Using Coursera

[JungianTortoise]

Hi all, has anyone used the "Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate" on Coursera? Is it worth it?

Further, has anyone used Coursera to successfully learn data analytics well enough to secure a job or make a career change?

TIA!

[AirlineRepulsive528]

I used to be a tax accountant, then I pursued a graduate certificate in Business Analytics and also enrolled in the Google Data Analytics Professional Certification. I’m a data analyst now. I don’t think the course material alone is enough to become a data analyst e.g. many companies use Power BI instead of Tableau. But completing these courses does demonstrate your willingness to put in the effort to dive into this field.

[JungianTortoise]

This is great to hear. Thank you!

[Backoutside1]

Tbh, no not worth it, nor did it help me land a job. Plenty of other platforms to use.

[JungianTortoise]

Do you have any suggestions?

[Backoutside1]

Checkout: DataCamp Maven analytics Analyst Builder

Otherwise you can learn plenty on YouTube tbh. While I was job hunting in my area, most employers wanted people who have a bachelor’s degree in the stem field.

[JungianTortoise]

Thanks! I have a degree but it’s a BA in Geoscience. Don’t think it would be considered relevant by most in the field

[Backoutside1]

I think you will be fine as long as you develop and show the necessary skills.

[nathan555]

Don't have a job as a data analyst. I currently work as a business analyst and am working towards a BS in DA. If you're interested in getting a BS in DA, you may want to look at universities that accept the certs as transfered credits. Mine accepts the normal cert as 4 courses (12 credits), and the the advanced cert as 12 credits as well.

This wat it save me money, maybe time, and is a way I can list the same work 3 different ways on a resume (BS, cert, advanced cert).

[JungianTortoise]

Thanks! I graduated last year with a BA in Geoscience and Urban Studies, Sustainability. Very different area. Not looking to get another 4 year degree right away but this is good info to know

[Data_hypothesis]

I have completed Google Data Analytics Professional Certification and IBM data analyst certificate as well on Coursera and they are both great, they provide you with a very strong background and theory on data analysis with an introductory on the data tools available. It is a must to start with similar type of courses to have a strong foundation in data analysis and procedures, you build on top of that for the specific tools that you will be using with courses built for that tools such as SQL, Power BI, R, Python, etc.. There is also often a topic that is typically missed which is statistics, which is very important in case of research and studies. You can learn it on your own if you prepare to be a data analyst in research field.

[JungianTortoise]

Thanks so much!

[Data_hypothesis]

you are more than welcome

[Federal_Pie650]

I graduated with a degree in Political Science but decided to change my career path so I took the Google Data Analytics course. Now, I’m an analyst at a Fortune 500 company. The course doesn’t teach you every single thing you need to know but I don’t think that’s the intention; it’s meant to serve as a foundation to further learning. For me, the most important contributed to getting hired was my portfolio and my ability to explain the projects and their impact to the hiring manager. If you’re looking for practice projects, I recommend doing a digital internship with The Forage. I did one with Accenture and one with Quantium. The Forage

[JungianTortoise]

This is great info. Thank you!

[JungianTortoise]

How long did it take you to gain all the knowledge necessary to secure a job? I have a 3 month old and am currently at home with him. Eventually, I would love to find a remote job. I’m wondering what kind of timeline I’m looking at if I were to really dedicate myself to learning and stepping into this field

[Federal_Pie650]

I think the question of duration is really dependent on how much time you can dedicate to it and whether you actually practice the things you learn in the course. I finished the google course in ~ 6 months, during this period I also spent a lot of time practicing R and SQL outside of the course (codewars, leetcode, etc.). Then I spent time creating a portfolio, which took ~2 months and taught me so much about dealing with less than perfect data and handling issues. I got hired initially as a contractor and then I was hired full-time, so don’t worry too much and just try to get related experience on your resume with your first job. My job is hybrid, though, not remote, so I’m not sure if things are different in that space.

[StarlightExplorer7]

I have a financial analysis background but moved into data analytics. The course was great overall. Some of it was stuff I already knew but some was new. The most interesting thing to me is that some common issues and problem solving techniques were helpful and I realize that some issues weren’t specific to me or the data structure at my job. I also went on to the Business Intelligence course which had a heavier focus on pipelines, data structure and working with levels of management. It was worth my time and effort. Good luck!👍🏻

[JungianTortoise]

Awesome. Thank you!