Metis

I attended the data science bootcamp at Metis in summer 2017. I was from a very different major gearing towards learning more on data analytics, thus in transition of career direction and expertise field at that time. Attending Metis has played a key role in terms of providing me very proactive education to accomplish the transition in such a short period of time. I truly learned a lot in many aspects from the education itself, how to really go out there and interact in the data science society/community, and last but not least how to efficiently present myself to the job market. I'd humbly like to say that I'm extremely glad I decided to learn from Metis, which I believe ultimately made me able to currently work as a data scientist in the competitive industry.

I am an architect and a Transportation Planner turned Data Scientist(may be junior) through Metis. That statement itself should say a lot about the bootcamp, but let me go into details. Although I had worked on statistics and modeling techniques for analyzing travel patterns in cities, I was not equipped with the tools and techniques needed in the industry of Data Science and I was very nascent with the coding skills. I was very excited about learning all these, given the kind of change Data Science was bringing to the Transportation industry (basically, I knew the application of the skills that I would acquire). Just now, I work as a Senior Data Analyst(using technologies like Pyspark and Hive) at Apple Maps through Wipro.

Metis has been instrumental in providing me with Data-Scien...

Pros:
() This course had no pre-requisites
() Class was live and interactive and the teacher held office hours.
() The instructor worked in the industry.

I don't have any Cons for this class. The class lived up to my expectations of what I had gotten myself into.

To set expectations for someone first going down this road:

This is not a full semester in-depth course. There are zero pre-requisites for the course and you can do fine without preparation. However, prep as much as possible in order to get the most out of the class. I went in with a decent scripting background, but no python prior to signing up. Also, unlike some of the other participants I am not already in the field do not have a mastery of the math theory. I found that taking 2 intro to python courses prior...

I joined Metis after reading reviews on websites such as this (SwitchUp), and after attending one of their Meetups. In spite of all the 4-5 star reviews that I had seen, Metis beat all my expectations! Let me elaborate.

I earned my PhD in Experimental Chemistry at the University of Chicago. While my research was somewhat computational in nature, I was not well-equipped to get started with a career in Data Science. If you're from academia, you have to understand that universities have no interest or incentive to prepare their cheap-labor postdocs for real jobs. In spite of having science PhDs, half of my colleagues in academia weren't able to find a single job whatsoever, and some were already past their 5th year as postdoc (we're talking Physics, Chemistry, Math PhDs). Metis was ins...

TL;DR: Metis was amazing. The instructors set the tone for excitement, grit, intelligence, and success. The projects were invaluable experiences for learning so many data science skills and for using as examples of work in interviews/applications. The curriculum is as close to real-world experience as a bootcamp can get. A+ to Metis

I found Metis after several months of knowing I needed a career change and searching for the right way to jumpstart my return to tech after two years of completely unrelated work. I graduated undergrad as a mechanical engineer, worked as a research engineer, but then took a hiatus after moving to Seattle and worked as an assistant manager at a restaurant. I learned about data science through friends already working in tech in Seattle and realized I alread...

Being a math major, I wanted a deeper understanding of data science at an application based level, which I knew a masters program would not achieve. I looked across all the different bootcamps, and I found Metis as the only accredited course. The quality of instructors attracted me the most to Metis, and it is the only bootcamp that makes students complete 5 end-to-end projects. This fell in line with my urge to learn data science at an application based level. Each instructor has previous experience in the data science field from work to educational experience. These instructors made learning these complex topics easier to understand by applying basic real world analogies to them. Additionally, the instructors went around to students every day and made sure there were no lingering ques...

I was nervous in the beginning. The application and prework felt very challenging. Coming with little technical background, it was definitely difficult, but I learned so much! With patience, effort and persistence I accomplished all I set out to do and more. Completely changed my career path and life — If you’re interested in learning data science I highly recommend.

