data really.

Pre-requisites

The following background is necessary for Data Science Candidates – Statistics, Machine Learning, Programming with ‘R’ and ‘Python’, Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra, Data Wrangling, Visualizations and Communications and Intuition. The Candidate must have a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science, IT or similar discipline, and preferably Master’s Degree in Data and some experience in the expected field of work.

Online Schools

Online Schools are now available in almost all disciplines, sometimes in even the most advanced or cutting-edge fields. It is not surprising therefore that Data Science has gone Online, in a big way. But the general public is only dazzled by the paycheck for Data Scientists. They are not aware of the tough pre-qualification requirements to study this highly advanced field of learning (which has been outlined above). Some of the best sponsored

Online Schools for Data Science follows:

  • University of California, Berkeley: Berkeley offers innovative program features like – Live Face-to-face Online Classes with Self-Paced Course work, MIDS Faculty-Administered Rigorous, Relevant Curriculum and finally a Degree from UC Berkeley, all without having to re-locate.
  • University of Denver: The program from the Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science can be attended by students without prior programming experience, by using three bridging courses.
  • Southern Methodist University: Successful candidates will benefit from SMU’s vast connection to global business communities across a range of industries. It offers Project-based Approach, In-person Immersion, Interdisciplinary Curriculum and Live Online Classes.
  • Syracuse University: Data Science at Syracuse is an 18-month Online Graduate Program featuring opportunities to network with Peers and Faculty, Face-to-face Online Weekly Classes, Immersive Course work fostering close collaboration.

There are several others offering Online courses like Bay Path University, Bellevue University, Cabrini University, CTU, CUNY, Drexel University, Elmhurst College, IIT Illinois and so on, which are also worth considering.