Over the past 18 months, I have more than 15 online courses and certifications in the realm of data science and data visualisation. Although I found this absolutely awesome list of The best Data Science courses on the internet, ranked by reviews, I have to admit that I struggled to find a learning path for data analysis SQL.
My aim today is to suggest a learning path from basic to more advanced, and that includes lots of exercises. Also, free or super cheap.
Without any further ado, here is the list that I suggest if you are interested in SQL for data analysis:
1/ An intro on the go: Sololearn mobile app
For 27 bite-sized lessons SQL Fundamentals is a good way to start and will keep you busy in the public transport (without the guilt of wasting your time on your smartphone)
2/ An intro course:
In the past, I used to recommend Datacamp but will no longer. Perhaps worth checking Code Academy or Khan Academy.
3/ Time to practise: SQL Zoo exercises
The SQL tutorial is less a series of tutorials than just exercises and they greatly helped me practise.
Also, I’m fond of those cute emojis that appear when you get the reply right 😊
4/ Gain real experience: Coursera
One challenge while learning SQL is that the examples provided are always a bit academic: the data is perfect, no missing entry, no mistakes. Not really like in the real life.
The Coursera Specialization Managing Big Data with MySQL is by far the most challenging and hands-on SQL course I have enrolled in over the past year.
You will learn
1/ how to interpret & create ER diagrams and relational schemas
2/ write MySQL and Terada queries to retrieve data from real business (=messy!) databases that contain over 1 million rows of data
3/ translate business questions into SQL queries to create business value.
Anything missing from this list? A suggestion for a 5th and more challenging course? Drop a comment!
The online dots 