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Building Smarter Data Pipelines: SQL, Spark, Kafka & GenAI Specialization
Coursera Instructor Network

Building Smarter Data Pipelines: SQL, Spark, Kafka & GenAI Specialization

Build Scalable Data Engineering Systems. Learn to design, implement, and optimize data pipelines using industry-standard tools and frameworks

Caio Avelino
Starweaver
Soheil Haddadi

Instructors: Caio Avelino

Included with Coursera Plus

Get in-depth knowledge of a subject

(5 reviews)

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

1 month at 10 hours a week
Flexible schedule
Earn a career credential
Share your expertise with employers
Get in-depth knowledge of a subject

(5 reviews)

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

1 month at 10 hours a week
Flexible schedule
Earn a career credential
Share your expertise with employers

What you'll learn

  • Design and implement scalable data ingestion, processing, and storage systems using Apache Kafka and Spark

  • Build high-performance data pipelines integrating cloud platforms, databases, and generative AI technologies

  • Apply data engineering best practices for enterprise-scale analytics, optimization, and real-time processing

Overview

What’s included

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Taught in English
Recently updated!

August 2025

26 practice exercises

Advance your subject-matter expertise

  • Learn in-demand skills from university and industry experts
  • Master a subject or tool with hands-on projects
  • Develop a deep understanding of key concepts
  • Earn a career certificate from Coursera Instructor Network

Specialization - 8 course series

What you'll learn

  • Analyse the architecture and components of data pipelines to understand their impact on data flow and processing efficiency.

  • Implement robust ETL processes, for scalability and maintainability.

  • Analyze big data challenges and introduce Hadoop ecosystem tools (HDFS, MapReduce, Hive, Pig, and Spark) for data processing tasks.

Skills you'll gain

Big Data, Extract, Transform, Load, Data Pipelines, Apache Hadoop, Data Processing, Data-Driven Decision-Making, Data Warehousing, Apache Hive, Apache Spark, Data Integration, Scalability, Data Transformation, Data Analysis, and Data Management

What you'll learn

  • Identify and describe the components and importance of data ecosystems.

  • Understand the basic structure and function of data pipelines.

  • Recognize the steps involved in ETL workflows and their role in data handling.

  • Gain an introductory knowledge of big data and the application of Apache Spark.

Skills you'll gain

Extract, Transform, Load, Apache Spark, Data Pipelines, Dataflow, Big Data, Scalability, Data Infrastructure, Data Integration, Data Management, Data Processing, and Data Architecture

What you'll learn

  • Explain the importance of data warehousing in business intelligence.

  • Design and implement effective schema designs for data warehouses.

  • Implement ETL processes to load and transform data into a data warehouse.

  • Apply performance optimization techniques to enhance data warehouse efficiency.

Skills you'll gain

Star Schema, Extract, Transform, Load, Snowflake Schema, Data Warehousing, Performance Tuning, Data Modeling, Data Management, Database Design, Scalability, Data Integration, Business Intelligence, Databases, and Data Transformation

What you'll learn

  • Analyze and tune SQL queries to enhance SQL performance and reduce application latency.

  • Evaluate effective database index and maintenance task strategies to improve efficiency.

  • Monitor the performance of troubleshooting techniques used for resolving common SQL server issues.

  • Apply best practices for SQL Server performance to ensure consistent and reliable operations.

Skills you'll gain

SQL, Microsoft SQL Servers, Performance Tuning, Database Management, Scalability, Network Troubleshooting, System Monitoring, Stored Procedure, Application Performance Management, and Database Design

What you'll learn

  • Show understanding of the fundamentals of cloud architecture, including key components like virtual machines, storage, and networking.

  • Identify and implement core cloud design patterns such as Load Balancer, Circuit Breaker, and Auto-Scaling to ensure scalability and reliability.

  • Demonstrate advanced cloud design patterns, including Microservices Architecture, Event-Driven Architecture, and Serverless Computing.

Skills you'll gain

Load Balancing, Microservices, Serverless Computing, Cloud Computing Architecture, Cloud Infrastructure, Scalability, Cloud Security, Software Architecture, Cloud Computing, Cloud Platforms, Infrastructure As A Service (IaaS), Event-Driven Programming, Cloud Applications, Software Design Patterns, and Cloud Services

What you'll learn

  • Identify the capabilities of GenAI for basic role specific, Data Engineer functions.

  • Examine real-world applications to leverage GenAI for streamlining work and fostering innovation in Data Engineering functions.

  • Deploy strategies and tactics to responsibly integrate GenAI into data engineering practices, while maintaining human oversight and accountability.

Skills you'll gain

Generative AI, Responsible AI, Data Transformation, Database Management, Data Pipelines, Data Quality, Data Modeling, Data Ethics, Prompt Engineering, AI Product Strategy, and SQL

What you'll learn

  • Describe Apache Kafka's architecture and its components, enhancing data pipeline efficiency.

  • Configure and manage Kafka clusters, ensuring high availability and fault tolerance.

  • Apply (Create and use) topics, publishers, and subscribers to facilitate real-time data exchange.

  • Implement basic stream processing applications using Kafka Streams, addressing real-world data challenges.

Skills you'll gain

Real Time Data, Scalability, Apache Kafka, Data Processing, Data Pipelines, Operational Databases, Performance Tuning, and System Monitoring

What you'll learn

Skills you'll gain

Automation, Data Cleansing, Data Quality, Generative AI, Data Validation, Data Processing, Data Transformation, Artificial Intelligence, Alteryx, OpenAI, Tensorflow, and Responsible AI

Earn a career certificate

Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV. Share it on social media and in your performance review.

Instructors

Caio Avelino
6 Courses6,197 learners
Starweaver
Coursera Instructor Network
448 Courses828,977 learners
Soheil Haddadi
Coursera Instructor Network
5 Courses2,745 learners
Karlis Zars
28 Courses47,140 learners
Luca Berton
Coursera Instructor Network
8 Courses10,634 learners
Christopher Klaus
Coursera Instructor Network
16 Courses9,465 learners
Dr. Beju Rao
Coursera Instructor Network
5 Courses1,792 learners

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