Begin your journey into data science with Python, SQL, and data visualization. This program will lay the groundwork for analyzing data and providing business insights that drive decision-making.
Financing and flexible payment options available. Learn more
Start your journey into the world of data science by mastering the essentials: Python, SQL, and data visualization. These courses are designed to equip you with the foundational skills needed to explore, manipulate, and analyze data. You’ll dive into mathematical concepts, and descriptive statistics, learning to extract meaningful insights from complex datasets. Whether you’re solving business problems or telling stories with data, these courses lay the groundwork for a successful career in data science. By the end, you’ll be confident in your ability to approach data-driven challenges and create impactful visualizations that communicate your findings effectively.
The SMU x Flatiron School difference:
Prerequisites: No prior experience required. These courses are designed for beginners.
On completion of this program, you may choose to continue on to Data Science Foundations I.
Industry-approved curriculum to support your journey into data science
Introduction to Python - 3 weeks
This introduction to Python course covers essential programming concepts for data science. You'll learn scripting basics, algorithms, and data structures like tuples and dictionaries, and explore Python libraries and functions. The course ends with a project where you'll develop a Python script to analyze data, preparing you to tackle real-world data science challenges.
What you'll learn:
Introduction to Data Science - 3 weeks
In this course, you'll dive into data analysis and visualization using Python. You'll learn statistical measures, explore data types, and master techniques with the pandas library. You'll also use Seaborn and Matplotlib for visualization, handling qualitative, quantitative, and multivariate data. The course concludes with a project where you conduct a full exploratory data analysis, applying descriptive analysis and visualization skills, and object-oriented programming principles. By the end, you'll be skilled in data insights, advanced analysis, and effective visualization.
What you'll learn:
Introduction to SQL - 3 weeks
This course covers SQL, data engineering, database administration, and data analysis. You'll learn math, probability, and statistics for data science and advance your Python skills for data cleaning and analysis. Starting with SQL basics, you'll progress to advanced topics like filtering, ordering, and joining data. The course concludes with a project where you apply SQL queries in a Python environment, demonstrating your understanding of database concepts and preparing you for real-world data science challenges.
What you'll learn:
Flexible small group classes are the best way to learn from top industry mentors in a fun, collaborative environment, while still getting plenty of personalized feedback.
Upfront - Save 10%
$2,700
Pay as You Go
$3,000
3 monthly payments of $1,000
Our programs are not currently set up to accept military benefits, such as the GI Bill, as a form of payment directly from the student at this time. However, if your military benefits can be arranged to pay the school directly, this may be an option in rare cases.
No, you do not need a college degree to enroll in our programs. A high school diploma or GED is the only educational requirement. Our programs are designed to be accessible to a wide range of students with diverse backgrounds.
No, we do not accept FAFSA or traditional financial aid for our programs. However, we do offer loans for full-time students, as well as interest-free installment plans and upfront payment options for everyone else. Please contact us for more details about these flexible payment options.
Yes! Upon the completion of each program in the pathway, you will receive a Credly digital badge from SMU and a certificate from Flatiron School. Digital badges can be used in email signatures or digital resumes, and certificates can be displayed on portfolio websites and social media sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
Thousands of our community members use their program certificates and badges to demonstrate skills to potential employers — including our hiring partners — along with their LinkedIn networks. Our curriculum is powered by Flatiron School, whose programs are well-regarded by many top employers, who contribute to our curriculum, hire our community, and partner with us to train their own teams.
Nope! This program is designed for complete beginners - no experience required.
It is VERY occasionally possible to skip the essentials program and go directly to Foundations I. However, we highly recommend that most students do not skip Essentials as it covers a tremendous amount of information and skills that will be used throughout the entire career pathway program and will require some catching up if skipped.
The essentials program is still difficult and covers a ton of material that is necessary for proceeding in the following programs and won't be reviewed in Foundations. All of the future program material will build upon the essentials.
If you would like to be considered to enter directly into the Foundations-level programs, you'll be required to submit materials demonstrating your proficiency in the materials covered in the Essentials program.
Whether you want to build games, design products, prevent the next cyber attack, or create the next internet-breaking AI, we provide the training to bring your ideas to life.
Let's build your future together.