Data Science is a rapidly evolving and exciting discipline. Broadly speaking, Data Science is an inter-disciplinary practice, comprising of maths, stats and analytical thinking. Data science bootcamps are a great place to furnish yourself with these skills and achieve that much-coveted data science job.
Data Scientists are in High Demand.
As digitalisation disrupts all areas of industry, the role of the Data Scientist will only grow in demand.
Business will have to use data to make decisions, and it is exciting to anticipate a time when processes across the whole business spectrum will be optimised by Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and data analytics.
In evidence for the demand of these data dynamos, the average Data Scientist salary according to Glassdoor, currently stands at £42,000. Of course, this is only the average.
At the top end, a well-established career in Data Science could look to earn you an annual salary in the region of £100,000. No wonder it’s been dubbed “The sexiest job in Tech”!
Many Data Scientists hold a PhD or a masters degree in a numerate discipline. Think maths, stats, economics, operations research and of course computer science.
Employers would also offer bonus points to those professionals who have been exposed to Big Data or large datasets.
Strong numerate academic achievement as well as technical skills are key!
Academic achievement alone will not get you a job in data science. You need technical skills: Python, SQL, R to name a few.
If you aren’t currently in the possession of the skills needed to get involved, then never fear! There are definitely other avenues to explore. Bootcamps and further educational opportunities are springing up everywhere.
This is our comprehensive guide to the best Data Science bootcamps in the UK.
The Best Data Science Bootcamps in the UK.
Who’s on the list…
1. S2Ds
2. Cambridge Spark
3. faculty.ai
4. General Assembly
5. Data Science Dojo
6. Framework Training
7. JBI Training
8. Step Functioning
9. Learning Tree
10. University of Warwick
11. The Department for Continuing Education at The University of Oxford
S2Ds
Making the transition into Data Science can be difficult if you’ve never worked in the industry before. Science2DataScience offers those professionals already in possession of an analytical PhD or MSc a way into Data Science.
This course has theoretical and practical applications as well as a strong foundation in professional development through its substantial networking opportunities.
This course uses commercial data science problems from a range of different companies.
Real-time data from companies of varying sizes are used as the basis of the syllabus. It’s sink or swim time, as students are fully immersed in the data from day one.
Not for beginners, this course requires at least an MSc in an analytical science, and it is desirable that attendees will already have skills in programming languages such as Python, Java or R.
It is also preferable that you will have had exposure to maths and stats.
Students will need to be eligible to live or stay in the UK for the duration of the 5 week course.
The registration fee for this London based data science course is £800 and is also available online via the virtual programme.
Cambridge Spark
Cambridge Spark is 6 month, part-time data science course is held over the course of 10 weekends in London.
It has been designed to equip students with the most relevant data science skills through hands-on training, independent learning and collaborative projects.
Over the duration of the course, attendees will work with one to one mentors and build professional projects based on real-world data.
The completion of which will culminate in an industry recognised certification.
Although no educational criteria is specified, applicants are required to have elementary Python programming knowledge alongside experience with the command line, basic probability and linear algebra.
The course offers 2 different tracks; The Professional Development Track and The Data Science Career Track.
The latter is probably the more favourable, offering career support and opportunities to network with hiring companies.
faculty.ai
This Data Science fellowship offers a full time, 8-week bootcamp based in London.
It welcomes PhD graduates and software engineers to improve and apply their skills through an intense data science and data engineering curriculum.
Attendees will have the opportunity to work on a large project using real-time data from a leading innovate European based corporation.
The project will result in a “Demo Day” where fellows are expected to present their work to leading London data scientists, business leaders and hiring managers.
A great platform to show off what you have learned! Maybe your future employer will be in the audience!?
General Assembly
This is a full time, immersive London based data science course. It is held over 12 weeks and is definitely a career accelerator.
Throughout the programme, attendees will work on projects analysing data sets using real-world problems. At the close of the course, students will showcase their findings using statistics, programming, data modelling and business knowledge.
Also on offer is job and career coaching from industry experts and networking opportunities with a host of global companies. Attendees are also assigned an in-house career coach designed to help find work after completion of the course.
Such a comprehensive and holistic approach does not come cheap though. This particular data science bootcamp will set you back a whopping £10,000.
Data Science Dojo
Data Science Dojo is a global company which offers a full time, 5-day data science bootcamp. Applicants to this course must be knowledgeable in at least 1 programming language.
