Why a College Student Enrolled in a General Assembly Short Course

Why would a college student add a short course to an already busy schedule? For university student Jade Looi, enrolling in General Assembly’s Data Analytics Short Course was a smart move to boost her job prospects. With many job listings requiring data analytics skills, Jade saw the short course as a practical way to gain hands-on experience while still focusing on her degree. Jade shares how the 10-week, live online General Assembly short course exceeded her expectations and helped her develop technical skills and career clarity. 

You are enrolled in a mathematics degree program at the University of Birmingham. Why was now the right time to enroll in a data analytics short course?

I had some extra time this year, so I thought I would learn a new skill. At the time, I was also applying to a lot of jobs and many of them required experience in data analytics, which got me interested in the field. General Assembly was highly recommended to me by a family friend who did the Python short course that they offer. That process led me to choose the data analytics short course.

What were your goals when you enrolled in the short course at General Assembly? 

First, I enrolled to boost my employability. I've seen requirements for data analytics tools like SQL and Tableau on a lot of job postings, so I wanted to develop my knowledge of these areas. I also enrolled because I wanted insight into the data analytics career. As a college student, I'm early in my career and figuring out what I want to do in the future. I want to gain as much experience as possible. This short course was a really good way for me to figure out if data analytics is a potential career for me.

There are so many online courses about data analytics — What sets General Assembly's Data Analytics Short Course apart from the rest?

This course aligned with what I was looking for. It's 10 weeks long, with two evening sessions a week, and that gave me a lot of time to focus on my college courses as well. I didn't want a self-taught course because I learn better when there are deadlines and projects. This course pushed me to learn at quite a fast pace, which I probably wouldn't have done just by myself. I also liked that the course covered 3 different tools: Excel SQL, and Tableau. I found that other online courses only focused on a single tool.

Why did you choose the short course over General Assembly’s Data Analytics Bootcamp?

I chose the short course because the bootcamp didn’t work with my schedule. As a university student, I wanted a part-time course I could balance with my degree. If I had more time, I definitely would have done the bootcamp.

Did you need to know anything about data analytics to get into this short course? How math-heavy was this course?

You could be a complete beginner at data analytics, which was great because I was. I was a bit scared when applying, wondering if they would expect me to know how to use these tools, but the course starts from scratch. It’s also not math-heavy. There are some logic skills that you will need, especially when you’re working in SQL and a bit in Tableau. You certainly don't need to have a math degree to enroll.

What did you learn in the Data Analytics Short Course? 

Over 10 weeks I gained experience with Excel, SQL, and Tableau through hands-on projects that followed the data analytics workflow. I also learned how to effectively communicate insights through data storytelling, which I had an opportunity to work on when presenting my projects. It's easy to get overwhelmed by how much there is to do with a big data set, but General Assembly taught us how to approach and analyze them efficiently by following the data analytics workflow to break it down into manageable parts. 

What types of projects did you work on in the short course?

We worked on three main projects that we had to present to the class. General Assembly provided data sets for the projects, but you could also use your own. For one of my projects, I looked at trends in Airbnb data. I had to create this fee structure for new hosts, and it was really interesting to see what factors in Airbnb contribute to the cost, like location or amenities. 

Who were the instructors for this course? 

Our main instructor was Harry Long, and he was a great teacher. He was easy to talk to, and I believe he is a data scientist. He was really thorough with the content, and he would make sure to check in with us throughout the course because each class was quite fast-paced. He was keen to make sure we understood everything, and it was great because he offered office hours to people. Outside of class hours, we could set up meetings with him and talk to him about our projects. This was really helpful, and I definitely took advantage of it when I needed it.

What was your cohort like for this short course?

There were a lot of people from around the UK, and also a few from America. It was great to get to know people from different backgrounds and different ages. I was the only college student in my group, so it was cool to talk to people further in their careers. Everyone was really lovely and easy to talk to — I even met up with people virtually outside of class to work on projects together. Everyone in my cohort was using the course to upskill, and a lot of them had had the course offered to them by the company they were working with.

If you were struggling with an assignment or project, how did you receive support?

Office hours with the instructor was the main way to get help, and you could ask for help in the live class sessions. I also liked asking the rest of my cohort because there's always a chance that someone else is struggling or someone knows the answer. I tried to connect with my cohort as much as I could. 

How many hours per week did you dedicate to the short course?

I committed around eight hours a week to the course content, and maybe more if I was working on a project. Eight hours sounds like a lot of time to commit if you're balancing other things, and there were times I found it hard to balance with my degree. The projects in the course were so easy to get engaged with that time flew by!

Do you receive career support in the short course?

Not career support, but they do have things like alumni newsletters and LinkedIn groups for short course students so you can stay connected with other graduates. 

What are the benefits of taking a General Assembly short course while you're still in college?

It allowed me to explore my interests, and it was a great way to try a new skill without committing to the career path. The opportunity to network with different people was really useful, too. In my course, I met people from different careers; some of them were still trying to figure out their career and some of them loved it. It was nice to have different perspectives about what people do for jobs and how data analytics can fit into different careers. This course also gave me specific technical and industry skills that will boost my employability and make me more hireable.

At this point, was General Assembly worth it for you?

I got so much more out of the course than I initially expected! Going into it, my main goal was to learn about SQL, Excel, and Tableau and gain a general insight about data analytics. What I ended up with was developing a load of additional skills that I could apply to future roles, whether or not those are in data analytics. Just learning the data analytics mindset was really useful!

What is your advice to incoming students on how to make the most of this course? Is there anything you wish you knew before day one of the course?

I would tell them to manage their time effectively and stay on top of deadlines because given the fast pace of the course, it's easy to get behind. Make sure you allocate enough time to the course and your other commitments.

During class, be as open as you can if you're struggling with something. It's likely that other people are struggling with the exact same thing! Don't be afraid to ask questions and use office hours if you feel that that'd be helpful.

Find out more and read General Assembly reviews on Course Report. This article was produced by the Course Report team in partnership with General Assembly.