Develop Foundational Machine Learning Skills. Add Supervised, Unsupervised, and Deep Learning techniques to your Data Science toolkit.

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Geena Kim

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Part of the Master of Science in Data Science degree
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Machine Learning: Theory and Hands-on Practice with Python SpecializationUniversity of Colorado Boulder

What you will learn

Explore several classic Supervised and Unsupervised Learning algorithms and introductory Deep Learning topics.
Build and evaluate Machine Learning models utilizing popular Python libraries and compare each algorithm’s strengths and weaknesses.
Explain which Machine Learning models would be best to apply to a Machine Learning task based on the data’s properties.
Improve model performance by tuning hyperparameters and applying various techniques such as sampling and regularization.

Skills you will gain

About this Specialization

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In the Machine Learning specialization, we will cover Supervised Learning, Unsupervised Learning, and the basics of Deep Learning. You will apply ML algorithms to real-world data, learn when to use which model and why, and improve the performance of your models. Starting with supervised learning, we will cover linear and logistic regression, KNN, Decision trees, ensembling methods such as Random Forest and Boosting, and kernel methods such as SVM. Then we turn our attention to unsupervised methods, including dimensionality reduction techniques (e.g., PCA), clustering, and recommender systems. We finish with an introduction to deep learning basics, including choosing model architectures, building/training neural networks with libraries like Keras, and hands-on examples of CNNs and RNNs. This specialization can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Data Science (MS-DS) degree offered on the Coursera platform. The MS-DS is an interdisciplinary degree that brings together faculty from CU Boulder’s departments of Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Information Science, and others. With performance-based admissions and no application process, the MS-DS is ideal for individuals with a broad range of undergraduate education and/or professional experience in computer science, information science, mathematics, and statistics. Learn more about the MS-DS program at https://www.coursera.org/degrees/master-of-science-data-science-boulder.

Applied Learning Project

In this specialization, you will build a movie recommendation system, identify cancer types based on RNA sequences, utilize CNNs for digital pathology, practice NLP techniques on disaster tweets, and even generate your images of dogs with GANs. You will complete a final supervised, unsupervised, and deep learning project to demonstrate course mastery.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online courses

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Flexible Schedule

Set and maintain flexible deadlines.

Intermediate Level

Approximately 4 months to complete

Suggested pace of 9 hours/week

English

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Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online courses

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Flexible Schedule

Set and maintain flexible deadlines.

Intermediate Level

Approximately 4 months to complete

Suggested pace of 9 hours/week

English

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

Try Coursera for Business

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

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How the Specialization Works

Take Courses

A Coursera Specialization is a series of courses that helps you master a skill. To begin, enroll in the Specialization directly, or review its courses and choose the one you'd like to start with. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. It’s okay to complete just one course — you can pause your learning or end your subscription at any time. Visit your learner dashboard to track your course enrollments and your progress.

Hands-on Project

Every Specialization includes a hands-on project. You'll need to successfully finish the project(s) to complete the Specialization and earn your certificate. If the Specialization includes a separate course for the hands-on project, you'll need to finish each of the other courses before you can start it.

Earn a Certificate

When you finish every course and complete the hands-on project, you'll earn a Certificate that you can share with prospective employers and your professional network.

There are 3 Courses in this Specialization

Course1

Course 1

Introduction to Machine Learning: Supervised Learning

In this course, you’ll be learning various supervised ML algorithms and prediction tasks applied to different data. You’ll learn when to use which model and why, and how to improve the model performances. We will cover models such as linear and logistic regression, KNN, Decision trees and ensembling methods such as Random Forest and Boosting, kernel methods such as SVM.

Prior coding or scripting knowledge is required. We will be utilizing Python extensively throughout the course. In this course, you will need to have a solid foundation in Python or sufficient previous experience coding with other programming languages to pick up Python quickly. We will be learning how to use data science libraries like NumPy, pandas, matplotlib, statsmodels, and sklearn. The course is designed for programmers beginning to work with those libraries. Prior experience with those libraries would be helpful but not necessary. College-level math skills, including Calculus and Linear Algebra, are required. Our hope for this course is that the math will be understandable but not intimidating. This course can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Data Science (MS-DS) degree offered on the Coursera platform. The MS-DS is an interdisciplinary degree that brings together faculty from CU Boulder’s departments of Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Information Science, and others. With performance-based admissions and no application process, the MS-DS is ideal for individuals with a broad range of undergraduate education and/or professional experience in computer science, information science, mathematics, and statistics. Learn more about the MS-DS program at https://www.coursera.org/degrees/master-of-science-data-science-boulder.

