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Data SCIENCE PORTFOLIO FOR
SUCCESS
Ultimate Guide on Building Data Science
Portfolio

YOUSSEF HOSNI

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For my father, mother and my wife who supported me in
every move. My father, I hope you are in a better place.

~ Youssef

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Table of Contents
Introduction .................................................................... 8
1. The Importance of Having a Portfolio as a Data
Scientist ....................................................................... 10
1.1. What is a Data Science Portfolio? ..................... 10
1.2. Why Is Having a Solid Portfolio Important? ....... 11
1.3. How to Build a Strong Portfolio? ....................... 13
1.4. What You Should Include in Your Portfolio? ..... 15
1.4.1 Three Types of Data Science Projects ........ 15
1.4.2. Comprehensive Documentation ................. 16
1.4.3. Solid Project Structure ................................ 17
2. How to Build a Data Science Portfolio That Will Land
You a Job? ................................................................... 19
2.1. Select a Domain of Interest ............................... 20
2.3. Prioritize Your Interest Based on the Market
Demand .................................................................... 21
2.4. Define Important Case Studies in the Market .... 22
2.5. Choose Different Case Studies ......................... 23
2.6. Brainstorm Data Science Solutions ................... 25
2.7. Determine Success Metrics ............................... 26
2.8. Collect the Data ................................................. 26
2.9. Clean & Prepare the Data ................................. 27
2.10. Train & Evaluate the Model ............................. 28
2.11. Make them End to End .................................... 29

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 2.12. Publish & Talk About It .................................... 30
3. Building Industry-Level Data Science Projects: A
Step-by-Step Guide ..................................................... 32
3.1. Crafting the Project Idea .................................... 34
3.1.1. Define Industry-Level Use Case ................. 35
3.1.2. Setting Baseline & Define KPI .................... 37
3.1.3. High-Level System Design ......................... 38
3.2. Collect the Data ................................................. 39
3.3. Prepare the Data ............................................... 40
3.4. Train the Models ................................................ 43
3.4.1. Model Selection .......................................... 43
3.4.2. Model Training & Hyperparameter Tuning .. 45
3.4.3. Model Analysis and Evaluation ................... 46
3.4.4. Model Push/ Export .................................... 49
3.4.5. Inference Pipeline Implementation ............. 50
3.5. Model Deployment ............................................ 53
3.6. Communication & Collaboration ........................ 56
4. Guided Projects: A Starting Point ............................ 59
4.1. Learning by Doing ............................................. 59
4.2. Data Science Guided Projects .......................... 60
5. Ten End-to-End Guided Data Science Projects to
Build Your Portfolio ...................................................... 62
5.1. Automatic Speech Recognition System ............ 62

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 5.2. Building Production-Ready Enterprise-Level
Image Classifier with AWS & React ......................... 63
5.3. Predicting Data Science Salaries Application ... 65
5.4. Real Estate Price Prediction Web Application ... 65
5.5. Potato Disease Classification Mobile Application
................................................................................. 66
5.6. Sports Celebrity Image Classification Web
Application ................................................................ 67
5.7. Real-Time Data Analysis Application ................ 67
5.8. Machine Learning Model Monitoring using Airflow
and Docker ............................................................... 68
5.9. AI-Based Hybrid Recommender System ........... 68
5.10. Embedding-Based Search Engine .................. 69
6. Ten Websites with Open Datasets to Build Your
Portfolio ........................................................................ 70
6.1. Google Dataset Search ..................................... 70
6.2. Kaggle ............................................................... 71
6.3. UCI Machine Learning Repository .................... 72
6.4. Data.gov ............................................................ 73
6.5. Awesome Public Datasets GitHub Repo ........... 74
6.6. Reddit’s /r/datasets ............................................ 75
6.7. Pudding.cool ...................................................... 76
6.8. FiveThirtyEight .................................................. 77
6.9. KDnuggets ......................................................... 78

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 6.10. Buzzfeed ......................................................... 79
7. Five Game-Changing Free Tools to Enhance Your
Data Science Portfolio ................................................. 80
7.1. Datascienceportfol.io ......................................... 80
7.2. Voilà .................................................................. 81
7.3. Dash by Plotly ................................................... 83
7.4. DagsHub ........................................................... 83
7.5. Deepnote ........................................................... 85
8. Ten Portfolio Mistakes You Should Avoid ................ 86
8.1. Using Overused or Outdated Datasets ............. 86
8.2. Having Only Online Courses Guided Projects .. 88
8.3. Not Having End-to-End Projects ....................... 89
8.4. Lack of Project Diversity .................................... 90
8.5. Failing to Showcase Your Domain Expertise .... 91
8.6. Not Having a Comprehensive Readme for Your
Projects .................................................................... 92
8.7. Lack of Code Comments & Documentation ...... 93
8.8. Not Having Well Structured Projects & Codes .. 94
8.9. Lack of Reproducibility ...................................... 94
8.10. Not Publishing Your Projects on social media . 96
Afterword ...................................................................... 98

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Introduction
In the era of data-driven decision-making, where
information reigns supreme, the field of Data Science
stands as an indispensable force shaping industries,
economies, and even our daily lives. As organizations
harness the power of data to gain insights, solve
complex problems, and fuel innovation, the demand for
skilled data scientists has reached unprecedented
heights. Whether you're a seasoned data professional or
just embarking on your journey into the world of data
science, one critical aspect remains constant: the need
for a robust and compelling portfolio.

Welcome to "Data Science Portfolio for Success: The

Ultimate Guide on Building Data Science Portfolio." In
this transformative book, we embark on a journey that
will empower you to not only navigate the intricate
terrain of data science but also master the art of
showcasing your skills and expertise. Whether you aim
to land your dream job, advance your career, or
contribute to groundbreaking research, your data
science portfolio will be your compass, guiding you
toward your objectives.

In the pages that follow, we will delve deep into the

world of data science portfolio starting with the
importance of data science portfolio, followed by a step-

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by-step guide to build your portfolio and industry level
projects. After that you will be introduced to tools to host
your portfolio and where to find datasets for your
portfolio projects. Finally, we conclude with the mistakes
that you should avoid when building your data science
portfolio.

Prepare to embark on a transformative journey that will

not only elevate your data science skills but also set you
on a trajectory toward a successful and impactful career.
Let's get started on your quest to master the art of
building a data science portfolio that unlocks doors to
endless possibilities.

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1. The Importance of Having a
Portfolio as a Data Scientist
In today’s competitive job market, simply having a
degree in data science may not be enough to land your
dream job as a data scientist. Employers are
increasingly looking for candidates who can demonstrate
their skills and expertise in the field through real-world
projects and experience.

This is where having a strong data science portfolio

comes into play. In this chapter, we will discuss what a
data science portfolio is, why it is important, and how
you can build a solid portfolio that will showcase your
abilities and make you stand out in the job market.

1.1. What is a Data Science Portfolio?

A Data Science Portfolio is a collection of projects, code,
and other artifacts that showcase a data scientist’s skills
and capabilities to potential employers or collaborators.
It typically includes real-world data analyses, machine
learning models, data visualizations, and other examples
of work that demonstrate a data scientist’s ability to
manipulate and extract insights from data.

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A well-designed portfolio should provide a clear and
compelling narrative of the data scientist’s skills,
interests, and professional goals, and demonstrate their
ability to apply data science techniques to real-world
problems. This can be achieved by including a diverse
range of projects that showcase different aspects of the
data scientist’s skill set, such as data cleaning, feature
engineering, model selection, and evaluation.

In addition to demonstrating technical skills, a strong

data science portfolio should also highlight a data
scientist’s ability to communicate their findings to non-
technical stakeholders, through clear and concise
visualizations, reports, and presentations. Overall, a
data science portfolio is an essential tool for any data
scientist looking to showcase their work and advance
their career in the field.

1.2. Why Is Having a Solid Portfolio

Important?
Having a solid portfolio is essential for anyone looking to
establish themselves as a skilled and credible
professional in their field. This is especially true for data
scientists, as the field is highly competitive and rapidly
evolving, and employers are always looking for evidence
of an applicant’s abilities and experience.

Here are a few key reasons why having a solid

portfolio is important for data scientists:

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 ● Demonstrates Your Skills and Abilities: A
portfolio provides a tangible demonstration of
your skills and abilities as a data scientist. It
shows potential employers or clients what you
are capable of and provides concrete evidence of
your experience and expertise. This can help you
stand out from other applicants and increase
your chances of being hired or contracted.
● Showcases Your Creativity and Problem-
Solving Abilities: A portfolio allows you to
showcase your creativity and problem-solving
abilities. By sharing examples of your work, you
can demonstrate your ability to think critically and
creatively about complex data problems and
come up with innovative solutions.
● Provides Proof of Concept: A portfolio provides
proof of concept that you can apply your skills to
real-world problems. Employers want to see that
you can use your skills to solve actual business
problems, and a portfolio provides a powerful
way to demonstrate this.
● Demonstrates Your Communication and
Collaboration Skills: A strong portfolio should
also showcase your communication and
collaboration skills. As a data scientist, you will
need to work closely with stakeholders who may
not have technical backgrounds, and your ability
to communicate your findings effectively will be
critical. A portfolio that includes well-designed
visualizations and clear explanations of your

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 work demonstrates your ability to communicate
technical information to non-technical audiences.
● Discussion Topic: During an interview, a
portfolio might be used as a discussion starter.
Applicants may go over their projects, difficulties
encountered, and solutions they came up with.
By doing so, the applicant can establish a
relationship with the interviewer and show that
they can clearly and succinctly express
complicated ideas.

1.3. How to Build a Strong Portfolio?

Building a strong data science portfolio is important to
showcase your skills, knowledge, and experience to
potential employers or clients.

Here are some tips to help you create a strong data

science portfolio:

• Start with a clear focus: Identity what kind of

data science projects you want to work on and
what areas of data science you are most
interested in. This will help you tailor your
portfolio to your goals and target audience.
• Include a variety of projects: Include a mix of
projects that showcase different skills, such as
data cleaning and preprocessing, exploratory
data analysis, machine learning, and data
visualization.

