The big data industry is growing stronger, becoming a key area for the future of many countries. Therefore, many experts from many universities have packaged related courses to serve the needs of updating students’ knowledge.
However, how to pick up the course that is suitable for your level? Any tips for buying cheaper courses with high quality?
In this article, I will recommend the 10 best courses for beginners and essential learning guides for you to consider.
I rely on practical experience and the leading experts’ comments to pick up the 10 selected courses below. They are suitable for many different levels to meet both beginner and professional requirements.
1. Introduction to Big Data
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Beginners
- Duration: Actively follow your plan
- Price: Free
- Provider: Skillshare
Course’s Highlights
For many people, big data is an unfamiliar concept that needs to be explored and exploited. I recommend the Introduction to Big Data course to make your journey to find knowledge more meaningful and complete.
It is a prestigious program designed specifically for beginners or those who have never known data science in general and big data in particular.
The curriculum includes a basic introduction to big data and its importance to global development. Plus, it includes in-depth analysis and valuable materials from selected leading experts.
With its great features, I rate it as the top finishing course you should take.
After experiencing this course, I am satisfied with its knowledge. Everything is not too difficult for a beginner to access, understand, and practice quickly.
Enroll Here: https://www.coursera.org/learn/big-data-introduction
Pros
- Best overall
- Easy access
- Flexible study time
- Especially for beginners
- Comprehensive curriculum with good lectures
Cons
- Strict software download requirements
2. Introduction To Big Data Training
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Beginners
- Duration: 3 days
- Price: $2650
- Provider: Many authors
Course’s Highlights
Introduction To Big Data Training is a course with six large modules and a general introduction to big data training.
It is the best program, especially for beginners who want to learn data analytics.
Its lectures come with a logical arrangement in the right way to help students easily absorb and apply knowledge in practice quickly. As a beginner data engineer, I don’t think I can understand and practice basic calculations so soon after this course. It’s more helpful than advertised on social networking forums.
The course also has a PDF document; students can follow along to develop their skills and thinking. But, its price is relatively high.
Enroll Here: https://www.learningtree.com/courses/introduction-to-big-data-training-learn-big-data
Pros
- Best for beginners
- Reasonable study time
- Include 6 major lecture modules
- Detailed scientific sections
Cons
- Expensive
3. Nanodegree Program Data Visualization
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Beginners
- Duration: 4 months
- Price: Free
- Provider: Many authors
Course’s Highlights
You are an amateur who wants to take courses on big data to improve your knowledge and job skills. But how to streamline personal work and study?
All your problems will be available to solve with the Nanodegree Program Data Visualization. It is the first course that directs students to issues related to data visualization and has flexible study times that fit participants’ plans.
It is suitable for beginners with four big lessons: Introduction to data visualization, dashboard design, data storytelling, and advanced data.
What makes me especially interested in this course is the practical projects. The system integrates realistic and highly effective examples to help improve students’ learning efficiency.
Enroll Here: https://www.udacity.com/course/data-visualization-nanodegree–nd197
Pros
- For beginners
- Time to study spirituality
- Include 4 great lessons
- The logical and scientific content
- There are practical, easy-to-understand projects
Cons
- Do not integrate vocational lectures
4. Big Data: The Big Picture
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Duration: 1.95 hours
- Price: $19 per month
- Provider: Andrew Brut
Course’s Highlights
If you already have relevant experience and knowledge about big data, then “Big Data: The Big Picture” is a great idea to help you expand your deep expertise.
This course includes six different advanced video lectures for intermediate understanding. I highly recommend this course’s content style.
The lectures are integrated with real-life examples to help students easily visualize and apply the theories they have learned.
Unlike regular classes, ‘Big Data: The Big Picture’ directs students to the core content without redundancy. It will teach you big data concepts, key technologies, and dominant software tools.
With this course, the timing was the most disappointing thing. I’ve been struggling to plan my studies for the week.
Enroll Here: https://www.pluralsight.com/courses/bigdata-bigpicture
Pros
- Include 6 lectures
- Full course content
- Best for intermediate level
- Include practical examples
Cons
- Less flexible study time
5. Specializations Big Data
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Duration: 20 to 25 weeks
- Price: Free
- Provider: UCSanDiego
Course’s Highlights
The authors have researched and built the Specializations Big Data learning program with various topics, stimulating the students’ excitement. It includes basic and advanced lectures on big data and practical projects.
It is a unique program for me, completely different from the courses I have attended. Here, I am provided with full knowledge of the required concepts in big data, directed to typical practice examples. After over a month, I can see my data understanding taking to the next level.
At the end of the course, you will directly embark on a practical project to implement the previously learned theoretical algorithms.
Enroll Here: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/big-data
Pros
- Free
- For beginners
- Include many interesting topics
- Detailed instructions for concepts
- End the practice with a practical project
Cons
- Extended study time
6. Big Data Technologies, Trends & Insights
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Duration: 1 day
- Price: $690
- Provider: Many authors
Course’s Highlights
Online course prices are always the top concern of many students. For beginners, finding an affordable program is easy. But for intermediate students, a free course doesn’t seem to be helpful enough.
Fortunately, I found Big Data Technologies, Trends & Insights Training for you.
It’s specifically for the mid-ranger with the most affordable price I’ve ever approached. It only costs a few hundred dollars to get a lot of helpful knowledge from this program.
The course includes four big logical topics, from algorithms to applications, to help students access more easily. The lectures are mainly related to big data technology, insights, and data testing.
What I regret most about this program is that it does not include many practical simulation examples.
