After 3 months I have finally completed the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate. It was long journey but not necessarily a difficult one. The two biggest criticisms I have for the certificate is that felt too simple and basic coming from a mega-corporation like Google and the focus on R instead of python. A lot of the course material felt like it could’ve came from a free course or a YouTube video not a $39/month course made by a trillion dollar company. Google could’ve went above and beyond with this course to show the future of online education but instead put out the same online course everyone else puts out. Basic videos and multiple choice quizzes is all this course amounts to. Even the Capstone Project which has the potential to be interesting and different is optional which is a shame that such a major component of the course can be skipped.
Another major criticism is that they chose to teach R instead of Python. This is a major missed opportunity as Python has been the one of the most popular programming language for a while now.
Python is more intuitive to newcomer than R and has a lot more resources for newcomers to use to learn and grow. While I get that R is made specifically for data analysis, python has more potential especially if the users wants to get into more complex topics like machine learning.
While I may seem like I am being overly negative on this course it is because it had the potential to be the stepping stone for people looking to become data analysts. It can be great for people looking to learn how to use and manipulate data but for people seeking a new career they will have to go beyond this course. For the more advanced skills like programming and SQL it will take a lot more to get to level where your skills are job ready.
So while I did enjoy this enjoy this course and learnt a lot, for the price there is better resources and there are a lot resources that are free that are better as well. I will be putting this certificate on my resume to get a extra boost in job hunting but to be actually job ready I have to do more than just this course.
Course with a lot of potential but held by back by the basic content.