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 • Choose relevant unique datasets: Use
datasets that are relevant to your target audience
and your area of interest. It’s also a good idea to
choose datasets that are publicly available so
that others can easily reproduce your results.
However, try to stay away from the very popular
overused datasets.
• Provide context: For each project, provide
context about the problem you were trying to
solve, the methods you used, and the results you
achieved. This will help others understand your
thought process and the impact of your work.
• Make it visually appealing: Use clear and
concise visuals to showcase your results. Use
graphs, charts, and other visualizations to help
tell the story of your work.
• Use industry-standard tools and techniques:
Use industry-standard tools and techniques to
showcase your skills and knowledge. This will
help potential employers or clients understand
your familiarity with the tools they use.
• Keep it up to date: As you complete new
projects, continue to update your portfolio to
showcase your most recent work.

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1.4. What You Should Include in Your
Portfolio?

1.4.1 Three Types of Data Science Projects

● Data Analysis Projects: The first project you
should have on your portfolio is a data analysis
project. In this project, you will focus on important
data-related skills such as data cleaning, data
collection, data exploration, data visualization
and storytelling. Data analysis projects will
demonstrate your ability to extract insights from
data and persuade others. This has a large
impact on the business value you can deliver and
is an important piece of your portfolio.
● Machine Learning Projects: The second type of
project should be a machine learning project that
covers basic machine learning tasks. This
includes having at least three machine learning
projects cover regression, classification, and
clustering tasks. It will be very helpful if you can
work with different data types, such as tabular
data, time series data, images, videos, and text.
For each data type, this will require different
techniques, skills, and tools, which will show up
your skills and make you stand out.
● End-to-End Projects: Having an end-to-end
data science project will show that you’re
capable of building systems that are customer-
facing. Customer-facing systems involve high-

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 performance code that can be run multiple times
with different pieces of data to generate different
outputs. An example is a system that predicts the
stock market — it will download new market data
every morning, then predict which stocks will do
well during the day. In order to show we can
build operational systems; we’ll need to build an
end-to-end project. An end-to-end project takes
in and processes data and then generates some
output. Often, this is the result of a machine
learning algorithm, but it can also be another
output, like the total number of rows matching
certain criteria.

1.4.2. Comprehensive Documentation

It is important to have comprehensive documentation for
each project to be able to show your work in a proper
way, else you will not be able to show your work and
results. A comprehensive project readme should have
the following sections, according to Andrew Jones:

● Project Overview: First, you should provide the

project background and motivation and what is
the goal of the project.
● Data Overview & Preparation Steps: A brief
overview of the data used, how you collected the
data, and how you prepared it, which includes
data preprocessing and feature engineering.
Also, it is also important to provide a summary of
the data.

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 ● Methodology Overview: You should also
mention the techniques and tools used to
achieve the project goals.
● Results & Outcomes: Finally, you should also
mention the results and the project outcomes
and what they mean.
● Growth & Next Steps: You should also mention
what are the next steps and what you would do if
you had more time.

1.4.3. Solid Project Structure

It is important to have a solid structure for your project
as this will show that you can work on a production-level
code. A very good starting point is the project structure
shown in the figure below, which was provided by
Abhishek Thakur in his book Approaching (Almost) Any
Machine Learning Problem.

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 Figure 1. Machine learning project structure

● input/: This folder consists of all the input files

and data for your machine learning project. If you
are working on NLP projects, you can keep your
embeddings here. If you are working on image
projects, all images go to a subfolder inside this
folder.
● src/: We will keep all the Python scripts
associated with the project here. If I talk about a
Python script, i.e., any *.py file, it is stored in the
src folder.

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 ● models/: This folder keeps all the trained
models.
● notebooks/: All jupyter notebooks (i.e., any
*.ipynb file) are stored in the notebooks folder.
● README.md: This is a markdown file where you
can describe your project and write instructions
on how to train the model or to serve this in a
production environment.
● LICENSE: This is a simple text file that consists
of a license for a project, such as MIT, Apache,
etc.

2. How to Build a Data Science

Portfolio That Will Land You a
Job?
In this chapter, we will discuss the key components of a
successful data science portfolio project and provide tips
and best practices for building one that will make you
stand out to potential employers. Whether you’re just
getting started in the field or looking to take your career

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to the next level, this guide will help you create a
portfolio that showcases your skills and experience in
the best possible light.

2.1. Select a Domain of Interest

The first step to building a strong data science portfolio
is to focus on a certain domain of interest. Data science
and AI, at the end of the day, are tools that are used to
solve a problem, improve performance, or automate a
certain task. Therefore, it is important to decide which
domain you would like to apply your data science skills.

This might depend on your previous experience. If you

have work experience in a certain domain, it will be
easier to find business problems to work on. It can also
be a domain you are interested in and would like to use
your skills to make an impact in this domain.

It is important to mention that the more you have

experience in this domain, the more you will be able to
get unique ideas, and the better your projects will be. In
addition to that, it will give you a great advantage in the
market and make you stand out. As you will have a very
good understanding of the data collection process and
what it means, it will improve your skills in engineering
the features of the data.

Actions:
● Choose three domains of interest depending on
your experience and research background.

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 ● You should take into consideration your career
goal and whether you would like to work in
research or in industry.
● You can find more about different domains and
how data science and AI are used to solve
business problems in this article.

2.3. Prioritize Your Interest Based on

the Market Demand
The next step after selecting two or three domains of
interest is to prioritize and arrange them based on the
market needs and demands. For example, I am living in
Finland, so if I would like to join this market, I will have to
do some market research to understand the market
demand and know the companies working in these
domains.

Based on my market research I found that there are a lot

of opportunities and demands in the telecommunication
domain (Nokia, Elisa, DNA), gaming domain(Unity,
Rovio), and the Fintech industry. So, I should prioritize
my interests based on this when I start to build an end-
to-end project.

Actions:
● Select the market you would like to work in.
● Do market research and find the intersection
between your interest and the market need.

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 ● Select one domain that meets the previous
criteria.
● Select the companies that are working in this
intersection and are regularly hiring.

2.4. Define Important Case Studies in

the Market
Now you have selected the domain of interest that
meets your interest and the market demand, and you got
good ideas about the companies that are hiring in this
domain and the job requirements. It is time to define the
case study or business problem to start building a
solution to solve it or answer the business requirements.

To come up with real-world business problems or

questions in this domain, you can do further research
about the selected companies above and know what
they are working on and what they use data science for.
This can sometimes be found in the job requirements or
on the company website. However, if you cannot find it
there you can take a further step and start to ask one of
the data scientists that are working there.

I believe this is a very useful and goal-oriented approach

because not only will you be working on similar
problems as your dream company is working on, but it
will make it easier to get a job offer there. You will also
get a good idea about the tools and the technology stack

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at these companies so you can learn them and use them
in creating your projects.

Another approach is to interview experts from this

domain and ask them about the most important
questions or problems they have, and they wish they
could use the data to solve it.

Actions:
● Read the recent data science job requirements
for the companies you are interested in or read
about the projects these companies are currently
working on.
● If you do not find much information on the job
requirements or the company website, you can
contact data scientists that are working there.
● Find three case studies or business problems
they are using data science to solve it.
● Repeat this for different companies you are
interested in working there.

2.5. Choose Different Case Studies

Now you have multiple case studies to work on in your
domain of interest. It is time now to narrow down your
selection. My suggestion is to have at least three solid
case studies that cover the basic machine learning
tasks, which is regression, classification, and clustering.

In addition to that, try to focus on having them solved

using different data types, and you narrow your selection

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and focus more on the data types you are passionate
about. For example, if you would like to show your
computer vision skills, you can focus more on case
studies that need computer vision skills.

To elaborate more, let's take a practical example. Let's

assume that you are interested in working in the
healthcare domain. So, after searching, you came up
with multiple case studies in this field, and you are
interested in the computer vision domain. Here are three
case studies that cover different machine learning tasks
and are solved using computer vision skills:

• Regression: Movement disorder detection using

pose estimation.
• Classification: Brain tumor detection and
classification
• Clustering: Alzheimer's disease analysts using
clustering

Actions:
● Discover the different areas of AI and know your
interests.
● Narrow down your case studies into at least
three that cover the basic machine learning tasks
and focus on your area of interest in AI.
● Define which case study is solved by which
machine learning task and which data type.

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2.6. Brainstorm Data Science
Solutions
Now you have defined the case study you would like to
work on and defined the business questions for this
problem. Do not rush into building the first solution that
comes into your mind. Instead, take your time to
brainstorm different potential solutions for it and study
each of them and see which one will lead to better
results and meet your learning goals and set of skills.

After brainstorming the solutions and choosing the

suitable one you will need to assess the feasibility and
value of potential solutions. This can be done by
reviewing the published research papers on this topic or
you can discuss with an expert your potential solution
and see whether it is reasonable and will achieve the
expected results or not. This is also a very critical step
as it will save you a lot of time, effort, and future
disappointments.

Actions:
● Brainstorm different AI& data science solutions
for your business problem
● Evaluate them based on your criteria and select
the one that best meets them.
● Validate your potential solution.

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2.7. Determine Success Metrics
Once you have brainstormed the potential solutions and
validated their feasibility and value, it is time to
determine the success metrics you aim for this project
and solution.

This includes both machine learning metrics, or what are

known as offline metrics, such as (accuracy and F1
score ) and business metrics, or what is known as online
metrics (revenue, click-through rate).

Machine learning teams are often most comfortable with

metrics that a learning algorithm can optimize. But we
may need to stretch outside our comfort zone to come
up with business metrics, such as those related to user
engagement, revenue, and so on. Unfortunately, not
every business problem can be reduced to optimizing
test set accuracy! If you can’t determine reasonable
milestones, it may be a sign that you need to learn more
about the problem.

Actions:
● Study the problem and define the success
metrics for your project, both the machine
learning and the business metrics.

