General data resources
*I often do coffee chats with people who want to know how to pivot into data or who want to know how to specifically get into progressive data, so I’ve put together some resources below:
These resources are for people looking for more broad data or technical resources. These programs or courses are either free or low-cost because I believe learning should be as accessible as possible.
Udemy – This is more for self-paced learners. They have several sales that go on throughout the year and those are when I sign up for a new course. I’ve typically paid on average less than $15 for a course. The courses I’ve personally signed up for are:
“The Complete SQL Bootcamp: Go from Zero to Hero” is great for beginners looking to learn SQL.
“The Complete Python Bootcamp: Go from Zero to Hero” is great for beginners looking to learn Python or folks who need a Python refresher
“The Complete Tableau Bootcamp for Data Visualization” is helpful for folks wanting to learn Tableau or data visualization software and also covers how to create dashboards and work with related worksheets
Introduction to Google Cloud BigQuery is great for beginners who want to learn about data warehouses
“Python for Data Science and Machine Learning” - is great for more intermediate Python learners and should be taken after understanding Python basics
freeCodeCamp – they have loads of FREE videos, courses, and how-to’s and are just an all-around amazing resource for beginners. Before paying for anything check freeCodeCamp first to see if they may have what you’re looking for. These are courses I have personally signed up for and recommend:
“Learn Google Sheets for Beginners” the truth is Excel and Google Sheets are used by many organizations so it’s important to familiarize yourself with them
“Git and GitHub Crash Course” – This really helped me learn the fundamentals and break down concepts easily. If you’re a beginner I recommend learning and understanding Git.
Other resources from freeCodeCamp (I haven’t personally tried these):
W3Schools – This is a website I frequent a lot to brush up on SQL
Roadmap.sh - One of the best pieces of advice I can give anyone learning how to code or a new technical skill is to find a learning path and stick with it. That way you don’t get stuck in an endless tutorial loop. This website is good for creating a learning roadmap for yourself to really narrow down on a specific topic and focus on really understanding concepts.
HarvardCS50 Course - woah a free Harvard class? You got it! This is Harvard’s introduction to computer science course uploaded online for people to follow along with as well as complete practice problems and homework.
Code Academy - has a great sorting quiz if you are just starting out and need help narrowing down which programming language is right for you as well as interactive tutorials.
Stack Overflow – bookmark this and thank me later!
Kaggle – a great place to find datasets to build projects
Google Data Analyst Certification - You’ll learn Tableau, R, spreadsheets, SQL, and more. You can learn on your own schedule as well as complete hands-on practice problems and activities to gain practice on concepts.
Code In Place - A free introductory online Python course put together by Stanford University! I took this course to grow my Python skills and it was really helpful to be able to have access to live instructors once a week it felt like I was taking a college class. You will also get put into a small support group where you can study together and work on the lessons and homework problems. Did I mention it’s FREE?
Analytics Engineers Club & Analytics Engineering with dbt- I haven’t personally used these programs, but I find that it is often referenced and suggested by my analytics engineer friends and colleagues
Political data and progressive data resources:
These resources are for people looking to do data work on a political campaign, for a progressive organization, or a social impact organization. These training programs and courses are free or on a sliding scale aimed to be lower cost. The most commonly covered topics are VAN, SQL, and Google Sheets/Excel.
Arena Academy – Data Director Track - Paid program with scholarships available for free or reduced-cost
Generation Data – Free training program
Change The Game – Paid courses – sliding scale
Crack the Code – community for data professionals working in progressive data, analytics, and technology.
re:power – Paid training program -sliding scale
Looking for a job in political data, movement tech, or social impact?
Below are some job boards and list servs for people looking for progressive and movement data/tech jobs and opportunities as well as ways to get plugged into social impact or non-profit work.