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Python for Everybody Specialization

4.8(245,000)·2.1M enrolled·Updated March 2025
Beginner 23 hours English Professional CertificateFREE
Editor's Pick
Best free Python course for absolute beginners — no programming experience required, and Dr. Chuck's teaching style is genuinely fun.

What you'll learn

Use variables to store, retrieve and calculate information
Write Python programs using functions, loops and conditionals
Work with lists, tuples and dictionaries to store structured data
Use regular expressions to parse and extract data from text
Read data from web APIs and parse JSON responses
Use SQL and SQLite to store and query relational data
Visualize data with Python charts and maps
Apply object-oriented programming concepts in Python

This course includes

23h
On-demand video
82
Articles & readings
47
Coding exercises
12
Graded quizzes
Yes
Certificate
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Syllabus· 5 courses · 21+ lessons

Expand all →
  • Why we programVideo · 12 min
  • Variables, expressions and statementsVideo · 18 min
  • Conditional executionQuiz · 10 questions
  • FunctionsReading · 24 min
  • Loops and iterationLab · 45 min
  • StringsVideo · 22 min
  • Files and reading dataVideo · 28 min
  • ListsQuiz · 12 questions
  • DictionariesLab · 60 min
  • TuplesReading · 18 min
  • Regular expressionsVideo · 35 min
  • Networks and socketsVideo · 28 min
  • Reading web data from PythonLab · 90 min
  • JSON and the REST architectureQuiz · 15 questions
  • Object oriented PythonVideo · 30 min
  • Basic SQLVideo · 25 min
  • Data models and relational SQLLab · 75 min
  • Many-to-many relationshipsQuiz · 12 questions
  • Building a search engineProject · 8 hours
  • Visualizing email dataProject · 6 hours
  • Visualizing geocoded dataProject · 5 hours

Instructor

CS
Dr. Charles Severance
Clinical Professor, University of Michigan School of Information
3.2M learners11 courses 4.9 instructor rating

Dr. Charles Severance — known to his students as Dr. Chuck — is a Clinical Professor at the University of Michigan School of Information. He has taught online since 2012 and his Python courses have introduced over three million learners to programming. He is the author of "Python for Everybody" and "Python for Informatics."

Requirements

  • No prior programming experience required — this is a true beginner course
  • A computer running Windows, macOS, or Linux with at least 4GB of RAM
  • Internet connection to access Coursera and download Python
  • Roughly 5–7 hours per week of dedicated study time

Who this course is for

  • Complete beginners curious about programming
  • Professionals looking to add data skills to their resume
  • Students preparing for university computer science programs
  • Career switchers exploring software development or data analysis

About this provider

C
Coursera
University-backed online learning platform · 142M learners · 7,000+ courses
4.6 trust score·Refund within 14 days
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Frequently asked questions

Yes — you can audit every course in the specialization for free, which gives full access to video lectures and readings. You pay only if you want graded assignments and the Coursera Professional Certificate ($49/month). Financial aid is also available.
Python for Everybody is more gentle and assumes zero background. CS50P (Harvard) is faster paced and more rigorous. If you have never programmed, start with Dr. Chuck; if you want a CS-style foundation, take CS50P.
It is a solid resume signal for entry-level data/analyst roles, especially combined with a portfolio. It is not a substitute for a CS degree, but recruiters at companies hiring data analysts recognize University of Michigan and Coursera certs.
About 8 months at 5 hours/week. The capstone alone is ~19 hours. Many learners finish faster by doubling up; there is no deadline.
Try "100 Days of Code" on Udemy or freeCodeCamp's free Python certifications — both are project-heavy where Python for Everybody is concept-led.
Free
Cert $49/mo
View on Coursera