Students will cover all areas of data science including data exploration, visualisation and feature engineering.
They will use algorithms and Big Data Engineering to complete an Internet of Things project.
There are different packages available and will cost the sterling equivalent of approximately $3000.
Framework Training
These data science bootcamps offer both Data Science and Big Data training across a wide range of London locations. They comprise of 1, 2 or 3-day courses and start off within a price range of £1,500 – £2,000.
Students will work with the R and Python programming languages and receive tuition in data visualisation, SQL basics and Data Warehouse fundamentals. The syllabus also comprises modules in Big Data, NoSQL, cloud and Machine Learning to name but a few.
JBI Training
JBI Training offer a range of courses aimed at professionals of every level. It uses the R programming language and offers a comprehensive introduction to Data Science, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
Students will use open source tools to cover the following concepts within the Data Science ecosystem:
- Simple coding with R
- Unstructured data
- Categorising data
- The prediction of outcomes with regression techniques
- Detecting patterns in complex data
- Learning from data examples with neural networks
As well as the theory and practical application of these concepts, students will also learn to implement analytics within their current role and organisation.
Step Functioning
This is a 3-week Data Science bootcamp, a place on which will cost in the region of £1,000.
It uses Python to cover the theory and practice behind advanced machine learning and also delves into such concepts as data wrangling and clustering.
This course is practical, project-based and is aimed at those professionals who are business orientated with an analytical mindset.
Class sizes are small, with a maximum of 10 students per class. This low tutor/student ratio means that attendees get a lot of bang for their buck!
Any students who may be unfamiliar with the Python language before the course will be given help to learn it.
That being said, organisers do recommend that attendees do have some prior programming experience. As with many Data Science bootcamps, it is also highly advantageous to have a significant competency with number and mathematics.
Learning Tree
This ‘no experience necessary’ Data Science bootcamp is designed with the beginner in mind.
It uses open source tools and covers all concepts across the Data Science pipeline. Indeed, the ultimate aim is to enable a more analytical use of data within the organisation of the student.
Among a wider curriculum, the syllabus covers an introduction to R, the use of unstructured data and learning from data via neural networks.
It is a 5-day course and commands a £2,445 price tag.
University of Warwick
Data Science: Foundations of Data Analysis is a summer school program offered by The University of Warwick. This £2457 course takes place across 3 weeks.
Students can expect to study the design, development and analysis of software and hardware used to solve data-based problems within a variety of business, scientific and social contexts.
Attendees will then go on to examine how raw data can be analysed to develop a deeper understanding of these issues.
Patterns and structures within data will also be examined, and how we may go on to make predictions and make decisions as a result.
In order to get the most of this bootcamp, it is advisable for students to have an understanding of algebra and calculus before attending.
The Department for Continuing Education at The University of Oxford
The Overview of Data Science course is the more basic of the two, covering the possibilities and concepts of Data Science.
It looks at algorithms and the use of software across the discipline and how we may use these to analyse data and implement strategy accordingly.
It is assumed that students wishing to enrol in this course will be highly numerate and have an interest in data and its possibilities.
This course involves 10 sessions and costs £235 to attend.
The Applied Data Science course is slightly more expensive and with that more detailed.
Over the course of 10, 2-hour meetings students will look at concepts such as cloud-based Big Data, Data Cleaning, Data visualisation, Data Analysis and the principles of usability. This course will cost £235.
Finally…
As is evident from the listings above, the scope for bolstering your CV into Data Scientist territory is varied and wide-ranging.
We have tried to include Data Science bootcamps that suit every budget, ability, timeframe and end goal.
It goes without saying that should you wish to upskill via online platforms using tutorials and learning hubs your options are more varied.
Many of these are free and the modules quick to complete. It is worth mentioning, however, that while a fantastic resource, they do have limitations. Should you be a beginner with little or no experience you are probably better suited to a taught, onsite syllabus with access to tutor guidance and support.
The networking opportunities of location-based training cannot go unmentioned either. Exposure to hiring managers and esteemed Data Scientists is not something that online portals can provide.
We hope you have found this guide informative and useful. However, should you have unanswered queries or questions, head over to the candidate resource guide on our blog where we offer more advice on how to get a job in Data Science.
Alternatively, please feel free to reach out to one of our specialist recruitment consultants.
We’d love to have a chat about how we can support your data science aspirations. We look forward to hearing from you!
ASI Data Science, whom you mention above, is now faculty.ai
Great, thanks for the heads up Colin!