Data Science Principles Syllabus

Data Science Principles makes the fundamental topics in data science approachable and relevant by using real-world examples and
prompts learners to think critically about applying these new understandings to their own workplace. Get an overview of data science
with a nearly code- and math-free introduction to prediction, causality, visualization, data wrangling, privacy, and ethics.

Modules Case Studies Takeaways Key Exercises

• Explain why data collection is important • List sources of data

• Identify factors that may affect data • Discuss what can be done with
quality data
Module 1

Flu Detection • Recognize that not all data is numerical • Categorize data by various
Data 101 factors
• Explain how the organization of data
can affect the information you are able • Determine whether data is high-
to extract from it quality or not

• Understand the basic structure of a • Examine how weather forecasts

predictive algorithm work
Module 2

• Identify where human decisions shape • Use data to create a prediction

Predictions and Predicting Sepsis predictive systems
Recommendations • Sort types of training data
• Evaluate the success of a predictive • Simulate a predictive system
system

• Explain why it is important to establish • Classify relationships based on

causal relationships correlation or causation
• Identify barriers to establishing causal • Examine the relationship
Module 3

relationships in a variety of settings between variables

Cause and Effect The Google Tax
• Identify why randomization can help • Identify potential common
establish a causal relationship but also causes for correlated events
create other problems

• Explain why data privacy is important • Formulate data privacy

guidelines
• Describe what can constitute a violation
Module 4

of privacy • Discuss the risks of data re-

Data Governance Privacy and Facial identification
and Privacy Recognition • Critique existing privacy policies
• Evaluate existing data privacy
• Create a set of ethical tenets to guide
policies for ethics
data work at their own organizations

© Copyright 2021. President and Fellows of Harvard College. All Rights Reserved.
 Modules Case Studies Takeaways Key Exercises

• Identify sources of non-numerical • Perform a sentiment analysis

data • Determine what types of data
• Explain why it would be useful to use an algorithm cannot read
Module 5

Beyond the Burning Glass non-numerical data • Examine how computers

Spreadsheet and Text Data • Describe the differences in approach intake visual and audio data
for supervised and unsupervised • Experiment with facial
learning recognition
• Identify use cases for neural networks

• Describe some algorithms commonly • Examine how to evaluate the

used in data science
• Understand basic workhorse
algorithms in data science such as
regression
• Explain why and how such tools are
Module 6
performance of an algorithm
• Identify variables that can
be used to predict consumer
demand
• Select appropriate algorithms

Reducing food made substantially more complex for different purposes

Introduction to waste with Shelf
Algorithms Engine • Explain the crucial role humans
have in overseeing and maintaining
algorithms
• Explain some of the trade-offs
between more sophisticated
algorithms, including the costs of
running and evaluating their success

• Explain the importance of data • Identify and order the lifecycle

transformation and wrangling of data
• List the common technologies used • Define what “the cloud” is
Module 7

within data science ecosystems • Estimate the size of various

Data Science Harvard Link • Describe the connection between data streams
Ecosystems data science tasks, software tools, and
hardware tools
• Identify potential sources of
bottlenecks in the data science process

• Recognize a problem that an algorithm • Choose types of data to ingest

might be able to solve into an algorithm
• Recognize the challenges created • Evaluate the risks of solely
Module 8

by using data science tools in ways using an algorithm to make

Healthcare outside their intended use decisions
The Road Ahead Prioritization
• Identify steps within the data science • Discuss how algorithms can
process that need auditing reinforce biases
• Create a set of guidelines to
evaluate projects

Learning requirements: In order to earn a Certificate of Completion from Harvard Online and Harvard Business School Online, partici-
pants must thoughtfully complete all 8 modules, including associated quizzes, by stated deadlines.

© Copyright 2021. President and Fellows of Harvard College. All Rights Reserved.