Correlation One

My experience in the Correlation-One DS4A/Empowerment training fellowship was amazing. To give context on my background, I have two graduate degrees and attended two universities that are consistently ranked in the top-5 university programs in the world. I also have several years of management experience at Fortune-100 companies and despite these credentials, I have found it near impossible to find work in the technology sector. Part of the reason (I believe) is that technology firms are historically underrepresented by BIPOC/LBGTQ+/Veterans/Women. In fact, this is the problem Correlation-One aims to solve. The other reason for not finding meaningful work in the technology sector was my lack of data analytic skills. I have always been a consumer of analytics --BUT-- I was never a producer of data or analytics. And while some professionals may never need to be data producers (i.e., someone that captures, wangles, and publishes meaningful data insights), Correlation-One believes that for the aforementioned underrepresented groups this is a critical skillset needed to get into tech-forward companies and excel at those companies. I agree.

The genius behind this data science training is that you, the learner, will never have to rely on just one vocational sector. Data science and analytics impacts just about everything, from healthcare to equity trading to solving the COVID-19 crisis. And the best part about attaining this knowledge is that you can use these skills for the rest of your life. You can work for a company. You can become a consultant. You can do one-off, ad-hoc projects. There is literally no limit to what you can do once you become a data scientist or analyst. As for me, simply mentioning on my LinkedIn profile that I was accepted into the DS4A program generated a lot of conversations with recruiters from top-tier, household name technology companies... before I even matriculated from the program! That is the opportunity that comes with being a fellow in the Correlation-One program.

About the program: You do not need to know how to code prior to admission. You will go through a pre-foundational Python course (that you must complete successfully) prior to moving to the focus of the program, data analytics. During the pre-foundational Python program the instructors literally lead you by the hand to make sure you understand what you are learning. They want you to succeed. I have been a part of "weed-out" academic programs and this is not one of them. This is an "all-in" program where everyone from the co-founders to the TA's to the mentors want you to succeed. That said, some of my peers did not make it out of the pre-foundational tier, possibly due to other priorities or being overwhelmed. I do not know why some did not move forward to the second tier of the program but I would argue that it has nothing to do with "smarts." The admission rate is less than 5% so all that were admitted have the skills to succeed.

The second tier of the program is where the magic happens. You learn so much in the first couple of weeks (data cleaning, data wrangling, analysis and interpretation, visualizations, etc...) and it is extremely satisfying. You work on real-world problems and the skills you learn can be applied immediately. All of this learning is ultimately displayed in a team project that you will submit toward the end of the program. You will apply everything you've learned in a project of your team's choosing and you will present it to your class section. But, the course is not just all code and analytics. There's music! Lot's of good music. And there are speakers from industry to talk to you and will connect with you on social media. As I mentioned previously, everyone associated with Correlation-One (partners, speakers, mentors, lecturers, staff) from soup-to-nuts *wants* to see you succeed in this program. In fact, the partners are paying for your education --and-- will offer you employment if your skills and professional background fits their needs. 

So, what is my negative feedback? None. I have been fortunate to attend some of the best universities in the world and I can honestly say that DS4A has been my best academic experience. I even shock myself when I say that but it's true. Prior to being admitted to DS4A, I researched other data science programs but for some of those programs cost was a barrier and for other programs the quality of the curriculum was questionable. Correlation-One is a fully, vertically integrated training fellowship and the team has thought of everything; they teach you the fundamentals, they take a deep dive into data science and analytics, they have their own job portal for graduates with jobs from the underwriters of the program, you keep the learning materials forever, you have access to the recorded lectures forever, you build a strong cohort of like-minded data scientist in every vertical imaginable, you obtain a verified certificate upon graduation, and they keep in touch with you even after you've completed the course. There are many more benefits but I am running out of space to write.

Bottom line, I was blown away with what is offered to fellows of Correlation-One and it is my belief that no other data science program can match their offering. I am so happy that I found Correlation-One and applied. And I am even happier that they have accepted me into their community.

It is fairly intense, especially if you don't have a programming background. However, they offer a free pre-course for Python if your results indicate you should improve that. 
I loved that there was a big focus on business insights not forgetting the technical part (mainly with pandas and SQL). I think they have a really clear vision of what the market is asking for a Data Scientist and that's what you'll get in this course!. Besides, you'll be working and learning with people of diverse ages, ethnicities, nationalities, educational/professional backgrounds, etc. Plus a really inclusive and friendly environment with the best music within sessions B)

I feel extremely lucky to part of the family of this world class organizion,  as a Data Science student. Throughout my stay with DS4A, I have acquired highly demanded skills and knowlege in the in ever growing Data Science field. The abundance of resources I gained from their world class instructors, mentors, TA's  and classmates was beyong what I have ever emagined. It's just a great blessing to be around with people with endless generosity and willingness to help.  I hope eveyone that's keen to learn gets the valuable opportunity to be part of these wondeful project.

I don't know where to start. Even though I am a Master's student in Analytics it was extremely difficult for me to secure an internship let alone a full-time entry role. Honestly, I have applied for more than 1000 entry-level and internship opportunities and was not even selected for an interview before DS4A. My story got changed after I joined the DS4A program which helped me learn the most important skills in the data science market, to do multiple portfolio projects that I showed cased during my interviews, to curate my resume in a way employers are motivated to invite me for interviews, to have confidence on myself and most importantly to network with amazing people who looks like me.  Folks, this is not just a Bootcamp, it's a community where everyone is valued, respected, heard, and loved! Thank you DS4A for helping me secure a fully remote paid internship even before I completed the program which is going to be a full-time position after 3 months of the internship period. I am still getting flooded with interview requests because of the portfolio projects I have done with the skills I gathered from the program! Good luck to everyone in the program!! 

I attended DS4A from may to august on 2020. It was an amazing experience. It's not only that instructors have profound foundations on the technical concepts and its applications, or the passion for teaching they have; but also each class is design to help you understand from practice very useful concepts in analytics (that, at least in my case, I've used everyday from then). 

Sure, sometimes the bootcamp might be demanding. But all those difficulties are rewarded. And all of that without even taking into account the network of other graduates, with whom you could expand further what have been learnt, or with whom you could find new opportunities to apply the new knowledge.

Overall Experience:
Very positive. I spent several weeks surrounded by incredibly smart, talented, kind & generous peers. Specific to my experience of being a mid-career professional, I really enjoyed the opportunity to be around a lot of young professionals for mutual mentorship. I found that I had a lot to offer by way to my life experience, and I gained a lot from the young professionals in return!

It's a demanding program -- and depending on your skill level at the time of acceptance-- you may need to put in a significant amount of effort and work to see success. Try to be honest with yourself about whether or not you have the free time in your life at the moment to devote to reskilling. Depending on the week, I was devoting 30+hours to DS4A work (either study, extended cases, or working on my group project) outside of the Saturdays. Not every week was so intense, but some were. 

Instructors:
Knowledgeable, patient, kind, encouraging, compassionate --all the things needed to help a student succeed. 

Curriculum:
While new to data science, I have a background in instructional design (both K-12 and adult learning). The design of this program is strong with particular attention to the extended cases which I would call brilliantly done. The material spirals and builds. I can absolutely see the scaffolding. It's really nice that lectures are recorded and I have gone back and reviewed them.

If you do not have a background in data science or programming (this was me), the curriculum will likely be very demanding and at times frustrating. You don't have to get through it alone - there's lots of people to help you - but there is some degree of suffering required and this is a very natural and normal part of the learning process. Particularly if you are midcareer and have been successful in the past, this might be the first time in a very long time when you experience failure over and over again - that's a normal and expected part of this.  I would recommend going into this understanding it will be difficult, you may be confused a lot, you may question yourself/your skills/your abilities and need to curb the temptation to compare yourself and your journey to others. You will have to dig deep, commit to the process, and ask for help.  You'll get through it.

Job Assistance:

I think this depends on what you expect job assistance to look like. If you are looking for significant help here - like resume review sessions, interview coaching, or something that looks and feels like an actual, formally structured program /curriculum around job seeking and job placement, etc. --this was not provided to the first cohort. Maybe they'll have that in the future I'm not sure. You should inquire about what's available to you at the time of your admittance. 

What was included in my experience was a jobs board on airtable and  employer information sessions where reps from various employers would give presentations during weekday evenings. Depending on your time zone, it might be in the middle of the day or later evening for you. That's the thing about this program that's cool and also challenging is its a national program PST to EST so there isn't going to be a perfect time things take place.

It's very personal whether or not you'll find that match with an employer partner.  There are so many factors, so I won't be able to comment about the likelihood of your being able to do that. I can, however, try to explain what some of those factors might be. Some factors that can influence finding a match between the employer partners, a role, and you: where you live, if you are flexible to relocate,  if you want a remote vs office job, your educational background, industry interests, personal values. 

I was unable to relocate for a position and was a bit picker in what I was looking for (people analytics) because I wanted to build on the career I established in people operations/HR. I also don't have an advanced degree, so I spent effort myself to find and apply to roles of interest at employers that have cultures and organizational histories most closely aligned to my values. Ultimately, I did not find a role at an employer partner for this very first position after the program. But, my experience may not be yours. You might be interested in the employer partners and find a match with them.  That said, I think you would benefit from taking your job search into your own hands and especially if you are mid-career leveraging your existing network and expanding your network through the people you can meet in this program. 

While more indirect, one of the best things coming out of this program related to job assistance was my group project & the group project deliverables. It's perhaps unexpected to list that or talk about that as a job assistance offering rather than as part of the curriculum but the project deliverables were CLUTCH for my job search specifically.