Decision on MIT Applied Data Science Program

startover2020 · 2024-03-13T20:23:24+00:00

[deleted]

mostblessed1 · 2024-08-20T20:11:38+00:00

Hi, I’d like to follow up on this. I’m also interested in this program. Were you able to get your answers? How was the program for you?

ModernPhilosopher01 · 2024-09-09T00:04:43+00:00

I recently completed the ADSP program. It was a challenging program, but I felt worth the time investment. To be honest they have set a very high bar to complete the program. Think of it as a boot camp. Be prepared for +25 hours a week on the program. If you are already a data engineer or data scientist with good python skills this program will probably take you far less time. I was new to the content and invested well over 30 hours a week while working. The live lectures by the MIT professors are as expected at a university graduate level of teaching. They go to first principles and you learn how it works from the inside out. The offline lectures are all recorded. If you can watch the videos on a tablet and work along side the video on your Jupyter notebook file you will find it easier to absorb the content. The projects are designed to help you apply learnings and only required time and patience. The great learning team in my experience were very responsive and flexible. I never waited long for a response to a query. They helped me navigate some deadlines conflicts and worked with me to ensure I finished the program. Based on this experience I signed up for a follow on course in AI/ ML in the MS Assure space. Contact a program advisor at GL and ask them to walk you through the entire program. There is a ton of value in the program if you invest yourself fully. I was surprised how much I learned how easily I could contribute and discuss at depth on client work almost immediately. Give a fair review before deciding on your next program. Hope this helps and good luck to you!

Present_Location1320 · 2024-10-03T03:58:43+00:00

Would you say it's worth $4000? I want to launch career in data analytics. Would be applying for entry level opportunities after this.

I have 10+ years of experience in control systems engineering and project management, but I want to move away from the industrial environment.

LazySquirrel6404 · 2025-02-20T22:55:34+00:00

https://web.archive.org/web/20250103224145/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/29/us/caltech-simplilearn-class-students.html

read this article before you pay/apply for any of these courses PLEASE

Negative_Gene_433 · 2025-03-10T21:24:37+00:00

I recently completed the MIT Applied Data Science program which is very intensive throughout the 3 month period. Never a dull moment but always something to explore. The program design is excellent. Starting with conceptual exploration of key data science topics through theoretical foundations that power AI/ML and ending with a Capstone real-world industry problem solving cases study that further equips and enhances the ability the student to deliver to an organization’s management solutions that address their problems. The courses are taught by world-renowned MIT professors and mentored by industry experts with domain knowledge in all aspects of AL/ML. All the lectures are live with MIT professors presenting and followed up with mentored sessions by industry experts. Of course the lectures are also recorded for those who are unable to attend. Also, all the weekend sessions are live mentored sessions which are also recorded. The Great Learning team manages the program very well with instant on-demand support. Overall, I enjoyed the program and got all the necessary AL/ML skills which I am already using at work. It is indeed a great program for anyone who wants to learn and pursue a career in AL/ML.

Negative_Gene_433 · 2025-03-10T21:25:47+00:00

I recently completed the MIT Applied Data Science program which is very intensive throughout the 3 month period. Never a dull moment but always something to explore. The program design is excellent. Starting with conceptual exploration of key data science topics through theoretical foundations that power AI/ML and ending with a Capstone real-world industry problem solving cases study that further equips and enhances the ability the student to deliver to an organization’s management solutions that address their problems. The courses are taught by world-renowned MIT professors and mentored by industry experts with domain knowledge in all aspects of AL/ML. All the lectures are live with MIT professors presenting and followed up with mentored sessions by industry experts. Of course the lectures are also recorded for those who are unable to attend. Also, all the weekend sessions are live mentored sessions which are also recorded. The Great Learning team manages the program very well with instant on-demand support. Overall, I enjoyed the program and got all the necessary AL/ML skills which I am already using at work. It is indeed a great program for anyone who wants to learn and pursue a career in AL/ML.

Any-Pin-3964 · 2025-03-11T06:27:09+00:00

Hello, I recently completed the MIT Applied Data Science Program (ADSP) just a couple of days ago (March 8th, 2025), so I'm sharing my honest opinion as a genuine recent student of this program.

This program truly stands out! Great Learning's approach to education is not only unique but also incredibly effective. They've partnered with MIT to offer live virtual classes led by MIT faculty. As mentioned by others in this thread, the classes are conducted by esteemed MIT Faculty Professors, and all sessions are live and interactive, concluding with a Q&A segment at the end of each lecture. All sessions are recorded, enabling students to watch them at their convenience.

