Top online data science courses by Mirosoft, Dell and IBM

Are you looking for an online data science certificate programme? What better option to learn about data science than the experts themselves? 

Many of the world’s major tech companies offer online data science certificate programmes for both newbies and experienced professionals to prepare themselves for new careers or to help position themselves for a promotion.

A survey by recruitment agency Burtch Works — Salaries of Data Science & Analytics Professionals — found that 73% of data science and analytics teams planned to hire in Q1/Q2 of 2021. This is an increase from January 2020 when 67% of teams planned to hire.

They add that 81% of data science and analytics teams plan to hire in Q3/Q4 of 2021. This is a significant increase from their survey for the first half of the year.

Burtch Works found that top-level data science managers have a median base salary of 250,000 US dollars while the figure is US$160,000 for experienced individual contributors. They predict that salaries will continue to climb. 

Online data science certificate programmes

Whether you’re new to data science and want to develop an understanding of what the field entails, or are a seasoned professional who wants to build their arsenal of skills, here are a few online data science certificate programmes worth exploring:

IBM 

IBM offers a number of data science-related courses online. 

Introduction to Data Science is being offered on edX and will help learners develop an overview of the field. This includes the definition of data science and what data scientists do, the tools and algorithms used on a daily basis within the field, the skills needed to be a successful data scientist and the role of data science within a business, among others.

On Coursera, IBM Data Science Professional Certificate is another beginner-friendly course that aims to help anyone interested in pursuing a career in data science or machine learning develop career-relevant skills and experience. 

The programme consists of nine online courses that will provide you with the latest job-ready tools and skills, including open-source tools and libraries, Python, databases, SQL, data visualisation, data analysis, statistical analysis, predictive modelling and machine learning algorithms.

Microsoft

The Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Scientist Associate programme can be taken online for free, or via an instructor-led course which is paid. 

Its website notes that candidates for the Azure Data Scientist Associate certification should have subject matter expertise applying data science and machine learning to implement and run machine learning workloads on Azure.

They add that candidates for this certification should have knowledge and experience in data science and using Azure Machine Learning and Azure Databricks.

Dell offers several online data science certificate programmes. 

Data Science V2, for instance, is a learning path aligned to and supports Associate – Data Science Certification. The courses in this learning path provide practical foundation level training that enables immediate and effective participation in big data and other analytics projects. 

Data Science and Big Data Analytics for Business Transformation – Video ILT aims to give business leaders the skills and knowledge to better manage such analytical efforts. 

Its website notes that the course describes how to get started and what is required to run projects which leverage Big Data analytics effectively. It addresses: deriving business value from Big Data, leading Data Science projects using a data analytics lifecycle, developing Data Science teams, and driving innovation using analytics.