Colaberry School Of Data Analytics

“The smartest person can be outdone by someone with the strongest passion to succeed”

-Alex Gibson

We all had a future planned out and an idea of the way life would pan out. Your plan may have been to go to college, military, or a tech school. As many of you know, life rarely goes as planned and I discuss this in a prior blog that discusses the Evolution of Success. I am a huge supporter of getting an education but realize everyone does not feel the same way. I was a first generation college kid and know the struggles that come with trying to complete an education program while working and juggling what life sends your way. Well folks… One of my high school buddies, Ali Muwwakkil, just happens to be leadership at a wonderful school that I believe isn’t getting the attention that it is due. I was so glad when we were able to catch up and to only find there are more of our high school friends that are involved with this operation.

If you have been looking for something that is affordable, offers different ways to gain knowledge around your busy schedule, and a way to gain experience that will always be useful… I hope you will continue reading. Colaberry School of Data Analytics is a school that is ran by people that have been in the field and started a school to assist others. It was started in 2005 and has been thriving since. I spent time this past weekend at this school to see what all the hype was about. I met with the two running the program here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and heard some from the leadership in Boston.

Education Provided

The school offers the students a chance to learn data analytics. Data analytics allows companies to run data based on what is being bought, what times, and what locations is product is being bought at the most. Business Intelligence is also another term that you may hear in reference to this as well. This allows companies to figure out where and how to market to certain areas.

Students are in a classroom setting or in an online setting for about 4 months. They have homework and real life applications. The classes are all taught by people that have been in the field for years and some have come through this program themselves and others have come through other programs and assisted in putting this curriculum together. If students commit to the program fulltime for 4 to 6 months they can complete the program and start to building their future. The program does require a lot of hard work and dedication. The classes are made up of people of diverse backgrounds. They have 40% of students that have a bachelor’s degree and 20% of them have Masters degrees, but have completed the program successfully even with no post high school education. It is taught in a way that anyone can learn this program if you are willing to learn the material.

After the program is completed

As the program gets most of the way through, students are offered an option to complete interview preparation. This area is ran by someone that is a great communicator and has a background in communication. Interview preparation not only focuses on going over ideas of questions that they may be faced with but many other variables. They work with students on body language, revising their resume for this type of field, eye contact, and structured answers. As part of the program, it is not an additional cost. The school offers mock interviews as well. This is a priceless part of the program. As the students come from all walks of life and this is a way to help the students be able to focus on their interview versus just solely on how to prepare on their own. I went to a traditional college and they did not offer this, but wish they would have. As time nears for them to complete their certification, they help place students in jobs. Students can be placed in jobs for six months as contract workers to gain experience and start to meet people and team up with companies in the industry. I was stoked about this as well as that is one of the hardest things for college students is trying to get a job in the industry. In college if you are able to complete and internship, this may not be so rough but many do not have that opportunity. They offer free lifetime ongoing training as things change with the industry. Please reread that sentence… this is something that most people are paying hundreds of dollars per year or over a few years to keep up with the times in their industry. As well as the ability to email their instructors and be a part of Google groups after certification. This allows current students, prior students, and instructors to discuss what other concerns are coming up in the workforce as well as providing the prior student with one more resource. Students are making $60,000-$65,000 a year coming out of the program and are placed with companies that have performance reviews yearly for raises.

If you are wondering as I was, is this something that will be obsolete in a few years. One of the statics I was given was that for every dollar spent on business intelligence a data analyst makes on average $10.00. What a way to put it in perspective.

Cost of the Program

I know this is always a concern for most. Many of us that have completed other programs are still paying off that debit. This program is offered at $1,199.00 and can be paid out over the course of the program. They have set up for payments to be paid via Paypal. They also have scholarships available and during this past weekends event, two people won money off their total price of the program if they decided to enroll for just joining and watching the outreach event for Veterans this past Saturday. Oh and there is no interest on payments. I think I have rarely heard of this with any kind of program that offers a payment plan.

All the students I visited with had similar information to share at different levels of the program. They felt the way the school is set up is in a way that sets them up for success. Many of them heard about it because someone they knew had been through the program and is now in the workforce in this field and grateful for the opportunity. One thing that didn’t change per person was that this program is not easy by any means, but if you use the resources available it is doable and the school offers a lot of support from the teachers and leadership. One student that started the program on Saturday named Wassem Sabri said, “He has no technical or data running experience, but is excited as his cousin has already completed the program and is doing well.” Another student, Mechale McDonald, completed the program a few months back and said she had started programs at Richland and DeVry prior and was ex military. She felt this program truly provided her with the tools and preparation to be able to be competitive in the field. She seemed a little shy and felt that the interview preparation was an additional plus as she had never worked in the field prior. The assistance of job placement was another big point she mentioned as helping streamline the stress of getting out in the field and searching for a position.

If you find yourself wondering if this maybe for you, then I would say take some time to review their information on their site. They have a wealth of information on their site. They discuss community involvement, how to get started, courses offered, FAQs, videos and contacts for questions. The website is http://www.colaberry.com/. Here is what I will say folks, if where you are is not working for you and you are open to working hard for a program that will be paid off within the time of the program as well as a decent salary, check it out. Colaberry can also be reached via Facebook and Twitter.

If you are not big on reading more, but open to watch a video… Check this out