2.8. Collect the Data

Now, as your idea is ready, it is up to me to get your
hands dirty with data. You need to collect real-world data

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to answer your business questions or to train the
models. It is very important to use a unique dataset that
is representative of your problem.

Kindly stay away from well-known datasets such as the

Titanic, California house prices, Iris flowers dataset, and
similar well-known datasets. They are very good for
beginners and for educational projects, but they will
harm you if your portfolio projects are with them.

Here are some suggested ways to collect unique

datasets to develop your solution based on them:

● Kaggle
● Scrape your own data.
● Ask for data.
● Use open datasets from universities, NGO
organizations, or governmental organizations.

Actions:
● Search for different data sources that can
provide you with a unique dataset that can fit
your project.
● Collect and store the data.

2.9. Clean & Prepare the Data

Now you have the data. The next step is to make it
ready for modeling. This includes cleaning the data and
applying different feature engineering techniques to it to
get the best out of it.

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This step is very demanding, especially if your data is
real-world data which might have a lot of missing data,
outliers, and other defects which are very common in
real-world data.

In addition to that, you will have to explore the data to

have a better understanding of it and to guide you when
you start to engineer its feature and make it ready for the
modeling step. Feature engineering will include data
preprocessing, feature selection and dimensionality
reduction, and more, depending on your problem and
the collected data.

Actions:
● Clean the data.
● Explore the data.
● Feature engineering to make it ready for
modeling.

2.10. Train & Evaluate the Model

Now it is time to train the machine learning model using
your data. This will include several steps. First, you must
choose the models to use. This will depend on many
factors, such as:

● Model explainability
● In memory vs. out memory
● Number of features and instances
● Categorical vs. numerical features

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 ● Data normality
● Training speed
● Prediction speed
You can find more information in this article. Next, you
will train and evaluate the model. This step includes
splitting the data, training the model, choosing suitable
and representative evaluation metrics, and
hyperparameter optimization.

Actions:
● Select suitable models for your problem.
● Split the data.
● Train the model
● Choose suitable evaluation metrics.
● Optimize the model hyperparameters.
● Test your model on the testing data.

2.11. Make them End to End

The final step is to make your project an end-to-end
project. Many people usually stop at the previous. By
this, you miss a big chance of making your project a real
project which will help you in your job searching journey
and make you stand out from other candidates.

To make your project an end-to-end project, you will

need to take your model a further step and deeply it into
production and integrate it into a web or mobile
application. After that, you will start to monitor the model
and see how it responds to new data. Based on the
model performance in production you will have to retrain

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the model, change it, collect more data, engineer the
features in a different and so on.

Actions:
● Deploy the trained model into production.
● Integrate the model into a mobile or a web
application.
● Monitor the model’s performance.
● Iterate

2.12. Publish & Talk About It

The final step is to publish your project on your GitHub
page and create a comprehensive readme file for it.
Your readme file should contain this:

● Motivation & business problem statement

● How the data was collected
● Main data cleaning steps
● Comprehensive data exploration plots
● Main feature engineering steps
● The model used and why you chose it.
● Evaluation metrics and why you chose it.
● The model performance
● How to try the model in production

Having a comprehensive readme file for your project is a

very step that a lot of people actually do not focus on. It
will make your work and project more valuable and
accessible since many people will only read the readme
before deciding to go through the code. It also shows

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your documentation and insight communication skills
which are critical skills for aspiring data scientists.

Finally, you need to start talking about your project to

grab the attention and to show the people what you are
capable of. You can record a short video of your project
while working in real time and publish it on your social
media channels, especially LinkedIn & Twitter and invite
your connections to try it and give feedback on this
experience.

You can also write a blog explaining each step and show
the insights you got from the data. You can create a
YouTube video explaining the project step and show the
results and the insights you got from the data and how
you answered the business questions, and how the
model works in production.

Actions:
● Upload your project on GitHub & Publish it on
your professional social media channel.
● Write a comprehensive readme file for your
project.
● Record a short video of your project to
demonstrate how it works.
● Invite people to try your project and give you
feedback.
● Write a blog about your project.
● Record a long video explaining the project steps.

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Working on data science and AI projects is an iterative
process. If, at any step, you find that the current
direction is infeasible, return to an earlier step and
proceed with your new understanding. Also, if you
deployed the model into production and got unexpected
results, you can go back and iterate till you can get the
results that meet your success criteria.

Finally, I would like to conclude with these words from

Andrew NG

Avoid analysis paralysis. It doesn’t make sense to

spend a month deciding whether to work on a
project that would take a week to complete. You’ll
work on multiple projects over the course of your
career, so you’ll have ample opportunity to refine
your thinking on what’s worthwhile.

3. Building Industry-Level Data

Science Projects: A Step-by-
Step Guide
While the demand for data scientists & AI engineers
continues to rise, there remains a significant gap
between academic knowledge and practical
implementation, especially when it comes to building
industry-level data science projects.

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This chapter aims to bridge that gap by providing a
comprehensive step-by-step guide to building industry-
level data science projects. Whether you are a budding
data scientist looking to apply your skills in a real-world
setting or an industry professional seeking to leverage
data science for your organization’s growth, this chapter
will equip you with the essential knowledge and practical
strategies required to navigate the complexities of data
science project development.

Throughout this chapter, we will explore the key stages

involved in building industry-level data science projects,
starting from project scoping and data acquisition to
modeling, evaluation, and deployment. Each step will be
accompanied by best practices, real-world examples,
and practical tips to help you navigate the challenges
and make informed decisions at every stage of the
project lifecycle.

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Figure 2. Building industry level data science projects: A step-by-step
guide

3.1. Crafting the Project Idea

The first crucial step in building an industry-level data
science project is to craft a well-defined and impactful
project idea. A strong project idea serves as the
foundation for your entire endeavor, driving the focus,
scope, and direction of your work. In this section, we will
explore the key considerations and strategies involved in
crafting a compelling project idea.

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3.1.1. Define Industry-Level Use Case

Figure 3. Define industry-level use case.

A. Select a domain of interest.

The first step is to define the domain of interest for your
idea. Data science and AI, at the end of the day, are
tools that are used to solve a problem, improve
performance, or automate a certain task. Therefore, it is
important to decide which domain you would like to
apply your data science skills.

This might depend on your previous experience. If you

have work experience in a certain domain, it will be
easier to find business problems to work on. It can also
be a domain you are interested in and would like to use
your skills to make an impact in this domain.

It is important to mention that the more you have

experience in this domain, the more you will be able to
get unique ideas, and the better your projects will be. In
addition to that, it will give you a great advantage in the

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market and make you stand out. As you will have a very
good understanding of the data collection process and
what it means, it will improve your skills in engineering
the features of the data.

B. Prioritize your interest based on the market

demand.
The next step after selecting two or three domains of
interest is to prioritize your choices based on the market
needs and demands. For example, I am living in Finland,
so if I would like to join this market, I will have to do
some market research to understand the market
demand and know the companies working in these
domains.

Based on my market research, I found that there are a

lot of opportunities and demands in the
telecommunication domain (Nokia, Elisa, DNA), gaming
domain(Unity, Rovio), and the Fintech industry. So, I
should prioritize my interests based on this when I start
to build an end-to-end project.

C. Define important case studies in the market.

Now you have selected the domain of interest that
meets your interest and the market demand, and you got
good ideas about the companies that are hiring in this
domain and the job requirements. It is time to define the
case study or business problem to start building a
solution to solve it or answer the business requirements.

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To come up with real-world business problems or
questions in this domain, you can do further research
about the selected companies above and know what
they are working on and what they use data science for.
This can sometimes be found in the job requirements or
on the company website. However, if you cannot find it
there you can take a further step and start asking data
scientists that are working there.

I believe this is a very useful and goal-oriented approach

because not only will you be working on similar
problems as your dream company is working on, but it
will make it easier to get a job offer there. You will also
get a good idea about the tools and the technology stack
at these companies so you can learn them and use them
in creating your projects.

Another approach is to interview experts from this

domain and ask them about the most important
questions or problems they have, and they wish they
could use the data to solve them.

3.1.2. Setting Baseline & Define KPI

Setting a baseline and defining key performance
indicators (KPIs) are crucial steps in building industry-
level data science projects. These steps provide a clear
starting point and a measurable framework to evaluate
the success and progress of the project.

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By setting a baseline, data scientists can establish a
reference point against which they can compare the
performance of their models and algorithms. This
baseline represents the initial state or existing solution
that the project aims to improve upon. You can find more
information on defining a baseline for your data science
& machine learning projects in this article.

Defining KPIs, on the other hand, enables the project

team to identify and track specific metrics that align with
the project’s objectives and desired outcomes. KPIs can
be diverse and may include measures such as accuracy,
precision, recall, customer satisfaction, revenue growth,
or operational efficiency. It is essential to select KPIs
that are relevant, quantifiable, and directly linked to the
project’s goals. These indicators serve as milestones
and guide the project’s direction, ensuring that efforts
are focused on achieving tangible and measurable
results.

By establishing a baseline and defining KPIs, data

science projects can operate with clarity and purpose,
facilitating effective decision-making and driving
meaningful progress toward their intended outcomes.

3.1.3. High-Level System Design

Now you have defined the case study you would like to
work on and defined the business questions for this
problem. Do not rush into building the first solution that
comes into your mind. Instead, take your time to

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brainstorm different potential solutions for it and study
each of them and see which one will lead to better
results and meet your learning goals and set of skills.

After brainstorming the solutions and choosing the

suitable one you will need to assess the feasibility and
value of potential solutions. This can be done by
reviewing the published research papers on this topic or
you can discuss with an expert your potential solution
and see whether it is reasonable and will achieve the
expected results or not. This is also a very critical step
as it will save you a lot of time, effort, and future
disappointments.

3.2. Collect the Data

Now, as your idea is ready, it is up to me to get your
hands dirty with data. You need to collect real-world data
to answer your business questions and help you solve
your problem. It is very important to use a unique
dataset that is representative of your problem.

