Designed for the not-yet-experienced programmer, this course will provide you with a structured foundation for developing complex programs in the fields of computer science or data science. If you are a self-taught programmer with scattered bits of understanding, or a complete novice, this is the course for you.
Here, you will gain a thorough understanding of how to write programs to solve problems, through structured, scaffolded, hands-on exercises with many examples and opportunities to practice. You will learn the foundational concepts of computer science by developing programs in the python programming language (one of the most commonly used languages). We will also use many of the most common python packages -- why reinvent the wheel when you can use well-tested, flexible, pre-built solutions? While these packages can save significant time, it is also important to understand how they do their magic, and if your particular problem is the right fit to be solved by these potential tools. You will encounter the following python packages: numpy, scipy, matplotlib, pandas, seaborn, re (for regular expressions), textblob, nltk, and others. In the process of learning how to program, we will explore different topics at the introductory level, including natural language processing and data analytics. By the end of this course, you will be confident in your ability to solve a problem using the python programming language -- and how to verify that your solution is accurate.
ER
Very gentle, but gives a firm grounding in the absolute essentials of Python programming.
TM
I'm a web designer with some comfort with JavaScript, but not a full fledged programmer. I got a lot out of this intro course!
NE
A terrific introduction to coding--and a broad one at that--for folks with no background whatsoever.
ME
Well run course. A professor who really wants you to succeed.
Showing: 10 of 10
For beginner with no knowledge of programming do not enroll in this course.
Great teacher!! Would love to see more courses by her, she was very personable and made even stuff I already knew more understandable (like the boxes for stuff stored in memory). Great teachers like this, who know how to break a subject down so it can be easily understood, and do it in an engaging way are a treasure! My only kind of complaint is that I thought there was going to be more to this course.. it ends fairly abrubtly at the 5 week.. and I'm not sure where to go for the rest (as there were other topics, exams etc. referenced in the lectures)
I have done other Python courses but I really enjoyed this course. The videos were creat and the live coding sessions were very helpful. This course has inspired me to enroll for the Ball state University's Masters in Computer Science. I would recommend this course for anyone who wants to start learning a programming language
I'm a web designer with some comfort with JavaScript, but not a full fledged programmer. I got a lot out of this intro course!
I had no expectations from this course except for picking up some basic skills in Python programming. The course was well structured and well paced. The instructor Jennifer Coy was engaging and articulated everything perfectly - I could not have asked for a better introduction to something as scary as programming. Very easy 5-star recommendation!
Informative and covers many main essentials to Python programming. This is a great introductory to the full course at the Master's Level. Highly recommend!
A terrific introduction to coding--and a broad one at that--for folks with no background whatsoever.
Very gentle, but gives a firm grounding in the absolute essentials of Python programming.
Well run course. A professor who really wants you to succeed.
very good background for the MSC