I looked at other bootcamps and did an online course with another company, but I’m glad I chose metis. The instructors and other students are incredibly smart. It can be intimating but you know you’re getting the best. I feel prepared to take on a new career. I never thought I would invest so heavily in data science as a path and I’m so glad I did. With the skills there’s no room for regrets, not matter what I end up ch...

I enjoyed my experience at Metis immensely. I believe the quality of instruction from instructors was high, the dedication from classmates to learning was fierce, and the support in the job hunt has been helpful. We had two instructors, one with a math background and one with a CS background which was helpful in giving two different perspectives to the same problem. They worked hard to personalize the curriculum to our cohorts needs and wants and always made themselves available to us. Our cohort came from a variety of different backgrounds; Computer Science, Biology, Chemistry, Business, and the Arts. This again provided many different perspectives and areas for us to dive into with our projects. Our career advisor worked with us through out the program to help prepare us for the job h...

I began my search to build skills towards data science without any real knowledge of what specific subjects or topics I needed to understand in the field, other than knowing a programming language such as Python. I researched various programs that offered a variety of courses but noticed that Metis was purely dedicated to data science. I looked over the courses (and accompanied curriculum) provided by Metis and was initially stuck between taking the Introduction to Data Science, or the Beginner Python & Math courses. I reached out to the team at Metis, and had an informative and helpful conversation with Amy Ramnath, and ultimately decided that the Beginner Python & Math course best suited my needs as a beginner looking to get his feet wet.

I took flight on my journey through the 6-w...

I had my doubts about Metis at first, but those disappeared pretty quickly once I started the program. The support I received in terms of mentorship, career counseling, and networking made it absolutely worth it.

Metis will find a way to challenge you, regardless of your background. I've seen experienced developers, academics, and even recent graduates find jobs in data science through the program. With the help of Metis, I built out a portfolio of projects addressing REAL challenges using REAL data, and I met a lot of brilliant people in the data science community.

One thing to note: transitioning into data science is not easy at all. Whether you choose to go through a bootcamp, a MS/PhD program, or self-study, it will be an uphill battle no matter what. But having gone th...

Doing Metis was one of the hardest decisions I ever made. The time/financial commitment is tough to swallow for anyone! That said, it’s one of the best decisions I ever made, as Metis paid off in every way you could imagine.

Several peers have captured the benefits of Metis here, so I’ll try to avoid repeating them and focus on what stood out to me personally …

The obvious doubt about a bootcamp was, “Why pay thousands of dollars?? I can learn all this online.” But Metis provided so many intangibles - career support, alumni network, mentorship from instructors, friendship from diverse peers - that you can’t get from an online course. Not to mention improving your chances to get a job. Prior to Metis, I tried to transition from academia to industry, but with zero success; I couldn...

I graduated from the Seattle Fall cohort (the second cohort in Seattle) in December. I come from a pure math background, and I'm a recent Ph.D. grad who was pretty nervous about going into data science.

Metis is everything I wanted out of a bootcamp. The project based curriculum works really well, especially since the topics of projects 2-5 are entirely self directed. It's easy to get excited about learning this stuff when you're applying it to a topic you really care about. That also makes it easier to pick yourself up when you fall -- and you'll fall a lot.

The lectures are an excellent introduction to the material, too. I had the opportunity of both learning from the Fall 17 instructors and TAing for the Winter 18 instructors, and all four of them were awesome.

Some quick wa...

I attended the Fall 2017 bootcamp in Chicago. Prior to attending, I had done a good amount of research on ways I could get my foot in the door for a data scientist position. After speaking with Nathan Vermeiren (Program Manager at Metis), those who have hired from Metis, and alumni who have attended, I decided to go for it. (And I'm glad I did!)

Metis really exceeded my expectations. The quality of instructors, career support, and students created such a great environment for those wanting to transition into data science. The technical and non-technical skills needed to succeed as a data scientist are covered in depth at Metis through many opportunities that included: building end-to-end projects with relevant industry tools, presenting results to different audiences, attending netwo...

