Updated in 2023
- What does Dataquest do?
- Who is Dataquest for?
- What does Dataquest cost?
- Ratings and reviews of Dataquest
- Alternatives to Dataquest
- How does Dataquest compare to Pathrise?
What does Dataquest do?
Dataquest offers online, 24-week project-based data science courses focused on data analysis using R and Python.
They have hundreds of courses on a variety of data science topics in varying difficulty levels. The goal is to teach specific tools through coding and hands-on projects. Some of the courses focus on the fundamentals. These are better for beginners. But, the majority are more intermediate or advanced. People with some background in the subject should take these.
Aspiring data scientists and those with some background who are looking to further advance their skills can also participate in Dataquest career or skill paths. These are curated sequences of courses, arranged to take students from zero to job-ready. The paths are based on the role. For example: Data analyst in R or Python (beginner), data scientist in Python (intermediate), and data engineer (intermediate).
Who is Dataquest for?
Current and aspiring data scientists can both benefit from the courses and paths offered by Dataquest. The bootcamp is more focused on people who are looking to start from the very beginning of their data science career. But, the classes can be helpful for data scientists looking to advance their skills.
What does Dataquest cost? How much work is involved?
Dataquest operates on a subscription model. Some of their courses are free. For the rest, users can choose to pay $33.25 per month for the premium plan. With this plan, users get access to the complete course catalog, 30+ guided projects, practice problems, and the Dataquest community.
Ratings and reviews
Dataquest is highly rated online. It is on a few top 10 bootcamp lists. Similarly, on CourseReport, the program is reviewed favorably by students. Many enjoyed the curriculum, especially the lack of videos. They felt that it forced them to learn by doing. They also like that you go at your own pace.
Most people compare Dataquest with DataCamp, another platform with a variety of data science courses. The main differences are the videos. While some people like that Dataquest does not have videos, other found it harder to engage with a completely text-based tool. For both platforms, and for almost all bootcamps and online education tools, it is important for students to practice on their own to really understand the topics.
Alternatives to Dataquest
For aspiring data scientists and those who are looking to continue their education on the subject, there are a fair number of alternatives.
- Metis has part-time introduction courses as well as onsite and online bootcamp options. Learn more about Metis in our review.
- DataCamp, Promotable, and Data Science Dojo are also options for current and aspiring data scientists. They offer individual courses, as well as in-depth tracks.
- Aspiring data scientists with graduate degrees in data-centric fields can check out The Data Incubator and Insight.
- If you are starting from scratch, you can consider the self-paced course at Data Science Dream Job. Or, try the part-time and full-time classes offered by Divergence Academy and K2 Data Science.
- Or, consider Kal Academy, which works with women and underrepresented groups on software engineering, web dev, and data.
- The Menon Labs fellowship helps people learn the skills to get a job in web dev, data, and product management.
- You can check out Udacity and Springboard. These are online educational platforms that students can use to brush up on the basics or advance their current tech skills. Read more about Udacity and Springboard in our reviews.
- edX is one of the largest online learning platforms. They have courses from top universities like Harvard and MIT as well as big tech companies like Microsoft. Learn more about edX in our review.
- Students can also check out Udemy, Coursera, and Pluralsight, which have hundreds of data science resources and classes.
- Likewise, 365 Data Science is a low-cost and low commitment option to learn data fundamentals.
More alternatives
- Free online resources, SoloLearn and the Mode tutorials have tracks in SQL, as well as other programming languages. Similarly, QuickStart has courses in web dev and data.
- Similarly, Codecademy is one of the most popular coding programs online. They provide free courses on many different programming languages. They also offer membership options ranging from $20 to $40 per month for more course options and greater support. Learn more about Codecademy in our review.
- For people looking to find a community of data scientists and projects to work on, Kaggle is a good alternative. They have 19,000 public datasets and 200,000 public notebooks for people who are looking to get started or contribute to data science projects in order to advance their skills or build up their portfolios.
- One of the most well known bootcamps is General Assembly. They offer full-time, part-time, and 1-day courses on a variety of topics like software engineering, data science, UX design, digital marketing, product management, and more. Read more about General Assembly in our review.
- The Tech Academy and Zip Code Wilmington are online and onsite bootcamps that help people learn the technical skills necessary to land a job as a (junior) software developer or data scientist.
- Coding Temple and RMOTR are Python data science and web development bootcamps, focusing on the fundamentals.
- People with experience who are looking to do machine learning projects as they look for jobs can consider SharpestMinds. In the same vein, FourthBrain has part-time, online machine learning courses.
- If you prefer in-person classes, check out Magnimind or Principal Analytics Prep, which have full-time and part-time data science courses.
For more information on data science resources including costs and reviews, check out our article.
How does Dataquest compare to Pathrise?
Dataquest offers courses for people who are interested in learning how to become a data scientist or people who want to advance their knowledge significantly. At Pathrise, job-seekers should already have a background in the field they are interested in so that they can participate in and fully benefit from our technical workshops, where we provide a more specific curriculum based on what they will see in their interviews.
All of our sessions at Pathrise are live, as well as recorded, so that job-seekers in our program can review them afterwards and continue learning. Our program is flexible, with only 2-4 hours of group sessions per week. Fellows can schedule 1-on-1 as needed. In addition, the topics are personalized to work on the skills that people struggle with the most.
Specifically, Pathrise focuses on technical and behavioral interviewing as well as resume and LinkedIn optimization, portfolio building and strengthening, cold email and reverse recruiting lessons, and negotiation templates and guidance. Job-seekers in Pathrise find a job, on average, within 3-5 months of joining the program.
Pathrise is a career accelerator that works with students and professionals 1-on-1 so they can land their dream job in tech. If you want to work with any of our mentors to get help with your technical and behavioral interviews or with any other aspect of the job search, join Pathrise.
Apply today.
