Introduction to Python

Course

Learn Python programming fundamentals such as data types and structures, variables, loops, and functions.

Beginner

4 weeks

Real-world Projects

Completion Certificate

Last Updated October 26, 2024

Skills you'll learn:

NumPy • Pandas • Control flow • Python scripting

Prerequisites:

No experience required

Course Lessons

Lesson 1

Why Python Programming

Welcome to Introduction to Python! Here's an overview of the course.

Lesson 2

Data Types and Operators

Familiarize yourself with the building blocks of Python! Learn about data types and operators, built-in functions, type conversion, whitespace, and style guidelines.

Lesson 3

Data Structures in Python

Use data structures to order and group different data types together! Learn about the types of data structures in Python, along with more useful built-in functions and operators.

Lesson 4

Control Flow

Build logic into your code with control flow tools! Learn about conditional statements, repeating code with loops and useful built-in functions, and list comprehensions.

Lesson 5

Functions

Learn how to use functions to improve and reuse your code! Learn about functions, variable scope, documentation, lambda expressions, iterators, and generators.

Lesson 6

Scripting

Set up your own programming environment to write and run Python scripts locally! Learn good scripting practices, interact with different inputs, and discover awesome tools.

Lesson 7

NumPy

Learn the basics of NumPy and how to use it to create and manipulate arrays.

Lesson 8

Pandas

Learn the basics of Pandas Series and DataFrames and how to use them to load and process data.

Lesson 9

Advanced Topics

In this lesson we cover some advanced topics of iterators and generators. You are not required to complete this but we have provided these to give you a taste of these.

Lesson 10 • Project

Explore US Bikeshare Data

Use Python to understand U.S. bikeshare data. Calculate statistics and build an interactive environment where a user chooses the data and filter for a dataset to analyze.

Taught By The Best

Josh Bernhard

Staff Data Scientist

Josh has been sharing his passion for data for over a decade. He's used data science for work ranging from cancer research to process automation. He recently has found a passion for solving data science problems within marketplace companies.

Karl Krueger

Command Line Instructor

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.

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.

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.

Juno Lee

Curriculum Lead at Udacity

Juno is the curriculum lead for the School of Data Science. She has been sharing her passion for data and teaching, building several courses at Udacity. As a data scientist, she built recommendation engines, computer vision and NLP models, and tools to analyze user behavior.

The Udacity Difference

Combine technology training for employees with industry experts, mentors, and projects, for critical thinking that pushes innovation. Our proven upskilling system goes after success—relentlessly.

Demonstrate proficiency with practical projects

Projects are based on real-world scenarios and challenges, allowing you to apply the skills you learn to practical situations, while giving you real hands-on experience.

Gain proven experience
Retain knowledge longer
Apply new skills immediately

Top-tier services to ensure learner success

Reviewers provide timely and constructive feedback on your project submissions, highlighting areas of improvement and offering practical tips to enhance your work.