Why Flatiron School’s Data Science Course Is Right for You
According to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics, data science is a fast-growing field and is expected to grow 31 percent from 2019 to 2029. Even with the COVID-19 pandemic still lingering, a Burtch Works report showed that 73 percent of data science and analytics teams planned to hire or have already hired in the first and second quarter of 2021, while 81 percent planned to hire in the third and fourth quarter of the year.
This demand is driven by companies and organizations realizing the importance of analyzing and using data as a basis for business decisions. The same report stated, “As data-first practices have become a necessary strategy to remain competitive in the age of digital transformation, the data analytics and technology fields continue to experience incredible growth.”
The message is clear: there’s no shortage of opportunities in data science. And if you want to seize these opportunities, a data science bootcamp like Flatiron School may be right for you. So, what can you expect from Flatiron School’s Data Science program?
A Review of Flatiron School’s Data Science Course
Flatiron School’s top-rated Data Science course gives learners the foundation and the skills needed to become data professionals.
Phase 1: Data Analytics and Engineering
Students will learn basic Python programming, how to use Jupyter Notebooks, and various Python libraries used in data science. Students will also learn data structures, relational databases, and SQL fundamentals. This phase covers concepts and tools such as variables, data cleaning, looping, and Git/Github.
Phase 2: Scientific Computing and Quantitative Methods
This phase covers the fundamentals of probability theory like combinations and permutations. Students will learn about statistical distributions, create samples, and apply this to running A/B experiments.
Items such as probability theory, combinatorics, and hypothesis testing are also covered. Students will also learn how to build their first model using linear regression to show or predict the relationship between variables.
Phase 3: Machine Learning Fundamentals
Students will learn regression analysis, logistic regression, and scikit-learn for machine learning with Python. They will also learn how to prevent overfitting through regularization and using cross-validation to validate regression models. This phase will also cover linear algebra, logistic regression, and pipeline building.
Phase 4: Advanced Machine Learning
This phase introduces threading and multiprocessing to work with big data. Students will learn about PySpark and AWS, how to build a recommendation system, and sentiment analysis. Clustering, neural networks, and natural language processing will also be covered.
Phase 5: Data Science Project
Students will work individually to create a large-scale data science and machine learning final project. This will provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their learning accomplishments and get real-world experience on how it is to work on a large-scale data science project.
Aside from gaining technical skills, students also receive full support from Flatiron School’s Career Coaching Team. During the student’s job search, they meet weekly with their dedicated Career Coach to help with resume writing, interview prep, effective networking strategies, and developing the narrative around a student’s unique career experience.
Flatiron School grads also have access to hiring managers at top companies worldwide through a vast employer network. The school’s Employer Partnerships team always advocates for its graduates, helping them land interviews and application opportunities.
The school also takes pride in its tried-and-true job-search framework, which provides students with the skills and support to land a job and launch their careers.
Flatiron School’s Data Science program, paired with its robust career services, equips its graduates with what they need to start their data science careers in as short as 15 weeks or as flexible as 60 weeks, depending on your availability and lifestyle.
Two Ways to Learn Flatiron School’s Data Science Course
Flatiron School finds a way to help you fit learning into your lifestyle by offering its Data Science course in two schedules: full-time and self-paced.
1. Data Science Live
- Duration: 15 weeks
- Tuition: $16,900 (flexible payment options available)
The full-time course is for learners who want to learn on a fast-tracked schedule and are ready to follow structured schedules. Students will learn through live lectures and work together with fellow learners.
2. Data Science Flex
- Duration: 20, 40, or 60 weeks
- Tuition: $16,900 (flexible payment options available)
The flex course is self-paced, and students are expected to work independently. That said, students can sign up for optional study groups or meetings with their instructors.
Both courses offer the same curriculum, and students can choose which learning format best fits their needs. Once you find the schedule that works for you, it’s time to secure a seat in the program.
Applicants will speak with an Admissions representative in a non-technical interview. Typical questions include asking about an applicant’s reasons for applying and future career goals.
Step 3: Admissions Assessment
Applicants will answer a 15-minute critical thinking and problem-solving assessment.
Step 4: Admissions Decision
Within four business days, applicants will receive the admissions decision.
Step 5: Pre-work
If an applicant is accepted, they’ll start a course pre-work to learn the basics of data science. This way, students don’t start the immersive course at zero.
The Flatiron School Data Science Course Learning Experience
Kristen Davis graduated from the full-time Data Science program in February 2021. Before attending Flatiron School, she was a teacher in the upper elementary and middle school levels. Today, she is a data and business intelligence analyst at EssilorLuxottica.
After teaching for five years, she decided she wanted to change careers and chose Flatiron School to help her achieve this goal. “I talked to a lot of people. A very good friend of mine had gone through the Flatiron [School] program already and thought it was great and highly recommended it,” Kristen said.
“I knew I wanted to go to a bootcamp, and after talking to people, Flatiron [School] seemed like the right choice. The other thing I liked about it was the projects. Being a teacher, that’s how I like to teach, so I thought that’s how I would like to learn as well,” she continued.
Kristen chose to attend Flatiron School’s full-time 15-week course instead of going back to college and getting a computer science degree.
“After talking to my friends who were in the data science or computer science space, a new degree at this point of my career didn’t seem necessary. They told me I should take something that will fast-track the specific technical skills that I missed. The fact that I was already a degreed professional will speak for itself,” she shared.
She enjoyed her time at Flatiron School and left with more than just technical skills. “I loved it. It was great. A big highlight for me was the group of people I went through the course with. They were fabulous and we still have a daily discourse, where we chat about data science and our jobs.
“The people in my course were incredible and I also really enjoyed my instructors. They were great,” Kristen said. “Both instructors were industry people. They were really in touch with jobs and the subject matter, and they were really relevant.”
Kristen’s Flatiron School experience led her directly to where she is today. One of her major accomplishments is that her capstone project, “Measuring Alignment – A text analysis of NGSS and State Science Standards” was requested for and used by the Indiana Department of Education.
“I was a former science teacher, and I looked at national science standards called the NGSS. I used natural language processing to measure how closely aligned state standards were to these national standards.”
“Based on this information, can we glean something from the degrees of correlation between states that have similar language and states that have disparate language? This shows that what you do in the course is actually real, especially at the end,” Kristen shared.
Job Search Support at Flatiron School
It took Kristen less than a month after graduating from Flatiron School’s Data Science course to land her first job in the field. “I think the thing that Flatiron [School] did particularly well, in terms of career services, is they have this whole system where you have to do certain things as you’re graduating, like posting on LinkedIn, doing additional projects, and things like that,” she shared.
“That was a huge help because it held you accountable for your job search. The way they had it structured with a career coach, you were still engaging with the curriculum. That’s the primary reason why I got so many interviews and two final offers. I was more than just an Easy Apply on LinkedIn. I don’t know if I would have gone above and beyond if I didn’t have a coach and all these other structures that Flatiron [School] provided.”
Is Flatiron School’s Data Science Program Worth It?
From teaching to working with data, Kristen’s life has changed because of Flatiron School’s Data Science course. “From a purely financial point of view, I almost doubled my salary. That’s a huge thing. There isn’t a cap on what I could do, where I could go, where I can move towards in this new role.”
“I feel I could take another couple of weeks to learn a new skill and apply it to my current job or advance along this career track, to a Senior Data Scientist, for example,” Kristen said. She is one more success story to come out of Flatiron School.