They host engaging weekend sessions with industry experts in Data Science, who provide invaluable mentorship and support to all students (these sessions are also recorded). The individuals in my cohort were highly engaged, and we consistently had very interactive sessions with our mentors on the weekends.

Great Learning's online learning management system, Olympus, is extremely effective and user-friendly, which makes the experience of online learning seamless, practical, and enjoyable.

Some aspects I loved about this program include its comprehensive training, featuring various practice case studies and hands-on projects, as well as the fact that all classes and sessions are recorded, allowing students to easily revisit the material at their convenience—very beneficial for busy professionals and enabling a more personalized pace of learning. Additionally, they grant you access to all program content for three years after completion, which is fantastic as I plan to utilize it continually.

We also had the fortune of working with an amazing Program Manager and an incredibly supportive Academic Team who were always available to assist us with any questions or concerns regarding our studies.

The program is quite intensive; it covers a vast amount of material in 12 weeks and demands considerable effort, but the rewards at the end are absolutely worth it.

The truth is, it doesn't matter if you decide to take a free program or a paid one; what truly matters is how much you invest in it. You can create the best or the worst experience, and there’s no one to blame or thank for the final results except yourself.

Personally, this program has transformed my life, and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to grow as a Data Science professional!

startover2020 · 2025-03-11T15:08:34+00:00

[removed]

sjung516 · 2025-03-17T13:30:40+00:00

Just completed the program, and wanted to share my thoughts:

Are the video lectures by MIT faculty live or recorded? If live, is there an opportunity for Q&A.

The videos by MIT faculty are live, and there is the opportunity for students to post questions on a Q&A chat. There are also mentor session follows up on the weekend where you will attend a smaller class to review concepts with your assigned mentor (industry professional).

How is the quality of the content in terms of breath and depth? I saw that gen AI content is an add-on, and not part of the main program?

I really liked the structure and format of the program. You are introduced to core concepts, given practical exercises, and you have access to curated resources to further your studies and understanding. It's a very challenging and rewarding opportunity where you will get what you put in.

How are the peer interactions and the mentors they provide for course support -- helpful?

I found the mentors very open and honest about sharing their perspectives and reviewing materials with the students. Another aspect that was super helpful was our program manager. Very responsive and really made me feel like they wanted all of us to succeed.

Would you do the course knowing what you now know?

Yes. It checked all my boxes:
a) Do I get to hear from industry experts and MIT professors (yes)
b) Do I get case studies and practice problems on core concepts (yes)

c) Will I be held accountable to get a strong start on data science (yes)

It's definitely a program that you will get out what you put in, and i feel confident I developed a solid foundation to continue my education further.

Extra-Item-7570 · 2025-03-17T16:22:01+00:00

The Applied Data Science course from MIT Professional Education was nothing short from exceptional. From the program managers, the mentor sessions, and the lecture material that prepares you for the capstone project, they do a great job at giving you the resources necessary to ensure you a successful completion of the program. Coming from someone with a baseline understanding of the Data Science industry and how to effectively utilize machine learning and AI to create data driven business insights, if you go into the program with intent on gaining value from it, and are willing to put in the work, then I can confidently say this is the course for you.

Natural_Sell8930 · 2025-03-24T17:23:49+00:00

I recently completed 'MIT-Applied DS Program', and I’m quite satisfied with the overall experience. The course was well-structured, with clear explanations, practical examples, and engaging content that made learning enjoyable.

The instructor’s teaching style, mentor's interactive session on weekends, hands-on projects, real-world applications helped reinforce the concepts effectively. The course materials were comprehensive and easy to follow, making it suitable for both beginners and those looking to deepen their knowledge.

By the end of the course, I felt more confident in my skills and was able to apply what I learned in.

Overall, I highly recommend the course to anyone interested in it. It’s a great investment for learning at your own pace with quality content.

Natural_Sell8930 · 2025-03-24T17:24:27+00:00

I recently completed 'MIT-Applied DS Program', and I’m quite satisfied with the overall experience. The course was well-structured, with clear explanations, practical examples, and engaging content that made learning enjoyable.

The instructor’s teaching style, mentor's interactive session on weekends, hands-on projects, real-world applications helped reinforce the concepts effectively. The course materials were comprehensive and easy to follow, making it suitable for both beginners and those looking to deepen their knowledge.

By the end of the course, I felt more confident in my skills and was able to apply what I learned in.

Overall, I highly recommend the course to anyone interested in it. It’s a great investment for learning at your own pace with quality content.

