This course is part of the Data Visualization with Tableau Specialization

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Data Visualization with Tableau SpecializationUniversity of California, Davis

About this Course

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In this course, you will analyze and apply essential design principles to your Tableau visualizations. This course assumes you understand the tools within Tableau and have some knowledge of the fundamental concepts of data visualization. You will define and examine the similarities and differences of exploratory and explanatory analysis as well as begin to ask the right questions about what’s needed in a visualization. You will assess how data and design work together, including how to choose the appropriate visual representation for your data, and the difference between effective and ineffective visuals. You will apply effective best practice design principles to your data visualizations and be able to illustrate examples of strategic use of contrast to highlight important elements. You will evaluate pre-attentive attributes and why they are important in visualizations. You will exam the importance of using the "right" amount of color and in the right place and be able to apply design principles to de-clutter your data visualization.

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

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Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Course 2 of 5 in the

Data Visualization with Tableau Specialization

Beginner Level

Comfortable working with data and datasets.

Approx. 12 hours to complete

English

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What you will learn

Examine and improve an ineffective visualization
Examine and improve an ineffective visualization
Apply visualization best practices
Create and design visualizations that work best for the target audience

Skills you will gain

Data Analysis
Tableau Software
Data Virtualization
Data Visualization (DataViz)

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Course 2 of 5 in the

Data Visualization with Tableau Specialization

Beginner Level

Comfortable working with data and datasets.

Approx. 12 hours to complete

English

Could your company benefit from training employees on in-demand skills?

Try Coursera for Business

Instructors

Instructor rating

4.37/5 (177 Ratings)

Govind Acharya

Principal Analyst

Budget and Institutional Analysis

77,605 Learners

3 Courses

Hunter Whitney

Sr. Consultant, Author, Instructor

Design Strategy and Data Visualization

85,697 Learners

3 Courses

Offered by

University of California, Davis

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Syllabus - What you will learn from this course

Content Rating88%(5,487 ratings)

Week1

Week 1

3 hours to complete

Getting Started in Effective and Ineffective Visuals

Welcome to this first module where we are going to start you off with background information about how the human brain perceives the world and then you will discover effective and ineffective visuals. By the end of this module, you will be able to recognize how the brain relates to visual design. You will know the difference between cognitive versus perceptual design. You will learn the various visualization options offered by Tableau and some of their advantages and disadvantages. You will discuss why how good ethical practices play in designing visualizations. You will also start to examine ineffective visualizations and learn how to improve them.

3 hours to complete

8 videos (Total 50 min), 2 readings, 2 quizzes

8 videos

Course Introduction3mThe Human Brain and Data Visualization5mCognitive vs Perceptual Design Distinction4mIntroduction of Effective and Ineffective Visuals1mTypes of Visualizations5mExamples of the Types of Visualizations in Tableau12mPracticing Good Ethics in Data Visualization9mIneffective Visuals and How to Improve Them7m

2 readings

Please Read: A Note from UC Davis10mTableau Desktop vs. Tableau Public1m

1 practice exercise

Module 1 Quiz30m

Week2

Week 2

3 hours to complete

Visual Perception and Cognitive Load

Welcome to this second module. This module will explore specific data visualization concepts that apply the concepts you learned about how the human brain works from the last module. In this module, you will be able to define cognitive load and what clutter means from a visualization perspective. You will be able to visually illustrate the principles of visual perception and use contrast to enhance your visualizations. You will be able to define and use pre-attentive attributes like color to make effective visualizations.

3 hours to complete

7 videos (Total 47 min)

Week3

Week 3

2 hours to complete

Design Best Practices and Exploratory Analysis

In this module, we revisit some of the concepts introduced from the previous module. You will be able to apply Gestalt Principles and leverage pre-attentive attributes in your visualizations. You will examine the role of accessibility and aesthetics play in your creations. Also, you will be able to define the ideas of exploratory and explanatory analysis and be able to normalize your data and identify outliers. Finally, you will be introduced to a challenging concept and construct a control chart to set you up to perform more advanced exploratory analysis.

2 hours to complete

10 videos (Total 70 min), 2 readings, 1 quiz

10 videos

Design Best Practices Introduction46sGestalt Principle: Proximity6mLeveraging Pre-Attentive Attributes10mAccessible Visualizations11mAesthetics7mDesign and Exploratory Analysis Introduction1mWhat is Exploratory and Explanatory Analysis?2mCase Study: Anscombe's Quartet10mIdentifying Outliers8mConstructing a Control Chart8m

2 readings

Missed Opportunities and Graphical Fails10mThe Challenger: An Information Disaster10m

1 practice exercise

Module 3 Quiz30m

Week4

Week 4

4 hours to complete

Design for Understanding

Making sense of large, multi-dimensional data sets can be a challenge for anyone. Your task as a designer is to make good decisions about encoding, arranging, and presenting data to reveal meaningful patterns and stories for your audiences. After completing this module, you will be able to design your visualizations for a target audience and with purpose. You will be able to identify the connection to between data, relationships and good visual design. You will implement additional design tools and tips into your visualizations.

4 hours to complete

9 videos (Total 54 min), 2 readings, 2 quizzes

9 videos

Design For Understanding Introduction5mKnow Your Audience(s)5mDesign For Purpose7mData, Relationships, and Design5mStatic Versus Interactive Visualizations8mMultiple, Connected View4mLanguage, Labeling, and Scales5mVisual Lies and Cognitive Bias11mFinal Thoughts1m

2 readings

Blogs and Articles About Data Visualization1hSelected Books About Data Visualization, Data Analysis, and Perception/Cognition30m

1 practice exercise

Module 4 Quiz30m

Reviews

4.4

329 reviews

5 stars
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3 stars
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2 stars
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1 star
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TOP REVIEWS FROM ESSENTIAL DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR TABLEAU

by TDJul 30, 2018

Learned a lot about knowing who the audience is (that I am designing a visualization for), also about use-of-color and de-cluttering my visualization.

by AKSep 27, 2017

Great course! I learned things I could imminently apply to my job, I would say that a solid base understanding of Tableau is needed for this class.

by RJOct 3, 2019

an excellent course and really enjoying the peer reviews I picked up a lot looking at others people work it has given me insight to improve my visualisations

by DVOct 24, 2020

I would give 5 stars overall IF the whole Week 4 Peer Reviewed project would have been better explained. 5 stars for the instructors making Tableau understandable.

View all reviews

About the Data Visualization with Tableau Specialization

In 2020 the world will generate 50 times the amount of data as in 2011. And 75 times the number of information sources (IDC, 2011). Being able to use this data provides huge opportunities and to turn these opportunities into reality, people need to use data to solve problems.

This Specialization, in collaboration with Tableau, is intended for newcomers to data visualization with no prior experience using Tableau. We leverage Tableau's library of resources to demonstrate best practices for data visualization and data storytelling. You will view examples from real world business cases and journalistic examples from leading media companies. By the end of this specialization, you will be able to generate powerful reports and dashboards that will help people make decisions and take action based on their business data. You will use Tableau to create high-impact visualizations of common data analyses to help you see and understand your data. You will apply predicative analytics to improve business decision making. The Specialization culminates in a Capstone Project in which you will use sample data to create visualizations, dashboards, and data models to prepare a presentation to the executive leadership of a fictional company.

Frequently Asked Questions

When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
What will I get if I subscribe to this Specialization?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
Is financial aid available?
Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.

More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.

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Essential Design Principles for Tableau

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