What is data collection?

Data collection is the systematic process of gathering information like observations or measurements while doing research. When you’re performing research, you’re likely looking for answers to a question you have. When it comes to data collection, digging beyond the surface tells an intriguing story. Collecting data about what you’re researching can help you gain more insight into the details and information that’ll help you answer that question. Although it’s particularly useful in science-related applications, the beauty of data collection is that you can use it to discover answers to almost any query you dream up.

Why learn data collection?

Data are important for helping you (and others, and even computers) make all sorts of different decisions. It helps scientists learn whether their studies are working and assists marketers in sending the right messages to the right people. It's what lets us know if something new we tried is really working. As information becomes digitized, it becomes data that we can use in a variety of ways to accomplish whatever we’ve set out to do. But in order to do that, we need to gather the data first. Without data collection to compile that information, we can’t be truly efficient in analyzing those details — what if something is missing? If you’re aiming to understand how research is conducted and decisions are made, it’s essential to learn about data collection’s role.

What career opportunities can arise from learning data collection?

Almost every career that involves data provides opportunities for collecting those data, even if the primary focus isn’t only collecting data. A multitude of different analyst roles require plenty of time spent gathering data, whether you choose to work in fields like marketing, human resources or business or you’re specifically interested in working as a data scientist — someone who directs their efforts toward compiling data and translating it into information that others can use to make decisions. Even working as an actuary — a professional who assesses risks, often in insurance fields — allows you to focus much of your time on dealing with data. But these careers are just the beginning; dozens more give you the opportunity to collect data, so it’s an important skill to have and concept to understand even if it’s not the primary focus of your work.

How can taking online courses on Coursera help me learn data collection?

If you’re looking to boost your data literacy, taking our online classes provides a worthwhile opportunity to pursue your goals whenever it’s most convenient for you. Online courses give you the time and space you need to complete coursework from home while also providing you access to learning materials created by accomplished instructors and other field experts. You’ll enjoy learning the basic frameworks of data collection and analysis as you’re getting started learning about this topic by discovering the role of research, analysis and collection techniques. As you advance, you might choose to study more complex topics like utilizing the Python programming language to create programs that fetch and analyze data. And with a variety of learning programs, from certificates to specializations to course credits for college degrees, you can formalize your data analysis accomplishments as you continue to build skills.

