The Nature of Data and Relational Database Design (Coursera)

The Nature of Data and Relational Database Design (Coursera)

This course provides a comprehensive overview of data, various data types, design of databases for storage of data, and creation and manipulation of data in databases using SQL. By the end of this course, students will be able to describe what business intelligence is and how it’s different from business analytics and data science, conduct a basic descriptive statistical analysis and articulate the findings, and differentiate between types of statistics. They will also be able to define normalization and ETL, create an ERD that shows progression from conceptual to logical to physical design, define DDL, DML, DCL, and TCL, and write SQL scripts to create a database and associated tables.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see Coursera's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

What You Will Learn

  • Create an ERD that shows progression from conceptual to logical to physical design
  • Conduct a basic descriptive statistical analysis and articulate the findings
  • Write SQL scripts to create a database and associated tables

Course 1 of 3 in the Database Design and Operational Business Intelligence Specialization.

Syllabus

WEEK 1
Overview of Business Intelligence
Welcome to Module 1: Overview of Business Intelligence! In our first module, we will define business intelligence and differentiate it from business analytics and data science. We will also overview decision support systems and practice working with them through our activity. Finally, we will differentiate between OTLP and OLAP as well as identify the goals of business intelligence through a short quiz.

WEEK 2
Nature of Data & Descriptive Statistics
Welcome to Module 2: Nature of Data & Descriptive Statistics. In this module, we will dive into the types of data, the process of data preparation and descriptive and inferential statistics. We will differentiate between descriptive and inferential statistics as well as structured and unstructured data with a short quiz. Finally, we will use Microsoft Excel Data Analysis Toolpak to conduct a basic descriptive statistical analysis and share our findings.

WEEK 3
Relational Database Design (ERD and Normalization)
Welcome to Module 3: Relational Database Design (ERD and Normalization). In this module, we will define relational databases and overview the process of designing databases. We will differentiate between conceptual, logical and physical design with a short quiz. In addition, we will create an ERD that shows progression from conceptual to logical to physical design through our activity.

WEEK 4
Structured Query Language (SQL) Overview
Welcome Module 4: Structured Query Language (SQL) Overview. In our final module, we will overview SQL as well as define Data Definition Language (DDL) and Data Manipulation Language (DML). Through a short quiz, we will define DDL, DML, DCL, and TCL, as well as differentiate between varying MySQL keywords and data types. In our final activity, we will write SQL scripts to create a database and some associated tables. We will then extract and articulate useful information from the data that we can share with fellow students.

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Foundations of marketing analytics (Coursera) Coursera
ESSEC Business School

Foundations of marketing analytics (Coursera)

Who is this course for? This course is designed for students, business analysts, and data scientists who want to apply statistical knowledge and techniques to business contexts. For example, it may be suited to experienced statisticians, analysts, engineers who want to move more into a business role, in particular in marketing. You will find this course exciting and rewarding if you already have a background in statistics, can use R or another programming language and are familiar with databases and data analysis techniques such as regression, classification, and clustering. However, it contains a number of recitals and R Studio tutorials which will consolidate your competences, enable you to play more freely with data and explore new features and statistical functions in R.

Jul 27th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Data Modeling and Applications (Coursera) Coursera
Illinois Tech

Data Modeling and Applications (Coursera)

This course introduces the student to the use of a database management system to provide the software and database necessary to upgrade a DBMS system. Database structures, applications, network, relational and hierarchical data models, applicate programs development, query systems, file security, and the role of the database administrator will be studied. A course fee may apply.

Aug 3rd 2026
5-12 Weeks
Basic Statistics (Coursera) Coursera
University of Amsterdam

Basic Statistics (Coursera)

Understanding statistics is essential to understand research in the social and behavioral sciences. In this course you will learn the basics of statistics; not just how to calculate them, but also how to evaluate them. This course will also prepare you for the next course in the specialization - the course Inferential Statistics. In the first part of the course we will discuss methods of descriptive statistics. You will learn what cases and variables are and how you can compute measures of central tendency (mean, median and mode) and dispersion (standard deviation and variance). Next, we discuss how to assess relationships between variables, and we introduce the concepts correlation and regression.

Aug 3rd 2026
5-12 Weeks
Database Management Essentials (Coursera) Coursera
University of Colorado System

Database Management Essentials (Coursera)

Database Management Essentials provides the foundation you need for a career in database development, data warehousing, or business intelligence, as well as for the entire Data Warehousing for Business Intelligence specialization. In this course, you will create relational databases, write SQL statements to extract information to satisfy business reporting requests, create entity relationship diagrams (ERDs) to design databases, and analyze table designs for excessive redundancy.

Jul 27th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Discovering BI: From Warehousing to Interactive Dashboards (Coursera) Coursera
Coursera Instructor Network

Discovering BI: From Warehousing to Interactive Dashboards (Coursera)

In a world where vast amounts of data are generated every second, understanding database structures and the art of transforming data into intelligence is increasingly crucial for those looking to excel in this realm. To embark on this journey, there is no better starting point than Business Intelligence (BI), covering everything from data storage to the creation of engaging dashboards.

Aug 3rd 2026
1 Week
Marketing estratégico: claves para competir con éxito (Coursera) Coursera
IESE Business School

Marketing estratégico: claves para competir con éxito (Coursera)

El papel del marketing difiere entre empresas y sectores. Además, la visión que los profesionales tienen del mismo depende del nivel jerárquico dentro de la organización, así como del bagaje profesional de cada uno. Quizá por ello, a menudo es mal entendido y reducido a un nivel táctico exclusivamente de comunicación.

Aug 10th 2026
4 Weeks
Using Databases with Python (Coursera) Coursera
University of Michigan

Using Databases with Python (Coursera)

This course will introduce students to the basics of the Structured Query Language (SQL) as well as basic database design for storing data as part of a multi-step data gathering, analysis, and processing effort. The course will use SQLite3 as its database. We will also build web crawlers and multi-step data gathering and visualization processes. We will use the D3.js library to do basic data visualization.

Jul 27th 2026
5-12 Weeks