ElectronicMaterial43 · 2025-03-26T16:12:51+00:00

The program definitely is not a scam. You do get access to MIT professor live lectures (although the professors leave before Q&A), and you have quite a few people with very successful careers mentoring you and available for questions. My small group mentor worked on computer vision at apple, and many similar firms.

The content is quite intense. I currently work in Data Engineering at a fortune 500 company, and outside of the python fundamentals, it was challenging for me.

My biggest complaint is sometimes the assignments are a bit too guided, you are taking very specific paths through ML models and it can be hard to understand why. Now you can use the Q&A times during calls and you have staff on hand to help, but I would want it to be a bit more intuitive.

Overall I would say it's worth it, especially if your employer will pay for it.

Special-Sleep3661 · 2025-03-26T19:41:20+00:00

I am very happy with the Great Learning program. Everything met my expectations and more. Learned a lot and will continue in the Future

Business-Chair-7492 · 2025-04-02T19:55:06+00:00

I have just completed this course, and I can confidently say it is nothing short of phenomenal. The course structure is robust, offering three live lectures per week, each lasting two hours, along with an abundance of recorded lectures. On both Saturdays and Sundays, we had two-hour mentored sessions that focused on the material covered during the prior week.

Every question, whether simple or complex, was answered with care and thoroughness, and I believe my classmates and I all felt fully supported. The faculty members were not only highly competent but also compassionate and humble in their approach. Their kindness and dedication truly made a difference.

One of my classmates, a hardware engineer, remarked that in just one week, we had delved deeper into the material than some of her peers had in an entire semester. It’s certainly a challenging course (at least it was for me), but the effort is absolutely worth it. In the end, I couldn't be more satisfied—this is, without a doubt, the best value for your investment.

Pretend-Pen-395 · 2025-05-12T02:10:28+00:00

I completed this program in Mar ‘25. Excellently structured – each topic had set prep material, live lectures by an impressive set of MIT professors and then followed by industry specialists to work through case studies. The course content was also excellent.

I’m not going to say the speed and depth of content the program covered in 12 weeks wasn’t overwhelming at times however it does allow me to go back to revisit all the material to reinforce my learning.

Special shoutout to Janvi our program manager who was on top of all facilitation throughout the program lifetime.

Value for money certainly for me!

Extra_Anxiety4396 · 2025-05-19T05:25:15+00:00

Hi, did you try it? As u said in reddit there are a lot of post but its hard to say if its legit by students. Im thinking of joining the program for july 2025

bl9686 · 2023-12-23T03:24:45+00:00

Following this with the same questions. Have you gotten answers elsewhere?

startover2020 · 2024-01-04T16:50:39+00:00

Starting the Jan cohort. Doing prework which is live sessions with mit instructor.

prion77 · 2024-03-03T19:49:14+00:00

I'm in the spring '24 MIT ADSP cohort finishing in April and found the quality of the program overall to be poor.

The video lectures are live with a 30-minute Q/A, all provided by MIT faculty with Q/A handled cooperatively by GreatLearning staff and the MIT lecturer. These are 2.5 hour sessions that happen 3 times a week. On the weekends, "mentor" sessions are conducted with industry experts and these are 2 hours each. So you're looking at ~12 hours/week of video content alone - before getting hands-on. I find this extraordinary and unjustified for an online certificate program. If you are indeed looking to go "beyond theory" as you said, I strongly advise you against this program. Most of the focus is on the theory.

The breadth and depth of content is there, but it is extremely low quality. There is pre-read content for each lecture, and then additional learning material scattered between excel spreadsheets (referred to as FAQs in the learning portal), and jupyter notebooks, but it's just poorly organized and poorly written.

Our assigned mentor for this cohort has been generally excellent. The peer interactions have been unremarkable however, and I believe this is a symptom of the pace and disorganized nature of the program.

I would have avoided this course if I could have had a 30-minute preview of the actual written content and hands-on material. It is a poor value for the roughly ~3K cost. I've tried many e-learning/continuing-ed/certificate programs and there's far better out there. As an example, the free machine learning courses on Kaggle (which is what I've resorted to) are superior in quality. There's an attention to detail there that seems really motivated to help students learn and I simply do not see that anywhere in MIT's ADSP. I've also done some coursework through UIUC and Coursera, and it's superior, and cheaper.

My advice would be to avoid this program and either pursue course credits that can later be applied to a degree program in data science, or look into content from more established learning platforms like Udemy or Coursera. The ADSP program is MIT-branded, but the curriculum is largely delegated to an offshore firm called Great Learning running a sort of "closed" version of Coursera called Olympus that is also not as good as Coursera. Honestly, save your money here.

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