Top Data Collection Courses - Learn Data Collection Online

Explore the Data Collection Course Catalog

Status: Free Trial
Status: AI skills
Meta
Meta Data Analyst
Skills you'll gain: Data Storytelling, Business Metrics, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Data Management, Data Collection, Data Governance, Bayesian Statistics, Data Analysis, Descriptive Statistics, Statistical Hypothesis Testing, Information Privacy, Data Cleansing, Pandas (Python Package), Data Visualization Software, Statistical Inference, Spreadsheet Software, Correlation Analysis, Google Sheets, Exploratory Data Analysis, Data Modeling
4.7
Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
1.4K reviews
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
Google
Foundations: Data, Data, Everywhere
Skills you'll gain: Data Ethics, Data Analysis, Data-Driven Decision-Making, Google Sheets, Spreadsheet Software, Analytical Skills, Data Sharing, Data Cleansing, Data Processing, Data Visualization Software, SQL, Data Management
4.8
Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
115K reviews
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks
Status: Free Trial
IBM
Python Project for Data Engineering
Skills you'll gain: Web Scraping, Data Transformation, Extract, Transform, Load, Data Manipulation, SQL, Integrated Development Environments, Data Processing, Databases, Application Programming Interface (API), Code Review, Restful API, Python Programming, Unit Testing, Style Guides
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
774 reviews
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks
Status: Free Trial
University of Michigan
Introduction to Data Science in Python
Skills you'll gain: Pandas (Python Package), Jupyter, NumPy, Data Manipulation, Data Science, Data Structures, Data Analysis, Statistical Analysis, Pivot Tables And Charts, Data Cleansing, Data Import/Export, Probability & Statistics, Python Programming, Programming Principles
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
27K reviews
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks
Status: Free Trial
IBM
IBM Business Analyst
Skills you'll gain: Data Storytelling, Requirements Elicitation, Risk Mitigation, Business Analysis, Business Process Modeling, Risk Analysis, Process Mapping, Process Optimization, Requirements Management, Risk Management, Business Requirements, Stakeholder Management, Work Breakdown Structure, Scope Management, Process Analysis, Stakeholder Engagement, Data Visualization Software, Excel Formulas, Microsoft Excel, Analysis
4.7
Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
13K reviews
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
University of California, Davis
Learn SQL Basics for Data Science
Skills you'll gain: Data Governance, Presentations, SQL, Apache Spark, Distributed Computing, Descriptive Statistics, Data Lakes, Data Storytelling, Data Analysis, Peer Review, Exploratory Data Analysis, Data Quality, Data Pipelines, Databricks, Statistical Analysis, Database Design, Complex Problem Solving, Query Languages, Data Visualization, JSON
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
17K reviews
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
IBM
Data Science Fundamentals with Python and SQL
Skills you'll gain: Dashboard, SQL, Descriptive Statistics, Jupyter, Statistical Analysis, Data Analysis, Probability Distribution, Pandas (Python Package), Data Visualization Software, Statistics, Data Visualization, Databases, Stored Procedure, Web Scraping, Relational Databases, Python Programming, Data Structures, Computer Programming Tools, Data Analysis Software, Software Development Tools
Build toward a degree
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
72K reviews
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
IBM
Tools for Data Science
Skills you'll gain: Jupyter, Computer Programming Tools, Data Analysis Software, Software Development Tools, Data Science, GitHub, Big Data, R Programming, Statistical Programming, Application Programming Interface (API), Machine Learning, Cloud Computing, Git (Version Control System), Cloud Services, Development Environment, Version Control, Other Programming Languages, Query Languages, Open Source Technology
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
30K reviews
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Status: Free Trial
University of Michigan
Applied Data Science with Python
Skills you'll gain: Matplotlib, Network Analysis, Feature Engineering, Data Visualization Software, Interactive Data Visualization, Scientific Visualization, Pandas (Python Package), Applied Machine Learning, Supervised Learning, Text Mining, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Statistical Visualization, Scikit Learn (Machine Learning Library), Network Model, Jupyter, NumPy, Graph Theory, Data Manipulation, Natural Language Processing, Data Analysis
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
34K reviews
Intermediate · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
Google
The Path to Insights: Data Models and Pipelines
Skills you'll gain: Data Modeling, Extract, Transform, Load, Database Design, Data Pipelines, Data Warehousing, Business Intelligence, Performance Testing, Data Mart, Snowflake Schema, Star Schema, Process Optimization, Data Lakes, SQL, Data Quality
4.7
Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
645 reviews
Advanced · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks
Status: Free Trial
IBM
Exploratory Data Analysis for Machine Learning
Skills you'll gain: Exploratory Data Analysis, Feature Engineering, Statistical Inference, Data Processing, Data Access, Anomaly Detection, Statistical Analysis, Data Analysis, Data Cleansing, Data Manipulation, Machine Learning, Probability & Statistics, Data Transformation, Workflow Management, Scalability
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
2.3K reviews
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Status: Free Trial
Multiple educators
DeepLearning.AI Data Engineering
Skills you'll gain: Apache Airflow, Data Modeling, Data Pipelines, Data Storage, Data Storage Technologies, Data Architecture, Data Transformation, Requirements Analysis, Data Processing, Data Warehousing, Query Languages, Apache Hadoop, Extract, Transform, Load, Data Lakes, Amazon Web Services, Apache Spark, Database Systems, Data Integration, AWS Kinesis, Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
4.8
Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
450 reviews
Intermediate · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months