Kindly stay away from well-known datasets such as the

Titanic, California house prices, Iris flowers dataset, and
similar well-known datasets. They are very good for
beginners and for educational projects, but they will
harm you if your portfolio projects are with them.
Here are some ten resources to collect unique datasets
to develop your solution based on them:
● Google Dataset Search
● Kaggle

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 ● UCI Machine Learning Repository
● Data.gov
● Awesome Public Datasets GitHub Repo
● Reddit’s /r/datasets
● Pudding.cool
● Fivethirtyeight
● KDnuggets
● Buzzfeed

You can find more information about each of them in this

article.

3.3. Prepare the Data

Now you have the data. The next step is to make it
ready for modeling. This includes cleaning the data and
applying different feature engineering techniques to it to
get the best out of it.

Data preprocessing is a critical step in the data analysis

pipeline that involves transforming raw data into a clean,
structured format suitable for further analysis and
modeling. It aims to handle common data issues, such
as missing values, outliers, inconsistencies, and data
incompatibilities, which can adversely affect the
accuracy and reliability of the results.

The following are some common techniques and

steps involved in data preprocessing:

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 ● Data Cleaning: This step involves handling
missing values by either imputing them with
appropriate values or removing the instances
with missing data if they are deemed irrelevant.
Outliers, which are extreme values that deviate
significantly from most of the data, can be
identified and treated through methods like
filtering or replacing them with statistically
reasonable values.
● Data Integration: When dealing with multiple
data sources, data integration is necessary to
combine and merge the data into a unified
dataset. This may involve resolving schema
conflicts, standardizing units of measurement,
and reconciling differences in data structures.
● Data Transformation: Data transformation
involves converting the data into a suitable
format for analysis. This can include scaling
numerical data to a consistent range, encoding
categorical variables into numerical
representations, and applying mathematical
functions or transformations to achieve better
distribution properties.
● Feature Selection: Feature selection aims to
identify the most relevant and informative
features or attributes that contribute significantly
to the analysis or modeling task. This helps to
reduce dimensionality, enhance model
performance, and mitigate the curse of
dimensionality.

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 ● Discretization: Discretization is the process of
transforming continuous variables into
categorical or ordinal variables. This can be
useful in cases where the relationships between
variables are non-linear or when certain
algorithms require categorical inputs.
● Data Normalization/Standardization:
Normalizing or standardizing the data ensures
that all variables are on a similar scale,
preventing certain features from dominating the
analysis due to their larger magnitude.
Normalization typically involves scaling the data
to a range of 0 to 1, while standardization
involves transforming the data to have a mean of
0 and a standard deviation of 1.
● Data Sampling: In cases where the dataset is
imbalanced, with one class significantly
outnumbering the others, sampling techniques
such as oversampling or under sampling can be
applied to balance the representation of different
classes. This helps to prevent bias in subsequent
modeling steps.
● Data Splitting: Before modeling, it is essential to
split the preprocessed dataset into training,
validation, and testing sets. The training set is
used to build the model, the validation set is used
to fine-tune model parameters and make
decisions regarding model selection, and the
testing set is used to evaluate the final model’s
performance on unseen data.

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Data preprocessing is an iterative process that often
requires experimentation, exploration, and domain
knowledge. By carefully preparing and cleaning the data,
analysts, and data scientists can enhance the quality of
their analysis, improve the accuracy of models, and
derive more reliable insights from the data.

3.4. Train the Models

Now it is time to train the machine learning model using
your data. This will include several steps. It starts with
model selection, training the model, and then
hyperparameter optimization. After that, you will
evaluate the model and analysis any bottleneck, and
iterate. Once the model is ready you can push it and
implement the inference pipeline. Let's go through each
of these stages in more detail:

3.4.1. Model Selection

Model selection is a crucial step in the data science
process that involves choosing the most appropriate
machine learning or statistical model for a given
problem. The goal of model selection is to identify the
model that can best capture the patterns and
relationships within the data and make accurate
predictions or provide meaningful insights.

Here are some key considerations and steps

involved in model selection:

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 ● Problem to Solve: Clearly understand the
problem you are trying to solve and the goals you
want to achieve with the model. This includes
determining whether it is a regression,
classification, clustering, or another type of
problem.
● Data Understanding: Gain a thorough
understanding of the data, including its
characteristics, size, and distribution. Assess the
relationships between variables, identify potential
outliers or anomalies, and consider any specific
data requirements or constraints.
● Identify Relevant Models: Based on the
problem type and data characteristics, identify a
range of models that are suitable for the task.
This may involve consulting literature, domain
experts, or previous research in the field.
● Evaluate Model Complexity: Consider the
trade-off between model complexity and
interpretability. Simpler models may be more
interpretable and easier to implement, while
more complex models may offer higher predictive
performance but could be harder to interpret.
● Consider Algorithm Assumptions: Understand
the assumptions and limitations of each model
algorithm. Some algorithms may assume
linearity, independence, or specific distributions
within the data. Make sure these assumptions
align with the characteristics of your data.

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You can find more information about model selection in
this article.

3.4.2. Model Training & Hyperparameter

Tuning
Model training and hyperparameter tuning are essential
steps in building machine-learning models for industry-
level projects. Model training involves fitting the model to
the training data to learn the underlying patterns and
relationships, while hyperparameter tuning involves
finding the optimal values for the hyperparameters that
govern the model's behavior.

Here is an overview of the process:

● Initialize Hyperparameters: Set initial values for

the model's hyperparameters. Hyperparameters
are parameters that are not learned from the
data but are set prior to training and affect the
model's behavior (e.g., learning rate,
regularization strength, number of hidden units).
For a lot of problems, you will find
recommendations for hyperparameter
initialization that will help your model to converge
faster.
● Train the Model: Use the training data to fit the
model and learn the optimal parameters. This
involves feeding the input data through the
model, calculating the model's output, comparing
it with the actual output, and updating the

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 model's parameters using optimization
algorithms like gradient descent.
● Evaluate Model Performance: Assess the
model's performance on the validation set using
suitable evaluation metrics (e.g., accuracy,
precision, recall, mean squared error). This
provides an indication of how well the model
generalizes to unseen data.
● Hyperparameter Tuning: Adjust the
hyperparameter values to improve the model's
performance. This can be done through various
methods, including grid search, random search,
or more advanced techniques like Bayesian
optimization or genetic algorithms. Iterate
through different hyperparameter configurations
and evaluate their impact on the model's
performance.
● Cross-Validation: Perform cross-validation
during the hyperparameter tuning process to
obtain more reliable estimates of the model's
performance. This involves repeatedly splitting
the data into training and validation sets and
evaluating the model on each split.

3.4.3. Model Analysis and Evaluation

Model analysis and evaluation are crucial steps in
building a real-world data science project. You do not
want to deploy a model that has major problems or
cannot generalize to new data. Assessing the
performance and effectiveness of machine learning

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models will help determine how well the model
generalizes to unseen data and whether it meets the
desired objectives and determine any bottleneck that
needs to be solved before deploying the model into
production.

Here are key aspects to consider when analyzing

and evaluating models:

● Evaluation Metrics: Choose appropriate

evaluation metrics based on the specific task and
the nature of the data. For classification tasks,
metrics like accuracy, precision, recall, F1-score,
and area under the ROC curve (AUC-ROC) are
commonly used. Regression tasks often employ
metrics like mean squared error (MSE), root
means squared error (RMSE), mean absolute
error (MAE), or R-squared.
● Confusion Matrix: In classification tasks,
analyze the confusion matrix to gain insights into
the model’s performance across different
classes. It helps identify true positives, true
negatives, false positives, and false negatives,
enabling a deeper understanding of the model’s
strengths and weaknesses.
● Bias and Fairness: Assess the model for
potential biases and fairness issues, particularly
in sensitive applications such as loan approvals
or hiring processes. Investigate if the model
exhibits disparate impact or unfair treatment

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 towards certain demographic groups and take
corrective measures if necessary.
● Overfitting and Underfitting: Analyze the
model’s performance on both the training and
validation/test data. Overfitting occurs when the
model performs well on the training data but
poorly on the validation/test data, indicating it has
memorized the training data instead of capturing
underlying patterns. Underfitting occurs when the
model performs poorly on both training and
validation/test data, suggesting it fails to capture
the underlying patterns adequately. Adjust the
model’s complexity or hyperparameters to
mitigate these issues.
● Feature Importance: Assess the importance of
different features or variables in the model’s
predictions. Techniques such as feature
importance scores, permutation importance, or
SHAP (SHapley Additive exPlanations) values
can help identify the most influential features.
Understanding feature importance can provide
insights into the factors driving the model’s
predictions and inform future feature engineering
efforts.
● Business Impact: Evaluate the model’s
performance in terms of its impact on the
business or problem domain. Consider how the
model’s predictions can be translated into
actionable insights and decision-making. Assess
whether the model achieves the desired

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 objectives and if it aligns with the stakeholders’
requirements and expectations.
● Documentation and Reporting: Document the
analysis and evaluation process, including the
chosen metrics, results, and any important
findings. Prepare clear and concise reports or
visualizations to communicate the model’s
performance and insights to stakeholders,
ensuring transparency and facilitating decision-
making.

3.4.4. Model Push/ Export

This step refers to the process of deploying or exporting
a trained machine learning model into a production
environment where it can be used to make predictions or
provide insights on new, unseen data. This step is
crucial for integrating the model into real-world
applications and leveraging its capabilities to deliver
value.

Here are the key considerations and steps involved

in the model push/export process:

● Model Serialization: Serialize the trained model

into a format that can be easily stored,
transferred, and loaded into the production
environment. This typically involves converting
the model object into a binary representation,
such as a pickle file or a serialized object in a
specific format (e.g., ONNX, PMML) that is

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 compatible with the chosen deployment
framework.
● Model Packaging: Bundle the serialized model
with any required dependencies or auxiliary files
that are necessary for its execution in the
production environment. This ensures that all
necessary components are packaged together
and can be easily deployed without missing
dependencies.
● Infrastructure Setup: Set up the infrastructure
and environment in the production system to
accommodate the model’s execution. This may
involve configuring servers, containers, or cloud-
based platforms to host and run the model
efficiently and securely.