Before coming to Metis I was a Product Manager for a small consulting company. I was always programming on the side, and found myself at odds with sending people to do all the fun programming challenges I'd create. After working with a team on building a recommendation engine for news articles and seeing the capacity of machine learning and artificial intelligence to impact a business, I decided to make the head first dive into Data Science. I wanted to see how far I can get without needing a PhD. After doing months of searching colleges for Masters/PhD programs, bootcamps, and internships, I eventually boiled down the list to a few bootcamps. It needed to fit certain criteria. I wanted a rapid education, application/project focused, great career support, and something with clear outcom...

Prior to attending Metis I worked as Geophysicist for an Oil and Gas service company. Metis gave me an opportunity to transition into a new career and develop a wide range of new skills.
I can’t speak positively enough about the instructors who taught my cohort in Seattle (Roberto and Alice). Their preparation and dedication to clearly deliver all the material and continuously provide constructive feedback was impressive. You complete five projects over the course, these projects are guided and reviewed by the instructors (Senior Data Scientists). This lends a real-world rigor to your projects.

I found the curriculum to be very good, and while job hunting I find I am prepared to answer almost all questions posed during data science interviews. I also feel confident in my implementa...

Metis was an amazing experience that I am so, so grateful for. Some key points:

-The teachers are great--always there to help but don't hold your hand, they make sure you learn the materical and aren't afraid to push you if they think you can be pushed. They also do a great job of getting to know the students.

-The curriculum was ideal for me--very project based so you're always applying what you're learning. All projects are done individually and culiminate in oral presentations which is really helpful in the job search--you're capable of speaking about them and know the ins and outs of everything that was done. Also, you get to pick topics you're interested in so it's always exciting. If you would prefer something that was more lecture based, Metis might not be the program for ...

I attended the Fall 2017 bootcamp in Chicago. From the beginning, Metis was very helpful to me. I live in the DC area and the NYC cohort was full, but they helped me come out to Chicago so that I could still participate. They were very helpful (Nathan Vermeiren) with my housing search and all of my other out-of-town needs. I ended up staying right next to the Metis office which worked out great. It was actually helpful for me to be away from home because I didn't have any of my usual distractions/duties to do, so I recommend going out of town. The only downside to going out of town was that Metis was not as connected in the DC area. Metis did continue to support me fully in the job search until I obtained employment and I had no trouble contacting the DC Metis alums who were quite he...

Pros:
- Metis gives you all the tools for success
- They spend time helping you develop the soft skills necessary to excel in your career (project presentations, public speaking, working in a team, communication)
- They touch base on industry skills that aren't always used in an academic setting (git, open-source programming languages)
- They scratch the surface of many topics -- some might see this as a flaw and make someone a 'jack of all trades, master of none' but Metis provides you all the tools to get started in a specific topic domain -- it's up to the student to really exploit the resources that they provide.
- Job support and alumni network is incredible. After graduating, all alumni from all cohorts from the other campuses are connected and this provides a great network o...

I was cautiously optimistic when starting Metis. I had heard of these bootcamps but didn't know too much. I chose to the pull the trigger because some close and trusted friends had completed similar bootcamps and encouraged me to go for it. Metis blew my expectations out of the water. I loved it. Each project folded in a new mathematical machine learning skill with a pragmatic programming skill. I learned a ton, the instructors were wonderful, and everyone involved was a ton of fun. The program was definitely intense. Don't expect to have any life outside of Metis. But it's only three months and if data science is where you want to be then it's totally worth it.

Metis fosters a collaborative cohort style of learning in which students get practical experience of the data science work flow. Students manage a shared git repository, do independent research projects to present, and finish and present 5 data science projects covering ETL, linear regression, supervised and unsupervised learning, NLP, and more.

Prior to April 2017, I had a bachelors degree in cultural anthropology and no professional work experience. I graduated college in 2015 and spent a couple years "figuring it out", taking every MOOC under the sun and teaching myself how to program. Somewhere in those two years between college and Metis I decided I wanted to pursue data science and pushed full speed ahead on self education. I loved the free online resources out there, but ever...