INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS

S C H O O L O F D ATA S C I E N C E

Introduction to Python
Course Syllabus
Overview
Learn to represent and store data using Python data types and variables, and use conditionals and loops to control the
flow of programs. Learners will harness the power of complex data structures like lists, sets, dictionaries, and tuples to
store collections of related data. They’ll define and document their own custom functions, write scripts, and handle errors.
They will also learn to use two powerful Python libraries—NumPy, a scientific computing package, and pandas, a data
manipulation package.

Built in collaboration with:

Program information

Skill Level
Estimated Time
Beginner
1 month

Prerequisites

None

Required Hardware/Software

Learners will need access to the internet and a 64-bit computer.

Introduction to Python 2
 Course Project

Explore U.S. Bikeshare Data

Learners will use Python to answer interesting questions about bikeshare trip data collected from three
U.S. cities. They will write code to collect the data, compute descriptive statistics, and create an interactive
experience in the terminal that presents the answers to your questions.

Lesson 1 • Gain an overview of what you’ll be learning and doing in the course.

Why Python Programming • Understand why you should learn programming with Python.

• Represent data using Python’s data types: integers, floats, booleans, strings,
lists, tuples, sets, dictionaries, compound data structures.

• Perform computations and create logical statements using Python’s operators:

Lesson 2
arithmetic, assignment, comparison, logical, membership, identity.

Data Types & Operators • Declare, assign, and reassign values using Python variables.

• Modify values using built-in functions and methods.

• Practice whitespace and style guidelines.

• Write conditional expressions using if statements and boolean expressions to

add decision-making to your Python programs.

Lesson 3 • Use for and while loops along with useful built-in functions to iterate over and
manipulate lists, sets, and dictionaries.
Control Flow
• Skip iterations in loops using break and continue.

• Condense for loops to create lists efficiently with list comprehensions.

Introduction to Python 3
 • Define your own custom functions.

• Create and reference variables using the appropriate scope.

Lesson 4
• Add documentation to functions using docstrings.
Functions
• Define lambda expressions to quickly create anonymous functions.

• Use iterators and generators to create streams of data.

• Install Python 3 and set up your programming environment.

• Run and edit Python scripts.

• Interact with raw input from users.

Lesson 5
• Identify and handle errors and exceptions in your code.
Scripting
• Open, read, and write to files.

• Find and use modules in Python Standard Library and third-party libraries.

• Experiment in the terminal using a Python Interpreter.

• Create, access, modify, and sort multidimensional NumPy arrays (ndarrays).

• Load and save ndarrays.

• Use slicing, boolean indexing, and set operations to select or change subsets of
Lesson 6
an ndarray.
NumPy • Understand the difference between a view and a copy of ndarray.

• Perform element-wise operations on ndarrays.

• Use broadcasting to perform operations on ndarrays of different sizes.

• Create, access, and modify the main objects in pandas, Series and DataFrames.

Lesson 7 • Perform arithmetic operations on Series and DataFrames.

pandas • Load data into a DataFrame.

• Deal with Not a Number (NaN) values.

Introduction to Python 4
Meet your instructors.

Josh Bernhard
Data Scientist at NerdWallet

Josh has been sharing his passion for data for nearly a decade at all levels of university, and as lead
data science instructor at Galvanize. He’s used data science for work ranging from cancer research
to process automation.

Derek Steer
CEO at Mode

Derek is the CEO of Mode Analytics. He developed an analytical foundation at Facebook and
Yammer and is passionate about sharing it with future analysts. He authored SQL School and is a
mentor at Insight Data Science.

Juno Lee
Data Science Instructor

As a data scientist and Technical Curriculum Developer, Juno built a recommendation engine to
personalize online shopping experiences, computer vision and natural language processing models
to analyze product data, and tools to generate insight into user behaviour.

Richard Kalehoff
Instructor

Richard is a course developer with a passion for teaching. He has a degree in computer science
and first worked for a nonprofit doing everything from front end web development to backend
programming to database and server management.

Introduction to Python 5
Karl Krueger
Command Line Instructor

Karl is a course developer at Udacity. Before joining Udacity, Karl was a site reliability engineer (SRE)
at Google for eight years, building automation and monitoring to keep the world’s busiest web
services online.

Introduction to Python 6
Udacity’s learning
experience

Hands-on Projects Quizzes

Open-ended, experiential projects are designed Auto-graded quizzes strengthen comprehension.
to reflect actual workplace challenges. They aren’t Learners can return to lessons at any time during
just multiple choice questions or step-by-step the course to refresh concepts.
guides, but instead require critical thinking.

Knowledge Custom Study Plans

Find answers to your questions with Knowledge, Create a personalized study plan that fits your
our proprietary wiki. Search questions asked by individual needs. Utilize this plan to keep track of
other students, connect with technical mentors, movement toward your overall goal.
and discover how to solve the challenges that
you encounter.

Workspaces Progress Tracker

See your code in action. Check the output and Take advantage of milestone reminders to stay
quality of your code by running it on interactive on schedule and complete your program.
workspaces that are integrated into the platform.

Introduction to Python 7
Our proven approach for building
job-ready digital skills.
Experienced Project Reviewers

Verify skills mastery.

• Personalized project feedback and critique includes line-by-line code review from
skilled practitioners with an average turnaround time of 1.1 hours.

• Project review cycle creates a feedback loop with multiple opportunities for
improvement—until the concept is mastered.

• Project reviewers leverage industry best practices and provide pro tips.

Technical Mentor Support

24/7 support unblocks learning.

• Learning accelerates as skilled mentors identify areas of achievement and potential
for growth.

• Unlimited access to mentors means help arrives when it’s needed most.

• 2 hr or less average question response time assures that skills development stays on track.

Mentor Network

Highly vetted for effectiveness.

• Mentors must complete a 5-step hiring process to join Udacity’s selective network.

• After passing an objective and situational assessment, mentors must demonstrate

communication and behavioral fit for a mentorship role.

• Mentors work across more than 30 different industries and often complete a Nanodegree
program themselves.

Introduction to Python 8
Learn more at
www.udacity.com/online-learning-for-individuals →

03.27.23 | V1.0