3.4.5. Inference Pipeline Implementation

Inference pipeline refers to the implementation of a
systematic workflow or process that takes raw input data
and generates meaningful predictions or insights using a
trained machine learning model. It encompasses all the
necessary steps, from data preprocessing to post-
processing, to facilitate efficient and reliable inference on
new, unseen data.

Here are the key components and considerations

when implementing an inference pipeline:

● Data Preprocessing: Prepare the input data for

inference by performing the necessary

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 preprocessing steps. This may include handling
missing values, scaling or normalizing features,
encoding categorical variables, or applying any
required transformations to ensure consistency
with the training data.
● Data Integration: Integrate the preprocessed
data with any additional relevant data sources or
features that are required for the inference
process. This may involve combining different
data streams, merging databases, or accessing
external APIs to enrich the input data.
● Model Loading: Load the trained machine
learning model that was previously trained on
historical data. This can be done by deserializing
the serialized model object or loading it from a
model repository or storage system. Ensure
compatibility between the model and the
execution environment.
● Feature Extraction: Extract or select the
relevant features from the preprocessed data
that are required for making predictions or
generating insights. This step involves mapping
the input data to the expected format that the
model can consume.
● Model Inference: Apply the loaded model to the
preprocessed input data to make predictions or
generate outputs. This typically involves passing
the input data through the model’s forward pass,
using the appropriate APIs or libraries provided
by the chosen machine learning framework.

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 ● Post-processing: Process the model’s
predictions or outputs to obtain meaningful
results that can be easily interpreted and used
for decision-making. This may involve
thresholding, scaling back to the original units,
converting probabilities to class labels, or
performing any domain-specific transformations.
● Result Visualization: Visualize the results or
insights obtained from the inference process in a
clear and interpretable manner. This may include
generating plots, and charts, or effectively
communicating the predictions or insights to
stakeholders, decision-makers, or end-users.
● Integration with Production Systems:
Integrate the inference pipeline with the existing
production systems or applications where the
predictions or insights will be utilized. This may
involve exposing the pipeline as an API,
integrating it with a web application, or
embedding it within an existing software system.
● Performance Optimization: Optimize the
inference pipeline for performance and efficiency.
This includes techniques such as batching or
parallelizing the inference process, utilizing
hardware acceleration (e.g., GPUs), or
leveraging distributed computing frameworks to
handle high workloads.
● Monitoring and Maintenance: Implement
monitoring mechanisms to track the performance
and stability of the inference pipeline in the
production environment. Regularly monitor the

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 model’s accuracy, response time, resource
utilization, and potential errors or issues. Perform
maintenance tasks, such as periodic retraining,
updating the model, or refining the preprocessing
steps, as needed.

3.5. Model Deployment

Now everything is ready to deploy your machine learning
into production. This step includes further steps starting
from deploying the model into production, scheduling
and orchestrating the training pipeline, monitoring the
system and model performance, and creating alerts and
notifications. Deploying an ML pipeline on the cloud for
building industry-level data science projects involves
leveraging cloud services and infrastructure to host and
execute the pipeline components.

Here is a step-by-step guide to help you with the

process:

● Cloud Platform Selection: Choose a cloud

platform that suits your project requirements.
Popular options include Amazon Web Services
(AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud
Platform (GCP). Consider factors such as
available services, pricing, scalability, and
integration capabilities.
● Data Storage: Identify the appropriate cloud
storage service to store your datasets and any
intermediate results. Options include Amazon

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 S3, Azure Blob Storage, or Google Cloud
Storage. Set up the required buckets or
containers to store the data securely.
● Compute Resources: Provision of the
necessary computational resources to run your
ML pipeline components. This can be done using
services such as Amazon EC2, Azure Virtual
Machines, or Google Compute Engine. Choose
the instance type and size based on your
computational requirements.
● Containerization: Containerize your ML pipeline
components using containerization technologies
like Docker. This ensures consistent and
reproducible execution across different
environments. Create Docker images for each
component of your pipeline, including data
preprocessing, model training, and inference.
● Container Orchestration: Deploy and manage
your containerized pipeline components using
container orchestration platforms like Kubernetes
or container services provided by your cloud
platform (e.g., Amazon EKS, Azure Kubernetes
Service, Google Kubernetes Engine). Set up the
necessary clusters and configure the deployment
specifications.
● Pipeline Orchestration: Implement pipeline
orchestration using workflow management tools
or services. This helps automate the execution of
various pipeline stages and manage
dependencies between components. Popular
options include Apache Airflow, AWS Step

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 Functions, Azure Logic Apps, or GCP Cloud
Composer.
● Automation and Monitoring: Implement
automation and monitoring capabilities to track
the performance, health, and scalability of your
ML pipeline. Configure monitoring and alerting
services provided by the cloud platform or
integrate with third-party monitoring tools.
Monitor metrics such as CPU and memory
utilization, data ingestion rates, and error rates.
● Security and Access Control: Ensure
appropriate security measures are in place to
protect your data and pipeline components.
Configure access control policies, encryption
mechanisms, and authentication methods.
Follow best practices for securing cloud
resources and comply with industry-specific
regulations and standards.
● Continuous Integration and Deployment:
Implement continuous integration and
deployment (CI/CD) practices to streamline the
deployment process and enable efficient updates
to your ML pipeline. Use CI/CD tools like
Jenkins, GitLab CI/CD, or AWS Code Pipeline to
automate testing, version control, and
deployment of pipeline components.
● Scalability and Cost Optimization: Optimize
your cloud deployment for scalability and cost
efficiency. Configure auto-scaling policies to
dynamically adjust the computaional resources
based on workload demands. Use cloud services

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 like AWS Lambda, Azure Functions, or Google
Cloud Functions for serverless execution and
cost optimization.
● Documentation and Maintenance: Document
the deployment process, infrastructure setup,
and configuration details for future reference and
knowledge sharing. Regularly review and update
your deployment to incorporate new features,
address security vulnerabilities, and optimize
resource utilization.

3.6. Communication & Collaboration

Usually, the final step in an industrial data science
project is communicating the results and the insights you
got from the data with stakeholders and the business
team and collaborating with other teams to make sure
that the project is delivered successfully.

For personal projects, you can communicate your results

with your network by publishing your project and your
insights on professional social media channels such as
LinkedIn, Twitter, Medium, Kaggle, and GitHub.

To be able to represent your project professionally and

in a friendly way there are a lot of tools that can be used
to host your projects. Personally, I prefer to use
datascienceportfol.io. The datascienceportfol.io tool
will take your data science portfolio representation to the
next level. You can use it to build your own portfolio

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website for free to showcase your projects in a recruiter-
friendly way.

In addition to that, you will get a personalized URL that

you can share easily; you will have all your projects in
one place, regardless of where they are hosted (GitHub
or Kaggle or Jupiter, etc.). Finally, you will have a
beautiful design that looks neat and friendly on both
desktop and mobile.

Figure 4. Showcase your data science projects using

datascienceportfol.io.

Using this tool is easy:

● First, you will need to create a free account.

● Second, you can add will add your personal
details and social links.
● Third, you will create pages for each project and
add all the project details.

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 ● Finally, you will add your experience and
education.
Here is the final output:

Figure 5. Data science portfolio was built using datascienceportfol.io.

You will also have a custom domain like this one, that
you can share on your social media and resume. You
can also get inspired for your next project by browsing
by topic all the projects added by the community here.

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4. Guided Projects: A Starting
Point
Learning by doing is one of the best ways to sharpen
your existing knowledge and learn and acquire new
skills. This is a general rule for any field and data
science is not an exception. I truly believe that one of the
best ways to master the skills of the field of data science
and to distinguish yourself is by doing end-to-end
projects that cover different aspects of the field and it will
be better to focus more on the business and companies
you would like to join in the future.

Guided projects are a very important starting step on this

road, they will allow you to easily start doing an end-to-
end project and see the whole process without getting
stuck or distracted by the many obstacles that you can
meet if you work on your own from scratch. However,
this should be a starting point, not the only step you take
on this road. In this chapter, I will discuss more the
importance of guided projects and how you can choose
the best projects to do.

4.1. Learning by Doing

Learning by doing refers to a theory of education
expounded by American philosopher John Dewey. It is a
hands-on approach to learning, meaning students must
interact with their environment to adapt and learn. This
way of learning sharpens your current skills and

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knowledge and helps in gaining new skills that could
only be acquired by doing.

Car driving is a perfect example of this, you can read as

much as you would like about the theory of driving and
the rules, and this is very important, and the more you
understand the theory the better you get in the practical
part. But you will only be able to drive better by applying
this knowledge on the real road. In addition to that, there
are some skills and knowledge that will only be gained
by driving.

Data science is the same as driving. It is very important

to have solid theoretical knowledge and to regularly
increase it to be able to get better while working on a
project. However, you should always apply this
theoretical knowledge to projects. By this, you will
deepen your understanding of these concepts and
Knowledge, have a better point of view of how they work
in a real-life, and will also show others that you have
strong theoretical knowledge and are able to put them
into practice.

4.2. Data Science Guided Projects

In the previous section, the importance of learning by
doing was discussed. In this section, the idea of a data
science-guided project will be further explained. Data
science-guided projects are a project-based learning
process in which the instructor guides you through the
whole process of the project.

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There are a lot of benefits to it:
● It removes the barriers between you and doing
projects.
● Saves you a lot of time thinking about the project
and preparing the data.
● It allows you to apply theoretical knowledge
without getting distracted by obstacles.
● Practical tips that can save your effort and time in
the future.
● Help you create your portfolio.
● Getting hands on skills in new technologies
without spending much time and effort learning
them from scratch.
● Writing professional and high-quality code.