Enroll Here: https://www.learningtree.com/courses/big-data-analytics-training
Pros
- Affordable course fees
- Topics are divided
- Short study time
- For intermediate level
- Deep understanding of big data technology
Cons
- No practical examples
7. Google Cloud Big Data
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Advanced
- Duration: 1 week (6 – 10 hours per week)
- Price: Free
- Provider: Many authors
Course’s Highlights
Students with a suitable data background can fully join Google Cloud Big Data and Machine Learning Fundamentals to improve their expertise.
It is a one-week accelerated course introducing participants to big data and machine learning on Google Cloud.
As an inexperienced person, I contacted my talented friend directly to test this program. For unexpected results, this course provides a quick overview of Google’s cloud platform and dives into data processing.
It is a practical course that you should invest in. Unfortunately, it has not yet focused on analyzing knowledge through valuable topics.
Enroll Here: https://www.coursera.org/learn/gcp-big-data-ml-fundamentals
Pros
- One week of study time
- Focused knowledge
- For experienced programmers
- High efficiency in a short time
- Provides a quick overview of Google’s cloud platform
Cons
- It hasn’t gone deep into the actual topic analysis
8. IBM Data Engineering Professional Certificate
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Advanced
- Duration: About 3-5 weeks
- Price: $101,100
- Provider: Many authors
Course’s Highlights
Data processing is an essential skill in big data for you to perform many highly technical operations concurrently. For an in-depth course for data processing, I recommend the IBM Data Engineering Professional Certificate. It is a course for professionals to master other essential skills.
This course also contains lots of real-world content, including live tests on different platforms. This approach will be more effective and more suitable for advanced levels.
Its large knowledge requires high concentration from students. So, it took me longer than I thought to follow and complete this course.
Enroll Here: https://www.coursera.org/professional-certificates/ibm-data-engineer
Pros
- Stable study time
- Best for data processing skills
- For those who have experience
- Includes advanced knowledge of big data
Cons
- Requires intense concentration
9. The Data Science Course
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Beginners
- Duration: 31h 37m
- Price: $119,99
- Provider: 365 Careers
Course’s Highlights
My priority in choosing the best course is always to include career guidance because it helps students know what they need to do in the future. And “The Data Science Course” is the perfect proposal I have for you. This course will present data science goals and concepts highlighting the field’s role in real life.
In particular, at the end of the course, the teachers also prioritized a detailed career orientation lesson to suggest some potential directions for students.
I appreciate its curriculum. Besides the core knowledge, it also directs students to many other fertile career paths.
I think it’s worth your top investment for all the above advantages.
Enroll Here: https://www.udemy.com/course/the-data-science-course-complete-data-science-bootcamp/
Pros
- Appropriate study time
- Specific career orientation
- Many good practical examples
- Include lectures on concepts and goals
Cons
- High price
10. Big Data, Artificial Intelligence and Ethics
Specifications:
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Duration: Flexible
- Price: Free
- Provider: Skillshare
Course’s Highlights
The flagship course, Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Ethics, was developed by UC DAVIS. This program is suitable for beginners for impressive accessibility.
It covers concepts related to big data and its correlation with humanitarian and ethical intelligence. After the course, I clearly understood the role and aim of big data in the future. It also provides insight into human ethics in today’s fast-paced big data technology.
To me, it provides many core values to get you started. The program gave me an overview of the global big data system and its impact on social life.
Enroll Here: https://www.coursera.org/learn/big-data-ai-ethics
Pros
- Easy access
- For beginners
- interesting content
- Flexible study time
Cons
- No detailed documentation included
Learning Guide
To find the right extensive data training program, you need to consider aspects of learning time, level, and cost. Now, read my guide below for details!
Study time
The study time of each program is entirely different and closely related to the quality and quantity of lectures. I recommend choosing courses with autonomous time to arrange between work and study flexibly.
You can easily arrange a specific study schedule to match your life activity. If you are a student with a lot of time to study, then any course could be for you. What you care about is not time flexibility but other factors such as budget and difficulty level.
Level of difficulty
Those who are new to big data should take beginner courses. These programs will introduce you to basic big data concepts and related categories.
For intermediates, look for advanced courses to take your professional skills to the next level. It will often come with plenty of real-world examples to help you level up quickly.
Budget
There are both free and paid courses. What you need to do is define your own learning goals and budget. Of course, the paid versions always tend to be higher quality because of the direct interaction with the instructor.
FAQs
Is Big Data a promising career?
Big data is an essential field with solid growth potential now and in the future. It involves many aspects of social life and directly affects them.
Accordingly, this field is receiving special attention and becoming the most sought-after profession.
Is big data a promising career?
According to statistics, the demand for recruiting engineers for big data is rising by about 22% by 2023. Seizing this opportunity, studying online extensive data programs is your ultimate solution.
Which language is compulsory for big data?
SQL is the most requested language in big data. It performs many operations on data and is the primary API for various projects. It also helps data mining from databases in data warehousing and big data technology.
Does big data have coding?
Yes. Coding is necessary for big data to conduct numerical and statistical analysis with substantial data sets. The languages you can use to start coding are Java and C++.
Is big data in demand?
Yes. It will be in demand worldwide. It is a skill required to develop today’s digital economy fully.
Conclusion
Big data will explode and become a required field in each country. Taking online big data training courses is the premise to help you have a brighter career.
The courses I introduced above are the top programs built and developed by leading experts in the industry.
I hope that this article will help you find the right course to satisfy your passion.
If you want the best overall course, Introduction to Big Data is my final recommendation. Thank you for reading!