Data science boot-camps are a great way to break into data science, BUT they are expensive. Are there cheaper alternatives? Let’s review a free alternative to bootcamps in data science.
Let’s have a quick look into why this happens and then review a step-by-step free data science bootcamp.
The Price Of A Data Science Bootcamp
Can you afford one? Immersive Data Science bootcamps are extremely expensive these days, reaching up to 20,000 USD for about 12 weeks of classes.
They claim to teach you the required python coding skills and analytical mindset within 3 months.
A bubble?
12-Week bootcamps typically cost 10 to 25,000 USD.
This is crazy!
The most famous data science bootcamps are highly pricey. They charge from 2.5K to 7K EUR/USD per month, which is more than what most Ivy League universities charge on an annualised basis.
But is it worth it?
Why Are Data Science Bootcamps So Expensive?
Data science bootcamps are so pricey because:
- There is a shortage of skilled data scientists. There are just not enough junior data scientists to fill the open positions.
- The traditional education system is too slow producing what the market requires. University graduates are not company-ready as they lack the practical experience.
While there are some good academic programs in reputed universities, the length of the program is at least 3 years or 4 to 5 years if a masters is required.
So, university degrees remain too pricey and too long (up to +160K USD and 4 years time), and thus do not solve the market squeeze problem.
Luckily, you can nowadays learn python and break into data science on your own almost for free, and much faster.
A Free Alternative To A Data Science Bootcamp
For this reason, I’ve designed a data science study plan that is FREE.
This study plan goes over the academic skills and the practical experience that you’ll require for the job and interviews.
Data Science 101:
Math, Statistics, and Computer Science.
Data science uses statistical tools and programming to come up with valuable business insight.
Well, let’s review what we need to learn.
A Free Data Science Bootcamp Alternative
The three main building blocks of Data Science: Math, CS, and Statistics.
“Data scientists know more computer science than statisticians, and more statistics than computer scientists”.
Let’s look at the best free alternative data science boot
Mathematics
- Introduction to Mathematical Thinking (Stanford)
- Linear Programming (Imperial)
- Multivariate Calculus (Imperial)
- Principal Component Analysis (Imperial)
- Stochastic Processes (HSE)
Computer Science / Programming
- Coding skills in Python or R (Codecademy or Datacamp)
- Calculate data with Numpy, Scikit
- Handle data with Pandas, Scikit, Tensorflow,
- Visualise data with Matplotlib, Seaborne
- Data Structures
- Algorithms (Stanford, Princeton 1, Princeton 2)
Statistics
- Basic Statistics (London)
- Exploratory Data Analysis
- Hypothesis testing
- Bayesian Probability (UCSC 1, UCSC 2)
- Inferential Statistics
- Time Series Analysis (SUNY)
- Causality (UPenn)
Machine Learning
- Intro to Machine Learning (Stanford, Washington)
Business / Marketing
- Basic Economics
- Basic Marketing
Online Learning Platforms
You can learn a ton on:
- Coursera (free university-level courses)
- Codecademy (learn to code in Python or Javascript for free)
- DataCamp (learn data science in Python / R)
It is highly recommended to get a subscription to either Codecademy or Datacamp (20$ or 30$) to help with the coding side.
Next Steps:
Get started today and start learning some Python while you take the first Intro to Mathematical Thinking and Basic Statistics course.
Do you want to be a data scientist? Start Today!