The demand for Data Scientists is still on the rise - and so are their salaries. Udacity's School of Data Science now offers seven Nanodegree programs and all of them start again on May 29th, with enrollment closing tomorrow. If you miss this datethe oppportunity will come around again in a few months.

We last looked at Udacity's range of data-related nanodegree when it launched its School of Data Science last July. Since then Udacity has added new features to both the student services and the career services and these apply to all its Nanodegree programs. The monthly subscription now includes a 1-1 technical mentor who can be called for 6 hours or more per month plus check-ins with your mentor via weekly calls. Live chat, together with challenges is a new feature for the student community. Personal career coaching now includes monthly 1-on1 calls and to extend the existing resume services resumes are shared with 500+ employers.

The first of the new programs is the Data Visualization Nanodegree in which learners start by building data visualizations and dashboards then proceed to drafting presentations using storytelling techniques, visualizations, and animations to provide data-driven recommendations. On the basis of devoting 10 hours a week, it has an estimated duration of 4 months and requires basic statistics and data analysis skills. Each of its four modules is built around practical projects (IN CAPS). They are:

• Intro to Data Visualization
  Learn how to select the most appropriate data visualization for an analysis, evaluate the effectiveness of a data visualization, and build interactive and engaging Tableau dashboards. BUILD DATA DASHBOARDS
  
  
• Dashboard Designs
  Design and create a dashboard in an enterprise environment. Discover user needs, identify key metrics, and tailor your dashboard to a particular audience.
  DESIGN A DATA DASHBOARD
  
  
• Data Storytelling
  Learn the end to end process for telling a story and providing a recommendation based on data. You'll define an effective problem statement, structure a data presentation, scope analyses, identify biases and limitations within your dataset, and pull together an end-to-end analysis.
  BUILD A DATA STORY
  
  
• Advanced Data Storytelling
  Learn advanced data visualization and storytelling techniques. Learn to use Tableau Storypoint to add interactivity and other visual elements to a story, and add animation and narration with Tableau Pages and Flourish.
  ANIMATE A DATA STORY

Also new is the Data Engineer Nanodegree which requires Python and SQL skills and is spread over 5 months at 5 hours per week. In it you'll  learn to design data models, build data warehouses and data lakes, automate data pipelines, and work with massive datasets. At the end of the program which has the four modules and associated practicals outlined below, you’ll combine your new skills by completing a data engineering capstone project.

• Data Modeling
  Learn to create relational and NoSQL data models to fit the diverse needs of data consumers. Use ETL to build databases in PostgreSQL and Apache Cassandra.
  DATA MODELING WITH POSTGRES
  DATA MODELING WITH APACHE CASSANDRA
  
  
• Cloud Data Warehouses
  Sharpen your data warehousing skills and deepen your understanding of data infrastructure. Create cloud-based data warehouses on Amazon Web Services (AWS).
  BUILD A CLOUD DATA WAREHOUSE
  
  
• Spark and Data Lakes
  Understand the big data ecosystem and how to use Spark to work with massive datasets. Store big data in a data lake and query it with Spark.
  BUILD A DATA LAKE
  
  
• Data Pipelines with Airflow
  Schedule, automate, and monitor data pipelines using Apache Airflow. Run data quality checks, track data lineage, and work with data pipelines in production.
  DATA PIPELINES WITH AIRFLOW

There have been changes to the Data Scientist Nanodegree. Now at enrollment those without a background in Machine Learning are directed to a 3-month Intro to Machine Learning in which they will:

Learn foundational machine learning algorithms, starting with data cleaning and supervised models. Then, move on to deep and unsupervised learning. Get practical experience by applying your skills to code exercises and projects.

As this is a Nanodegree each module includes practical projects and  intermediate Python programming knowledge and basic knowledge of probability and statistics are recommended prerequisites.

Program Two in the  Data Scientist Nanodegree is a further 4 months and has five modules, the last of which is a capstone:

• Solving Data Science Problems
  Learn the data science process, including how to build effective data visualizations, and how to communicate with various stakeholders.
  WRITE A DATA SCIENCE BLOG POST
  
  
• Software Engineering for Data Scientists
  Develop software engineering skills that are essential for data scientists, such as creating unit tests and building classes.
  
  
• Data Engineering for Data Scientists
  Learn to work with data through the entire data science process, from running pipelines, transforming data, building models, and deploying solutions to the cloud.
  BUILD PIPELINES TO CLASSIFY MESSAGES WITH FIGURE EIGHT
  
  
• Experiment Design and Recommendations
  Learn to design experiments and analyze A/B test results. Explore approaches for building recommendation systems.
  DESIGN A RECOMMENDATION ENGINE WITH IBM

There have also been changes to Programming for Data Science Nanodegree which is at beginner level and lasts three months, during which participants learn the programming fundamentals required for a career in data science.  You can now choose between a Python track, as outlined in our previous report and one that introduces R with the same modules:

• Introduction to SQL
  Learn SQL fundamentals such as JOINs, Aggregations, and Subqueries. Learn how to use SQL to answer complex business problems.
  INVESTIGATE A DATABASE
  
  
• Introduction to R Programming
  Learn R programming fundamentals such as data structures, variables, loops, and functions. Learn to visualize data in the popular data visualization library ggplot2.
  EXPLORE US BIKESHARE DATA
  
  
• Introduction to Version Control
  Learn how to use version control and share your work with other people in the data science industry.
  POST YOUR WORK ON GITHUB

Programming for Data Science can also be followed up with the Data Analyst Nanodegree and there are also two business-oriented options, Predictive Analytics For Business and Business Analytics Nandegree.

Enrollment for the next sessions of all seven ends on May 28th and you can start the courses just as soon as you enroll.  

More Information

Udacity School of Data Science

Data Visualization Nanodegree

Data Engineer Nanodegree

Data Scientist Nanodegree

Data Analyst Nanodegree

Programming for Data Science with Python

Programming for Data Science with R

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