Looking for advice: After being laid off in March, I wanted to take this opportunity to make a career change. Based on my natural ability/instincts, I have landed on the role of Data Scientist. I'm trying to decide if I should enroll in Coursera's program which is $39 a month and fairly self paced or University of Texas has a certificate program as well (they are ranked 4th in the country) with a cost of $3,500 and duration of 6 months. From what I have read online, most companies look at your portfolio not necessarily diving into your certification courses. I'm eager to begin this journey but want to make sure I'm starting off with the best foundation. Anyone have any insight?
4 Comments
4 Comments
Veronica Bacica
48
12/02/20 at 9:24PM UTC
Hi Kadhra, this is a great question. First off congratulations for using this opportunity to find something that fits your natural instincts / desire. Both certificate sound like valid options. There's 2 things that may be worth considering. 1) Ask both the University of TX admin office and the Coursera program admins if their alumni certification grads have received work based on completing the certificate. Better yet, ask both of them if they can provide you a few student names (should the students agree to be contacted), so that you can get their perspective if and how each of their certificates have come in handy. 2) Browse through some jobs online to see if any certificates are referenced as a requirement. Chances are like you said, recruiters may be looking more at your experience instead of certificates but it doesn't hurt. Also, on that note see if you can contact someone via your networks at a company who is hiring for this role. The goal would be to not ask them for a job, but just posing this question to them as well. I'm guessing though that someone will chime in in this community as well to help answer.
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1 Reply
Kadhra Edgerly
71
Leadership ninja/future data scientist
12/03/20 at 5:31PM UTC
Thanks, Veronica! Although I have inquired about both completion rates and success rates from both platforms, I had not thought to seek out recruiters. I appreciate your thoughts and ideas!
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Roma Mehta
27
Business Analyst | Data Analyst | Ex-Deloitte
12/02/20 at 11:13PM UTC
Hi Kadhra! Congrats on landing a Data Scientist role.
One of the main things is to have a portfolio of the projects you have done. This gives a proof that you have the skills. From what I have heard, companies don't really consider a candidate to be proficient if they have completed online courses from Udemy, Coursera etc. On the other hand, having a certificate from a university course that ranks 4th in the country would hold a higher value over a non-university course. In the end, everything comes down to the projects you can showcase.
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Reply
Kadhra Edgerly
71
Leadership ninja/future data scientist
12/03/20 at 5:34PM UTC
Hi, Roma! Both platforms include real world projects that I could use to create my own web portfolio so that is a plus. My concern is exactly what you mention...online platform like Coursers may not hold the same leverage as one from UT. I applied to the UT program yesterday so we shall see. I appreciate your thoughts!
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