Preparing for Data Science
Data Science is a very hot area of employment right now. Being a Data Scientist basically means you are a programmer and a statistician/mathematician, and you can apply the knowledge of both worlds to tasks involving large amounts of data.
Freshman Math Courses
- Applied Calculus for Business [3 credits] [3CR]
- Applied Calculus for Life Science [3 credits] [3CR]
- Calculus I[4 credits] [4CR]
- Calculus II[4 credits] [4CR]
Sophomore Math Courses
- Multivariable Calculus III [4 credits] [4CR]
- Differential Equations [3 credits] [3CR]
- Linear Algebra [4 credits] [4CR]
- Probability Theory [3 credits] [3CR]
Honors Math Courses
- Honors Calculus I [5 credits] [5CR]
- Honors Calculus II [5 credits] [5CR]
- Honors Calculus I+II for Data Science [5 credits] [5CR]
- Honors Multivariable Calculus [5 credits] [5CR]
- Honors Differential Equations [4 credits] [4CR]
- Honors Linear Algebra [5 credits] [5CR]
- Honors Linear Algebra for Data Science [5 credits] [5CR]
Lower Division Math Courses
- Precalculus with Trigonometry [4 credits] [4CR]
- Introductory Statistics [4 credits] [4CR]
- Finite Mathematics [3 credits] [3CR]
- Discrete Mathematics [4 credits] [4CR]
Upper Division Math Courses
- Computational Abstract Algebra [4 credits] [4CR]
- Computational Differential Geometry [4 credits] [4CR]
Yeah, you need all of them! Calculus I, Calculus II, Multivariable Calculus, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, and Probability Theory (Calculus-Based Statistics). There are no short-cuts available if you really want to be a data scientist. You need to be both a serious mathematician and a master programmer.
There are many websites around that suggest you can get all of this mathematics knowledge just from the free MOOC courses available around the internet. This recommendation seems unrealistic - there are also lots of mathematics books available at the library and at used book stores, but trying to make your way through those math books by yourself .... that is a tall order.
Plus, if you do take the MOOC route and then you wish to actually complete a Data Science certificate or academic degree, proving that you have the requisite mathematics knowledge is ... not as convincing as having these academic courses completed and showing on a university transcript!
Here is a video on Data Science and our Distance Calculus courses course:
Preparing for Data Science with Distance Calculus
MOOCs, Academic Credits, and Distance Calculus
Distance Calculus - Student Reviews
Date Posted: Sep 20, 2020
Review by: Genevieve P.
Courses Completed: Applied Calculus
Review: I found out from my grad school after being accepted that I needed a Calculus course before starting their MBA program. I had less than 6 weeks to do it (and as a non-STEM undergrad no less). The video lectures were informative, the pre-calc refresher was great to get re-conditioned, and the asynchronous format worked so well as I did this at night/weekends after work. I completed it in 4 weeks. Professor Curtis was extremely responsive, graded assignments quickly, and a supportive guide providing constructive feedback to me to excel at the assignments. I highly recommend this course for those who need a pre-req in a hurry or like learning on their own schedule. Thanks, Distance Calculus and Professor Curtis!
Transferred Credits to: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Date Posted: Jan 12, 2020
Review by: Anonymous
Courses Completed: Calculus I
Review: This course is amazing! I took it as a requirement for admission to an MBA program, and couldn't have been happier with the quality and rigor of the course. I previously took calculus two times (at a public high school and then a large public university commonly cited as a "public ivy"), this course was by far the best and *finally* made the concepts click. Previously I had no idea what was going on because terrible PhD students were teaching the course and saying stuff like "a derivative is the slope of a tangent line" - ??? but what does that mean ???, but the instructors in the Shorter University course explain everything in ways where it FINALLY made sense (e.g., "imagine a roller coaster hitting the top of a hill, there's a moment where it shifts momentum and you're not accelerating or decelerating, that's what a 0 rate of change is - that's when the derivative would be zero"). They explain everything in multiple ways and relate it to other concepts. It all made perfect sense when I finally had a good instructor. Really recommend this class
Transferred Credits to: The Wharton School, UPenn
Date Posted: Sep 6, 2020
Review by: Mark L.
Courses Completed: Applied Calculus
Review: Great course. Because of this class I was able to meet the entry requirements for my EMBA program on a tight time window in addition to sharpening math skills from classes taken over 15 years ago!
Transferred Credits to: MIT