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There are 6 modules in this course
This course, which is designed to serve as the first course in the Recommender Systems specialization, introduces the concept of recommender systems, reviews several examples in detail, and leads you through non-personalized recommendation using summary statistics and product associations, basic stereotype-based or demographic recommendations, and content-based filtering recommendations.
After completing this course, you will be able to compute a variety of recommendations from datasets using basic spreadsheet tools, and if you complete the honors track you will also have programmed these recommendations using the open source LensKit recommender toolkit.
In addition to detailed lectures and interactive exercises, this course features interviews with several leaders in research and practice on advanced topics and current directions in recommender systems.
This brief module introduces the topic of recommender systems (including placing the technology in historical context) and provides an overview of the structure and coverage of the course and specialization.
What's included
2 videos1 reading
Show info about module content
2 videos•Total 41 minutes
Intro to Recommender Systems•28 minutes
Intro to Course and Specialization•13 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Notes on Course Design and Relationship to Prior Courses•10 minutes
Introducing Recommender Systems
Module 2•4 hours to complete
Module details
This module introduces recommender systems in more depth. It includes a detailed taxonomy of the types of recommender systems, and also includes tours of two systems heavily dependent on recommender technology: MovieLens and Amazon.com. There is an introductory assessment in the final lesson to ensure that you understand the core concepts behind recommendations before we start learning how to compute them.
What's included
9 videos2 readings2 assignments
Show info about module content
9 videos•Total 147 minutes
Movielens Tour•7 minutes
Preferences and Ratings•17 minutes
Predictions and Recommendations•17 minutes
Taxonomy of Recommenders I•28 minutes
Taxonomy of Recommenders II•22 minutes
Tour of Amazon.com•22 minutes
Recommender Systems: Past, Present and Future•17 minutes
Introducing the Honors Track•8 minutes
Honors: Setting up the development environment•10 minutes
Non-Personalized and Stereotype-Based Recommenders
Module 3•10 hours to complete
Module details
In this module, you will learn several techniques for non- and lightly-personalized recommendations, including how to use meaningful summary statistics, how to compute product association recommendations, and how to explore using demographics as a means for light personalization. There is both an assignment (trying out these techniques in a spreadsheet) and a quiz to test your comprehension.
The next topic in this course is content-based filtering, a technique for personalization based on building a profile of personal interests. Divided over two weeks, you will learn and practice the basic techniques for content-based filtering and then explore a variety of advanced interfaces and content-based computational techniques being used in recommender systems.
What's included
8 videos
Show info about module content
8 videos•Total 156 minutes
Introduction to Content-Based Recommenders•24 minutes
TFIDF and Content Filtering•24 minutes
Content-Based Filtering: Deeper Dive•26 minutes
Entree Style Recommenders -- Robin Burke Interview•14 minutes
Case-Based Reasoning -- Interview with Barry Smyth•14 minutes
Dialog-Based Recommenders -- Interview with Pearl Pu•21 minutes
Search, Recommendation, and Target Audiences -- Interview with Sole Pera•12 minutes
Beyond TFIDF -- Interview with Pasquale Lops•22 minutes
Content-Based Filtering -- Part II
Module 5•6 hours to complete
Module details
The assessments for content-based filtering include an assignment where you compute three types of profile and prediction using a spreadsheet and a quiz on the topics covered. The assignment is in three parts -- a written assignment, a video intro, and a "quiz" where you provide answers from your work to be automatically graded.
We close this course with a set of mathematical notation that will be helpful as we move forward into a wider range of recommender systems (in later courses in this specialization).
What's included
2 videos1 reading
Show info about module content
2 videos•Total 45 minutes
Unified Mathematical Model•13 minutes
Psychology of Preference & Rating -- Interview with Martijn Willemsen•32 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Related Readings•10 minutes
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Learner reviews
4.4
660 reviews
5 stars
60.51%
4 stars
29.04%
3 stars
6.35%
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2.11%
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PD
5·
Reviewed on Jun 24, 2017
Great, thorough introduction with tracks for both Java programmers and non-programmers.
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IP
5·
Reviewed on Sep 18, 2016
it's a fantastic course that gives you a good idea of what the objectives of recommender systems are and some intuition on the way how it can be accomplished.
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PS
5·
Reviewed on Dec 10, 2016
As a software engineer with computer science background I found that course enhancing my knowledge. I'm going to continue the specialization.
How does this course relate to the prior versions of "Introduction to Recommender Systems"?
This specialization is a substantial extension and update of our original introductory course. It involves about 60% new and extended lectures and mostly new assignments and assessments. This course specifically has added material on stereotyped and demographic recommenders and on advanced techniques in content-based recommendation.
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. 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.
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.