Data Visualization Fast Track Learning
This information was first posted in Storytelling with Data’s Member Spotlight in May 2021. Check out the original post to read the feedback Lisa received from SWD Community members.
Learning data visualization on the job works well if you have someone on your team who can mentor you and teach you the skills you need to know. But if you and your team members have no formal data visualization training and you all decide that pie charts are what everyone wants to see (check out the meme below from The Office),
No Pam! This pie chart is scary! The bar chart wins.
The pie chart and bar chart images are examples from Death to Pie Charts.
For more data viz fun using humor from The Office, check out this BuzzFeed-style quiz.
then you could find yourself trapped in an unhealthy echo chamber. What's your escape plan? If you are the first person in your organization to research and develop this new area of knowledge, how do you go about it?
One option is to explore data visualization online tool tutorials and tool-based book tutorials. This option seems reasonable on the surface but doesn't usually cover the foundational history, theory, and current thinking on using data visualization properly.
A second option is to pursue a bachelor's degree or a master's degree focusing on data visualization. This option is costly and takes more time than many people are willing to invest.
And a third option, teaching yourself data visualization, is possible but requires a person to find a recommended roadmap and take the journey alone. This approach takes an incredible amount of self-discipline. Without an accountability partner and receiving regular feedback, it's easy to go off-track and blaze new unintended trails that can get a person lost.
Enrolling in a certificate program such as the University of Washington Data Visualization Certificate Program provides an excellent framework for learning data visualization history, theory, and best practices. You also develop technical skills to help you on the job. (These skills can also prepare you to pass a tool certification exam).
Here are other benefits to completing a certificate program in data visualization:
It holds students accountable: Students agree to attend live class sessions (usually online, with 60% live session attendance required to pass the course). Assignments and final projects include a due date, so students don't fall behind in their studies.
It's convenient: Online classes allow students to log into sessions from anywhere in the world.
It's engaging: Ideally, students will use a dual monitor set up to display the instructor's shared screen on one monitor and the data visualization tool open and ready to use on the student's second monitor. Students then follow the steps from the instructor's live demo to learn how to build a variety of charts and they get real-time help along the way if something goes wrong.
It's cost-effective: Certificate programs are affordable. Some programs offer a data visualization tool license (e.g., Tableau Desktop License at approximately $70/mo.) that helps offset the program's already low cost.
It's practical: The program highlights data visualization knowledge and practices while giving students the training they need to get good at using tools to build charts, dashboards, and data stories. Even though our program uses Tableau, the skills learned can be transferred using other tools such as Power BI and Excel.
It's flexible: The certificate program includes three courses to complete. In the rare occurrence that a student faces a crisis and needs to take a break from the program after the first or second course, they can pick up where they left off later in the year.
It helps students quickly build a network in the field: Instructors invite data visualization experts to live class sessions to introduce students to the various specialization areas. Specialty areas include data literacy, data cleaning and preparation, data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau Zen Masters), and data storytelling. Alex Velez of Storytelling with Data was one of our guests this past fall quarter. Her framework and methods for data storytelling helped students tell compelling data stories for their final projects in each course of the program. Students also learn about communities they can join beyond the certificate program.
It helps expose strengths and weaknesses: Many students come into the program with no knowledge of color theory or the value of decluttering their charts. Others may have good design skills but are weak at statistics or need to sharpen their presentation skills. Students are rarely good at everything. Completing weekly assignments building a variety of charts with different data sets exposes students' strengths and weaknesses. Students then get to regularly compare the quality of their work with students in their cohort. Together, they critique and offer valuable feedback to each other. Many students build self-confidence by learning to overcome their fear of public speaking using a framework for data storytelling—the SWD Big Idea 3-minute story.
So if you can commit 8-10 months to meet in a virtual classroom setting once a week in the evenings, and commit a few hours or more a week to completing assignments, then you are well on your way to earning a certificate in data visualization. The knowledge and skills you gain make this program a bargain. If you are interested in applying to the University of Washington Data Visualization Certificate Program, then visit this website for more detailed information.
My next post will provide you with a detailed account of what the first introductory quarter is like in a data visualization certificate program.