It is important to note that the guided projects are very

good as a starting point. However, it is very important
that you do projects on your own using the skills you
learned. The reason for that is the fact that you will meet
more difficulties during self-projects which is like the one
you met while working on real-world projects.

Another useful tip to make the most out of the guide

projects is to always add more to the guided project after
finishing it. This will help you do more unique projects
and add them to your resume or portfolio and will
enhance your learning experience.

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5. Ten End-to-End Guided
Data Science Projects to Build
Your Portfolio
Data science is one of the most sought-after fields in
today’s job market. With the ever-increasing amount of
data being generated every day, businesses need
skilled data scientists who can extract meaningful
insights from the vast amount of information available.
As a result, data science has become a highly
competitive field, and building a strong portfolio is
essential to stand out from the crowd.

In this chapter, we have curated a list of 10 end-to-end

guided projects that will help you hone your data science
skills while creating a robust portfolio. These projects
cover a range of topics, including data cleaning, data
visualization, machine learning, and more. So, whether
you’re a beginner or an experienced data scientist
looking to enhance your skills, these projects will provide
you with valuable hands-on experience and help you
develop a well-rounded portfolio.

5.1. Automatic Speech Recognition

System

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The first project is building an Automatic Speech
Recognition System. This is a 15-hour live
implementation of an Automatic Speech Recognition
System. It includes the complete project flow starting
from the business problem statement to the deployment
part.

5.2. Building Production-Ready

Enterprise-Level Image Classifier with
AWS & React
The second guided project is Building Production-
Ready Enterprise-Level Image Classifier with AWS &
React on Udemy. In this project-based course, you are
going to use AWS SageMaker, AWS API Gateway,
Lambda, React.js, Node.js, Express.js MongoDB, and
DigitalOcean to create a secure, scalable, and robust
production-ready enterprise-level image classifier.

Figure 6. Building production-ready enterprise-level image classifier

with AWS & React

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You will be using best practices and setting up IAM
policies to first create a secure environment in AWS.
Then you will be using AWS’ built-in SageMaker Studio
Notebooks, where you will be shown how you can use
any custom dataset you want.

You will perform Exploratory data analysis on our

dataset with Matplotlib, Seaborn, Pandas, and NumPy.
After getting insightful information about the dataset, you
will set up the Hyperparameter Tuning Job in AWS,
where you will learn how to use GPU instances to speed
up training and how to use multi-GPU instance training.

You will then evaluate the training jobs and look at some
metrics such as Precision, Recall, and F1 Score. Upon
evaluation, you will deploy the deep learning model on
AWS with the help of AWS API Gateway and Lambda
functions.

You will then test our API with Postman and see if we
get inference results after that is completed and will
secure our endpoints and set up autoscaling to prevent
latency issues. Finally, you will build our web application
which will have access to the AWS API. After that, you
will deploy our web application to DigitalOcean.

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5.3. Predicting Data Science Salaries
Application
The third guided end-to-end project is predicting the
data science salaries by Ken Jee. In this project, you
will first collect data science job requirements and
expected salary data using web scraping from
Glassdoor. Then the data is cleaned and explored and
modeled. The model will then be put into a production
environment using Flask.

Figure 7. Predicting data science salaries application

5.4. Real Estate Price Prediction Web

Application
The fourth end-to-end project is a real estate price
prediction web application by codebasics. In this

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guided project, you will also go through an end-to-end
project to predict the real estate price. As usual, it starts
with a problem statement, data collection, data cleaning,
feature engineering model building, and deploying the
model using Flask and on AWS EC2.

Figure 8. Real estate price prediction web application

5.5. Potato Disease Classification

Mobile Application

The fifth project is building a potato disease

classification mobile application. In this project, you
will build a mobile app using React Native to classify
potato disease using a deep learning model trained on
the collected data and deployed on GCP.

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 Figure 9. Potato disease classification mobile application

5.6. Sports Celebrity Image

Classification Web Application
The sixth guided project is the Sports Celebrity Image
Classification Web Application. In this project, you will
Build a website to classify sports celebrity images using
a deep learning model trained on the collected data
model deployed on the Flask server.

5.7. Real-Time Data Analysis

Application
The seventh project is the real-time data analysis
application. In this project, you will build a real-time
data analysis application for E-commerce sales data
using tools such as Kafka, Spark, Apache Cassandra,
and Superset.

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5.8. Machine Learning Model
Monitoring using Airflow and Docker
The eighth project is Machine Learning Model
Monitoring using Airflow and Docker. In this MLOps
Project, you will learn to build an end-to-end pipeline to
monitor any changes in the predictive power of the
model or degradation of data.

5.9. AI-Based Hybrid Recommender

System
The ninth project is building an AI-Based Hybrid
Recommender System. This project aims to develop
an AI-Based Hybrid Recommender System that
combines the strengths of multiple recommendation
techniques to offer more accurate and diverse
recommendations to users. Specifically, the system will
incorporate both content-based and collaborative
filtering approaches to offer personalized
recommendations based on user behavior, preferences,
and similarities with other users.

The AI-Based Hybrid Recommender System will utilize

machine learning algorithms and natural language
processing techniques to analyze user data, including
user ratings, browsing history, and product features. The
system will then generate recommendations based on
this analysis and provide users with a list of products or
services that they are likely to be interested in.

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The project will involve designing and developing the AI-
Based Hybrid Recommender System, integrating it with
existing systems, and testing its performance and
accuracy. The project team will work collaboratively to
identify the best combination of recommendation
techniques and algorithms to ensure the system offers
the most accurate and diverse recommendations
possible.

5.10. Embedding-Based Search

Engine
The last project is building an Embedding-Based
Search Engine. This project aims to build a search
engine using advanced NLP algorithms and techniques.

Figure 10. Embedding-Based Search Engine

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6. Ten Websites with Open
Datasets to Build Your
Portfolio
one of the biggest challenges for aspiring data scientists
is finding high-quality, unique datasets to build your
portfolio with.

Fortunately, there are numerous websites that offer

open datasets for free. In this chapter, we will explore 10
of the best websites to find open datasets, including
well-known platforms like Kaggle and Google Dataset
Search, as well as lesser-known sources like
Pudding.cool and Buzzfeed.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced data

scientist, these websites are sure to provide you with the
data you need to build impressive projects and advance
your skills.

6.1. Google Dataset Search

Google Dataset Search is a powerful search engine that
allows users to find datasets from a wide range of
sources. It was launched in 2018 with the goal of making
it easier for researchers, data scientists, and journalists
to discover and use open datasets.
The search engine is designed to surface datasets that
are hosted on a variety of websites, including academic

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publishers, government agencies, and non-profit
organizations. It uses a combination of metadata and
structured data to index datasets and make them
searchable.

One of the key benefits of Google Dataset Search is that

it makes it easy to find datasets that are relevant to a
specific research topic or question. Users can search for
datasets using keywords, or they can use filters to
narrow down their search by date, file type, or license
type.

In addition to searching for datasets, users can also

preview and download them directly from the search
results page. The search engine also provides
information on the provenance and quality of each
dataset, making it easier for users to evaluate their
suitability for their needs.

6.2. Kaggle
Kaggle is a popular platform that hosts a large collection
of datasets and competitions for data scientists and
machine learning enthusiasts. The platform was
launched in 2010 and has since grown to become one of
the most popular online communities for data scientists.
One of the main features of Kaggle is its vast collection
of datasets, which cover a wide range of topics and
come from a variety of sources. Users can browse and
search through the datasets on the website and
download them for free. This makes it a great resource

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for anyone who needs to find data for their research or
analysis.

In addition to its dataset collection, Kaggle also hosts a

variety of machine-learning competitions. These
competitions are designed to challenge data scientists to
develop algorithms and models to solve complex
problems. The competitions often come with cash prizes
and are a great way to showcase your skills and build
your portfolio.

Kaggle also provides a range of tools and resources to

help data scientists get started with their projects. This
includes tools for data visualization, data cleaning, and
data analysis. The platform also has a large community
of users who share their knowledge and expertise
through forums and discussion groups.

6.3. UCI Machine Learning Repository

The UCI Machine Learning Repository is a popular
resource for machine learning researchers and
practitioners. It is maintained by the Center for Machine
Learning and Intelligent Systems at the University of
California, Irvine and provides access to a wide range of
datasets that are commonly used in the machine
learning community.

The datasets available on the UCI Machine Learning

Repository cover a wide range of topics, including
finance, healthcare, sports, and entertainment. They are

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typically pre-processed and formatted in a way that
makes them easy to work with for machine learning
tasks, such as classification, regression, and clustering.
Some of the most popular datasets on the repository
include the Iris dataset, which is commonly used for
classification tasks, and the Wine Quality dataset, which
is used for regression tasks. The repository also
includes several datasets for anomaly detection, time
series analysis, and text mining.

One of the benefits of using the UCI Machine Learning

Repository is that the datasets are well-documented and
have been used in numerous research studies and
machine learning competitions. This means that there is
often a wealth of resources available for working with
these datasets, including published research papers,
code repositories, and discussion forums.

6.4. Data.gov
Data.gov is an online repository maintained by the U.S.
government that provides access to a vast collection of
datasets. The website was launched in 2009 with the
goal of promoting transparency and openness in
government by making federal data available to the
public.

The datasets available on Data.gov cover a wide range

of topics, including education, healthcare, the
environment, and public safety. Many of the datasets are
collected and maintained by government agencies, such

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as the Department of Education, the Environmental
Protection Agency, and the National Institutes of Health.
One of the key benefits of Data.gov is the transparency
it provides. The website makes it easy for citizens and
researchers to access and analyze data that was
previously only available to government agencies. This
allows for more informed decision-making and can help
to promote accountability and transparency in
government.

Data.gov also provides a range of tools and resources to

help users work with the datasets available on the site.
This includes data visualization tools, data analysis
software, and APIs that allow users to access the data
programmatically.

6.5. Awesome Public Datasets GitHub

Repo
Awesome Public Datasets is a curated collection of open
datasets from various sources, including academic
institutions, government agencies, and non-profit
organizations. The collection is maintained on GitHub by
the community, and it is regularly updated with new
datasets.

The datasets available on Awesome Public Datasets

cover a wide range of topics, including natural language
processing, computer vision, healthcare, finance, and

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social sciences. They are available in a variety of
formats, including CSV, JSON, and XML.
One of the benefits of using Awesome Public Datasets is
that the datasets have been carefully curated by experts
in the field. This means that the datasets are high quality
and have been used in research studies and projects.
The curated nature of the collection also means that it is
easier to find relevant datasets for specific research
questions.

In addition to the datasets themselves, Awesome Public

Datasets also provides links to tools and resources for
working with the data. This includes libraries for various
programming languages, data visualization tools, and
tutorials for working with the datasets.

6.6. Reddit’s /r/datasets

Reddit’s /r/datasets is a community-driven forum on
Reddit where users can share and discuss open
datasets. The forum is a popular resource for data
scientists, researchers, and students who are looking for
publicly available datasets for their projects.

Users can browse through the forum to find datasets

that are relevant to their research or project. The
datasets on /r/datasets cover a wide range of topics,
including social sciences, healthcare, finance, and
natural language processing. They are often shared by
individuals who have collected or compiled the data for

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their research or project and are willing to make it
publicly available.

One of the benefits of using /r/datasets is that the

community is highly engaged and active. Users can ask
questions and discuss the datasets with other members
of the community, which can clarify the nuances of the
data and how it can be used.

In addition to sharing datasets, /r/datasets also provide

links to tools and resources for working with the data.
This includes libraries for various programming
languages, data visualization tools, and tutorials for
working with specific datasets.

6.7. Pudding.cool
Pudding.cool is a website that specializes in visual
storytelling using data visualization and interactive
graphics. They produce original content on a wide range
of topics, including pop culture, politics, and social
issues.

One of the unique features of Pudding.cool is its focus

on storytelling. They use data visualization and
interactive graphics to tell compelling stories and make
complex data accessible to a broader audience.

In addition to its original content, Pudding.cool also

provides a collection of open datasets on its website.

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These datasets are often used in their own reporting and
analysis and cover a wide range of topics, including
music, sports, and social issues.

One of the benefits of using Pudding.cool’s datasets is

that they have been carefully curated by their team of
data journalists and analysts. This means that the
datasets are high quality and have been used in their
own research and reporting.

Pudding.cool’s datasets are available for download in a

variety of formats, including CSV and JSON. They also
provide links to relevant articles and reports that use the
data, as well as resources for working with the data.

6.8. FiveThirtyEight
FiveThirtyEight is a popular website that specializes in
data journalism and statistical analysis. It was founded
by Nate Silver in 2008 and is now owned by ABC News.
The website covers a wide range of topics, including
politics, sports, economics, and culture. They are known
for their unique approach to reporting, which combines
data analysis with traditional reporting methods.

In addition to their articles and reports, FiveThirtyEight

also provides a collection of open datasets on their
website. These datasets cover a wide range of topics
and are often used to support their reporting and
analysis.

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One of the benefits of using FiveThirtyEight’s datasets is
that they have been carefully curated by their team of
data journalists and analysts. This means that the
datasets are high quality and have been used in their
own research and reporting.

FiveThirtyEight’s datasets are available for download in

a variety of formats, including CSV and JSON. They also
provide links to relevant articles and reports that use the
data, as well as resources for working with the data.
Overall, FiveThirtyEight is a valuable resource for
anyone who is interested in data journalism and
statistical analysis. Their datasets, along with their
articles and reports, provide a unique perspective on
current events and trends and can be used for research
and analysis in a variety of fields.

6.9. KDnuggets
KDnuggets covers a wide range of topics related to data
science, including news and trends, tutorials, job listings,
and educational resources. They also provide a
collection of open datasets that can be used for research
and analysis.

One of the benefits of using KDnuggets’ datasets is that

they have been carefully curated and selected for their
quality and relevance to the data science community.
The datasets cover a wide range of topics, including text
analysis, image recognition, and natural language
processing.

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KDnuggets’ datasets are available for download in a
variety of formats, including CSV, JSON, and SQL. They
also provide links to relevant articles and tutorials that
use the data, as well as resources for working with the
data.

6.10. Buzzfeed
BuzzFeed is a digital media company that produces and
distributes news, entertainment, and lifestyle content
across a variety of platforms, including its website and
social media channels.

Buzzfeed has also a lot of high-quality open datasets. It

has a lot of interesting data, pre-cleaned, and with well-
written commentary in the form of articles attached.

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7. Five Game-Changing Free
Tools to Enhance Your Data
Science Portfolio
Establishing an impressive data science portfolio is
integral to showcasing your talents, attracting
prospective employers or collaborators, and progressing
your career in data science. Compelling projects are
necessary, but using the appropriate tools can take it
one step further.

In this chapter, we will explore five game-changing free

tools that can enhance your data science portfolio in a
way that makes it more impactful and visually appealing.
These tools include features such as project
organization, interactive visualizations, collaborative
capabilities, version control support, and reproducibility
support making these additions stand out among their
competition and showcase your expertise professionally
and persuasively.

7.1. Datascienceportfol.io
datascienceportfol.io is a tool that will take your data
science portfolio representation to the next level. You
can use it to build your own portfolio website for free to
showcase your projects in a recruiter-friendly way. In
addition to that you will get a personalized URL that you

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can share easily, you will have all your projects in one
place, regardless of where they are hosted (GitHub or
Kaggle or Jupiter, etc.). Finally, you will have a beautiful
design that looks neat and friendly on both desktop and
mobile.

Using this tool is easy:

● First, you will need to create a free account.
● Second, you can add will add your personal
details and social links.
● Third, you will create pages for each project and
add all the project details.
● Finally, you will add your experience and
education.

You will also have a custom domain same as this one

“https://www.datascienceportfol.io/YoussefHosni” that
you can share on your social media and resume. You
can also get inspired for your next project by browsing
by topic all the projects added by the community here.

7.2. Voilà
If you’re a data scientist who enjoys working with Python
and is interested in learning web development, then
Voilà is going to be your new best friend! This amazing
library allows you to effortlessly create impressive web
applications and interactive dashboards using your
Jupyter notebooks.

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And here’s the cool part: you can easily share your
creations with the rest of the world! But don’t just take
my word for it. Look at the Voilà Gallery, where you’ll
find a wide range of examples that demonstrate the
incredible capabilities of this library. It’s the perfect way
to make sure that voilà has all the features you need
before you jump in and start building your own web
apps.

To use Voilà you first need to install it using the following

command: Voilà can be installed with the mamba or
Conda package manager.
mamba install -c conda-forge voila
or from PyPI:
pip install voila

Once installed you have two options to use it:

1. As a standalone application: Voilà can be used to
run, convert, and serve a Jupyter Notebook as a
standalone app. This can be done via the
command-line, with the following pattern:
voila <path-to-notebook> <options>

2. As a Jupyter server extension: You can also use Voilà

from within a Jupyter server (e.g., after running Jupyter
lab or Jupyter notebook). To use Voilà within a pre-
existing Jupyter server, first, start the server, then go to
the following URL:

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 <url-of-my-server>/voila

7.3. Dash by Plotly

Dash by Plotly is an exceptional free tool that enables
you to build interactive web applications and dashboards
for your data science portfolio quickly and effortlessly.
Thanks to its intuitive Python framework, Dash makes
creating dynamic visualizations and data-driven apps
simple and effortless.
Dash is an invaluable tool for creating interactive
visualizations and web applications in your data science
portfolio. Leveraging its Python framework, Dash makes
creating engaging visualizations simple while expanding
beyond static displays with web applications, drawing
upon your existing data science skillset. Customize
project appearance seamlessly while using existing data
science libraries seamlessly across devices ensuring
responsive designs as well as real-time updates.
Through Dash, you can demonstrate your interactive
data visualizations and web development expertise while
offering users a compelling user experience — making
your portfolio projects even more impactful and visually
attractive.

7.4. DagsHub
DagsHub is an innovative platform for managing and
collaborating on data science projects, offering tools

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such as version control, data management, and project
organization to streamline workflow creation and
distribution. DagsHub allows you to store all of your
code, data, and models in one convenient place for
easier collaboration on projects with others. In addition,
DagsHub makes it easier for you to keep an eye on
historical changes to code/data changes and reproduce
experiments with ease.

It supports numerous data science frameworks like

Jupyter Notebooks, TensorFlow, PyTorch, and Scikit-
learn as well as popular tools like GitHub and Slack
making integration simple into existing workflows.
DagsHub provides an ideal environment for building
your data science portfolio thanks to its powerful version
control features, centralized organization capabilities,
collaboration features, reproducibility support, data, and
model management abilities, seamless integration with
popular tools, and professional presentation options.
Plus, its public repository gives your research greater
public visibility!

DagsHub provides an effective platform to demonstrate

progress, collaborate with others, ensure reproducibility,
manage data and models efficiently, integrate preferred
tools seamlessly, present your work professionally, and
reach a wider audience — making it an essential
component for building and sharing data science
portfolio.

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7.5. Deepnote
Deepnote is an amazing platform that allows you to host
and publish Jupyter Notebooks with code and interactive
outputs, enabling your projects to be showcased
interactively. Deepnote makes creating collaborative
data notebooks easy, whether for Python, SQL, or no-
code analysis. Running securely in the cloud and
connecting securely to any data source — as well as
beta testing products or writing tutorials or running APIs
securely from anywhere — whether for beta-testing
products, writing tutorials, running APIs securely
connecting databases, etc.
Starting your project off right with Deepnote is
straightforward — all it requires is creating a free
account, building or loading a Jupyter Notebook, then
sharing it on social media or your portfolio. This platform
can prove immensely helpful when conducting data
analytics projects or proof-of-concept efforts.

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8. Ten Portfolio Mistakes You
Should Avoid
Creating a portfolio that stands out from the crowd is not
always easy, and there are many common mistakes that
aspiring data scientists make when putting together their
portfolios.
In the last chapter of the book, we’ll explore some of the
most common portfolio mistakes that data scientists
make and provide tips and advice on how to avoid them.
From using overused or outdated datasets to not having
a comprehensive README, we’ll cover a range of topics
that can help you to create a portfolio that truly sets you
apart.

8.1. Using Overused or Outdated

Datasets
Using overused or outdated datasets can be a common
mistake in a data science portfolio. While it’s perfectly
acceptable to use well-known datasets like the iris
dataset or the Titanic dataset to learn and apply new
skills. However, relying on these datasets can make
your portfolio seem unoriginal or outdated. This can be a
problem, especially if you are looking for employment
opportunities, as potential employers may be looking for
candidates who can apply their skills to new and
challenging problems.

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One way to avoid this mistake is to use a variety of
datasets in your portfolio, including newer and less well-
known datasets. For example, you might consider using
datasets related to emerging technologies or industries,
such as cryptocurrency, genomics, or climate science.
This can show potential employers that you are keeping
up with current trends and can apply your skills to new
and innovative areas.

Another approach is to focus on datasets that are

relevant to specific industries or domains, such as
healthcare, finance, or transportation especially if you
have a domain of interest that you are trying to work in.
By using datasets that are specific to these industries,
you can demonstrate your ability to work with real-world
data and solve practical problems that are relevant to
specific business contexts.

Ultimately, the key is to use datasets that demonstrate

your skills and expertise in a way that is relevant and
compelling to potential employers or clients. By using a
variety of datasets, including newer and less well-known
ones, you can showcase your versatility and
adaptability, and position yourself as a data scientist
who can tackle a wide range of data-related challenges.

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8.2. Having Only Online Courses
Guided Projects
Having only online courses guided projects in your data
science portfolio can be a mistake, as it may not
accurately reflect your ability to work on real-world data
science problems independently. While online courses
and guided projects can be a great way to learn new
skills and gain experience with different tools and
techniques, they are often designed to be relatively
straightforward and may not fully capture the complexity
and messiness of real-world data science projects.

To avoid this mistake, it is important to include a mix of

projects in your portfolio that demonstrates your ability to
work independently and tackle real-world data science
problems. This might include projects that you have
completed as part of internships, research projects, or
personal side projects.

When selecting projects for your portfolio, it’s important

to focus on those that highlight your problem-solving
skills, ability to work with large and messy datasets, and
ability to apply advanced modeling techniques to extract
insights from data. You should also try to showcase your
ability to effectively communicate your findings and
insights to both technical and non-technical
stakeholders.

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By including a mix of projects in your portfolio that
demonstrates your ability to work independently on real-
world data science problems, you can showcase your
versatility and ability to deliver value in a variety of
settings. This can be particularly appealing to potential
employers or clients who are looking for data scientists
who can hit the ground running and deliver results
quickly and efficiently.

8.3. Not Having End-to-End Projects

Not having end-to-end projects in your data science
portfolio can be a major mistake, as it can prevent
potential employers or clients from understanding your
problem-solving skills in a real-world context. End-to-end
projects refer to projects that involve the entire data
science workflow, from data collection and cleaning to
modeling and deployment.

By including end-to-end projects in your portfolio, you

can demonstrate your ability to work with messy, real-
world data and develop practical solutions that can be
implemented in a production environment. This can be
especially valuable for potential employers or clients
who are looking for data scientists who can help them
solve complex problems and drive business value.

Without end-to-end projects in your portfolio, you may be

missing out on opportunities to showcase your skills and
expertise in a way that resonates with potential
employers or clients.

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8.4. Lack of Project Diversity
Diversity is an important aspect of any data science
portfolio, as it demonstrates your versatility and ability to
solve a range of problems using different techniques and
technologies. By showcasing a variety of data science
projects in your portfolio, you can demonstrate your
adaptability and problem-solving skills and show
potential employers or clients that you can apply your
skills in a range of contexts.

When selecting projects to include in your portfolio, it’s

important to consider a range of factors, such as the
types of data analyzed, the techniques and tools used,
and the industries or domains in which the projects were
completed. For example, you might include projects that
involve machine learning, data visualization, natural
language processing, or predictive modeling, to
showcase your proficiency in different areas.

Another way to demonstrate diversity in your portfolio is

to include projects that touch on a range of industries or
domains, such as healthcare, finance, retail, or
education. This can show potential employers or clients
that you have a broad perspective and can apply your
skills in a range of contexts.

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8.5. Failing to Showcase Your Domain
Expertise
Failing to showcase your domain expertise can be a
mistake in your data science portfolio, especially if you
have experience or expertise in a specific industry or
field. Many data science projects involve working with
data from specific domains, such as healthcare, finance,
or marketing, and having knowledge and experience in
these areas can be an asset.

To avoid this mistake, it’s important to highlight your

domain expertise in your portfolio and demonstrate how
it has informed your approach to data science. For
example, you might include projects that involve
analyzing healthcare data to identify patterns and trends
in patient outcomes or developing predictive models for
financial markets based on economic indicators.

In addition to showcasing your domain expertise through

specific projects, you might also consider including blog
posts, articles, or other content that demonstrates your
understanding of key issues and challenges in your field.
This can help to position you as a thought leader in your
industry and can be particularly appealing to potential
employers or clients who are looking for data scientists
with specific domain knowledge.

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8.6. Not Having a Comprehensive
Readme for Your Projects
It is important to have a comprehensive documentation
readme file for each project to be able to show your work
in a proper way, or else you will not be able to show up
your work and results.

A comprehensive project readme should have the

following sections, according to Andrew Jones:
● Project Overview: First, you should provide the
project background and motivation and what is
the goal of the project.
● Data Overview & Preparation Steps: A brief
overview of the data used, how you collected the
data, and how you prepared it, which includes
data preprocessing and feature engineering.
Also, it is also important to provide a summary of
the data.
● Methodology Overview: You should also
mention the techniques and tools used to
achieve the project goals.
● Results & Outcomes: Finally, you should also
mention the results and the project outcomes
and what they mean.
● Growth & Next Steps: You should also mention
what are the next steps and what you would do if
you had more time.

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8.7. Lack of Code Comments &
Documentation
Lack of code comments and documentation can be a
common mistake in data science portfolios. While it’s
important to showcase your technical skills and
expertise, it’s equally important to provide clear and
concise explanations of your code and methodology, so
that others can understand and replicate your work.

To avoid this mistake, it’s important to include detailed

comments and documentation in your code, explaining
how it works and why you made certain decisions. This
can include comments that explain the purpose of each
line of code, as well as longer explanations of your
methodology and approach. This is important as it will
show that you can work efficiently on a production-level
code and can fit in with a team.

In addition to code comments, you might also consider

including a README file or other documentation that
provides an overview of your project, including the
problem you were trying to solve, the data you used, and
the techniques you applied. This can be particularly
helpful for others who may want to build on your work or
replicate your results.

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8.8. Not Having Well Structured
Projects & Codes
When potential employers or clients review your
portfolio, they are looking for evidence that you can
develop well-organized, modular, and maintainable
code, as well as demonstrate the ability to apply best
practices in software engineering.

To avoid this mistake, it’s important to structure your

projects and code in a way that is easy to follow and
maintain. This includes breaking your code into reusable
functions and modules, using appropriate naming
conventions, and organizing your files and directories in
a logical way.

A very good starting point is the project structure shown

in the figure below, which was provided by Abhishek
Thakur in his book Approaching (Almost) Any Machine
Learning Problem and was shown in figure 1.

8.9. Lack of Reproducibility

Reproducibility is an essential aspect of data science, as
it allows others to understand and verify your work. By
providing detailed instructions on how to reproduce your
work, including the software, packages, and libraries
used, you can ensure that others can replicate your
methodology and findings.

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In addition to that it will be easier for others to
understand and build upon your work, reproducibility
also helps to ensure that your analysis is transparent
and trustworthy. If your work cannot be reproduced, it
can be difficult for others to trust your findings or use
them to make informed decisions.

To ensure reproducibility in your portfolio, it’s important

to document your work in a clear and organized manner,
including any assumptions or decisions made along the
way. You should also provide clear instructions on how
to install and use any software, packages, or libraries
used in your analysis, and include code snippets or
scripts that can be easily run.

In some cases, it may also be useful to provide access

to the data used in your analysis, either by including it in
your portfolio or by providing a link to a public repository
where it can be accessed.

By prioritizing reproducibility in your data science

portfolio, you can demonstrate your commitment to
transparency and accuracy, and make it easier for
potential employers or clients to understand and
evaluate your work.

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8.10. Not Publishing Your Projects on
social media
Not publishing your data science projects on social
media can be a mistake, as it can limit your exposure to
potential employers or clients who may be interested in
your work. Social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter,
and GitHub are popular among data scientists and can
be a great way to share your work, build your brand, and
connect with others in the industry.

By sharing your projects on social media, you can

showcase your skills and expertise to a wider audience,
including potential employers or clients who may be
looking for data scientists with your specific skill set. This
can be particularly important if you are just starting out in
the industry and don’t have a large network or reputation
yet.

In addition to showcasing your work, social media can

also be a great way to get feedback and suggestions
from other data scientists. By sharing your work on
platforms like GitHub or Kaggle, you can invite others to
review and critique your code and methodology and
learn from their feedback and suggestions.

Publishing your data science projects on social media

can help you build your brand, showcase your skills, and
connect with others in the industry. By doing so, you can
increase your visibility and attract more opportunities,

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whether that be job offers, consulting projects, or
collaborations with other data scientists.

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 Afterword
Thanks for purchasing and reading my book!
If you have any questions, feedback or praise, you can
reach me at: [email protected]

I would be happy if you connect with me personally on

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/youssef-hosni-b2960b135/

If you liked my writings, make sure to follow me on

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