Course2

Course 2

Unsupervised Algorithms in Machine Learning

One of the most useful areas in machine learning is discovering hidden patterns from unlabeled data. Add the fundamentals of this in-demand skill to your Data Science toolkit. In this course, we will learn selected unsupervised learning methods for dimensionality reduction, clustering, and learning latent features. We will also focus on real-world applications such as recommender systems with hands-on examples of product recommendation algorithms.

Prior coding or scripting knowledge is required. We will be utilizing Python extensively throughout the course. College-level math skills, including Calculus and Linear Algebra, are needed. It is recommended, but not required, to take the first course in the specialization, Introduction to Machine Learning: Supervised Learning. This course can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Data Science (MS-DS) degree offered on the Coursera platform. The MS-DS is an interdisciplinary degree that brings together faculty from CU Boulder’s departments of Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Information Science, and others. With performance-based admissions and no application process, the MS-DS is ideal for individuals with a broad range of undergraduate education and/or professional experience in computer science, information science, mathematics, and statistics. Learn more about the MS-DS program at https://www.coursera.org/degrees/master-of-science-data-science-boulder. Course logo image by Ryan Wallace on Unsplash.

Course3

Course 3

Introduction to Deep Learning

Deep Learning is the go-to technique for many applications, from natural language processing to biomedical. Deep learning can handle many different types of data such as images, texts, voice/sound, graphs and so on. This course will cover the basics of DL including how to build and train multilayer perceptron, convolutional neural networks (CNNs), recurrent neural networks (RNNs), autoencoders (AE) and generative adversarial networks (GANs). The course includes several hands-on projects, including cancer detection with CNNs, RNNs on disaster tweets, and generating dog images with GANs.

Prior coding or scripting knowledge is required. We will be utilizing Python extensively throughout the course. We recommend taking the two previous courses in the specialization, Introduction to Machine Learning: Supervised Learning and Unsupervised Algorithms in Machine Learning, but they are not required. College-level math skills, including Calculus and Linear Algebra, are needed. Some parts of the class will be relatively math intensive. This course can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Data Science (MS-DS) degree offered on the Coursera platform. The MS-DS is an interdisciplinary degree that brings together faculty from CU Boulder’s departments of Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Information Science, and others. With performance-based admissions and no application process, the MS-DS is ideal for individuals with a broad range of undergraduate education and/or professional experience in computer science, information science, mathematics, and statistics. Learn more about the MS-DS program at https://www.coursera.org/degrees/master-of-science-data-science-boulder. Course logo image by Ryan Wallace on Unsplash.

Instructor

Geena Kim

Adjunct Professor

Computer Science

9,520 Learners

3 Courses

Offered by

University of Colorado Boulder

Start working towards your Master's degree

This specialization is part of the 100% online Master of Science in Data Science from University of Colorado Boulder. If you are admitted to the full program, your courses count towards your degree learning.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the refund policy?
If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy.
Can I just enroll in a single course?
Yes! To get started, click the course card that interests you and enroll. You can enroll and complete the course to earn a shareable certificate, or you can audit it to view the course materials for free. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. Visit your learner dashboard to track your progress.
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.
Can I take the course for free?
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. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free. If you cannot afford the fee, you can apply for financial aid.
Is this course really 100% online? Do I need to attend any classes in person?
This course is completely online, so there’s no need to show up to a classroom in person. You can access your lectures, readings and assignments anytime and anywhere via the web or your mobile device.
How long does it take to complete the Specialization?
This specialization requires approximately 15 weeks of study
What background knowledge is necessary?
Calculus, Linear algebra, Python
Do I need to take the courses in a specific order?
We recommend that the courses in the specialization be taken in sequence.
Will I earn university credit for completing the Specialization?
Machine Learning is part of CU Boulder's Master of Science in Data Science (MS-DS) program. Learners enrolled in the degree program will earn three credits for successful completion of the specialization.
What will I be able to do upon completing the Specialization?
Upon completing this sequence, you will have learned several classic supervised and unsupervised learning algorithms along with an introduction to deep learning topics. You will know how to build and evaluate ML models, including neural networks, and tune hyperparameters utilizing popular Python libraries like NumPy, Pandas, Matplotlib, Sklearn, and Keras.

More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.

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Machine Learning: Theory and Hands-on Practice with Python Specialization

What you will learn

Skills you will gain

About this Specialization

Applied Learning Project