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
IBM
IBM AI Developer
Skills you'll gain: Prompt Engineering, HTML and CSS, Software Development Life Cycle, Software Architecture, Large Language Modeling, Unit Testing, Generative AI, Artificial Intelligence, Software Design, ChatGPT, Jupyter, Scrum (Software Development), Software Engineering, Software Design Patterns, Agile Methodology, Bootstrap (Front-End Framework), Application Deployment, Automation, Interviewing Skills, Professional Networking
Build toward a degree
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
69K reviews
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
Google
Data Analysis with R Programming
Skills you'll gain: Rmarkdown, Ggplot2, R Programming, Data Analysis, Tidyverse (R Package), Statistical Programming, Data Visualization Software, Data Cleansing, Data Manipulation, Exploratory Data Analysis, Data Import/Export, Package and Software Management, Data Structures
4.8
Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
11K reviews
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Status: Free Trial
University of California San Diego
Data Structures and Algorithms
Skills you'll gain: Data Structures, Graph Theory, Algorithms, Network Routing, Program Development, Debugging, Network Model, Bioinformatics, Operations Research, Data Storage, Development Testing, Test Engineering, Software Testing, Theoretical Computer Science, Computational Thinking, Network Analysis, Test Case, Programming Principles, Computer Programming, Epidemiology
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
17K reviews
Intermediate · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
University of California, Davis
SQL for Data Science
Skills you'll gain: Data Governance, SQL, Data Quality, Database Design, Query Languages, Data Manipulation, Data Modeling, Relational Databases, Data Analysis, Data Cleansing
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
17K reviews
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks
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
Tools for Data Science
Skills you'll gain: Jupyter, Data Visualization Software, Data Science, GitHub, Big Data, R Programming, Statistical Programming, Application Programming Interface (API), Machine Learning, Cloud Computing, Git (Version Control System), Version Control, Other Programming Languages, Query Languages
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
30K reviews
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Status: Free Trial
Google
Foundations of Data Science
Skills you'll gain: Data Storytelling, Data Ethics, Data Analysis, Workflow Management, Data-Driven Decision-Making, Analytical Skills, Data Science, Project Design, Communication, Business, Business Workflow Analysis, Stakeholder Communications, Machine Learning
4.7
Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
3.2K reviews
Advanced · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Status: Free Trial
IBM
Data Visualization with Python
Skills you'll gain: Data Visualization Software, Plotly, Data Visualization, Dashboard, Interactive Data Visualization, Matplotlib, Seaborn, Data Presentation, Data Analysis, Geospatial Information and Technology, Pandas (Python Package), Scatter Plots, Histogram, Heat Maps, Box Plots
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
12K reviews
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months
Status: Free Trial
University of California San Diego
Big Data
Skills you'll gain: Apache Spark, Apache Hadoop, Data Integration, Exploratory Data Analysis, Big Data, Graph Theory, Data Pipelines, Database Design, Data Modeling, Regression Analysis, Applied Machine Learning, Data Presentation, Scalability, Data Mining, Data Processing, Statistical Analysis, Data Management, NoSQL, Database Management Systems, Network Analysis
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
14K reviews
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
Multiple educators
DeepLearning.AI Data Engineering
Skills you'll gain: Apache Airflow, Data Modeling, Data Pipelines, Data Storage, Data Architecture, Data Transformation, Requirements Analysis, Data Processing, Data Warehousing, Query Languages, Apache Hadoop, Extract, Transform, Load, Data Lakes, Amazon Web Services, File Systems, Apache Spark, Database Systems, Data Integration, AWS Kinesis, Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
4.8
Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
449 reviews
Intermediate · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
Johns Hopkins University
Data Science: Foundations using R
Skills you'll gain: Rmarkdown, Exploratory Data Analysis, Version Control, Statistical Analysis, R Programming, Data Manipulation, Data Cleansing, Data Science, Data Wrangling, Data Visualization, Plot (Graphics), Statistical Programming, Ggplot2, Big Data, Git (Version Control System), Data Integration, Knitr, Data Analysis, Data Sharing, Statistical Reporting
4.6
Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
48K reviews
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Status: Free Trial
IBM
Python Project for Data Science
Skills you'll gain: Dashboard, Pandas (Python Package), Data Visualization Software, Web Scraping, Jupyter, Matplotlib, Data Analysis, Data Science, Data Processing, Data Manipulation, Python Programming, Data Collection
4.5
Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
4.6K reviews
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks