Course

Data Visualization

Faculty
Commerce & Business Administration
Department
Computing Studies & Information Systems
Course code
CSIS 3860
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15 Weeks
Max class size
35
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Seminar
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
In this course, students will learn the skills to present analytics results in a clear, concise and visually appealing manner. This hands-on course will introduce students to various tools and techniques of data visualization, visualization best practices, and common pitfalls. Use of Data Visualization tools such as Tableau is adopted in this course for the hands-on skills. Students will also work on building targeted dashboards based on their audience’s need. Other tools such as d3.js, dc.js, Google Charts, etc. are also introduced to reflect on the variety of data visualization tools available for a data analyst to visualize the results of analysis.
Course content
  1. Introduction to Big Data Analytics
  2. The importance of analytics and visualization in today's data-prevalent markets
  3. Introduction to Data Visualization using tools such as Tableau
  4. Effective ways of visualizing data using other data visualization tools such as free and/or Open Source tools – Ex: D3.JS, DC.JS, Google Charts, etc.
  5. Diverse types of Visual analysis – Time-Series, Deviation, Distribution and Correlation Analysis
  6. Interface components of a visualization tool such as Tableau
  7. The right visualization tool for different data sets – making the right choice
Learning activities

Delivery will be by lecture, case study and assignments.  

Means of assessment

Assignments (min 3)                                          10% - 20%

Term Project – 1                                                 05% - 10%

Quizzes (min 2)                                                 10% - 15%

Midterm Examination                                          25% - 30%

Final Examination *                                            30% - 40%

Total                                                                         100%

* Practical hands-on computer exam

In order to pass the course, students must, in addition to receiving an overall course grade of 50%, also achieve a grade of at least 50% on the combined weighted examination components (including quizzes, tests, and exams).

Students may conduct research as part of their coursework in this class. Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving humans, which can require obtaining Informed Consent from participants and getting the approval of the Douglas College Research Ethics Board prior to conducting the research.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this course, the successful student will be able to: 

  1. Explain foundations of Big Data Analytics & Data Mining Process
  2. Explain core skills for Information Visualization and available visualization tools available in market
  3. Demonstrate the use of data visualization tools such as Tableau
  4. Explore other data visualization tools such as D3.JS or Google Charts, etc.
  5. Examine effective ways of visual analysis
  6. Create compelling and effective interactive dashboards.
  7. Incorporate geospatial visualization in Dashboards
  8. Publish Dashboards
  9. Choose the right visualization tool for different data sets
Textbook materials

Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:

 Recommended References:        

  • Now You See It: Simple Visualization Techniques for Quantitative Analysis  By Stephen Few ISBN-10: 0970601980 and ISBN-13: 978-0970601988
  • An Introduction to Data Visualization in JavaScript - Visual Story Telling With D3 By Ritchie S. King ISBN:13: 978032193317-1 and ISBN:10: 0-321-93317-6

Requisites

Prerequisites

Principles of Math 12 with a C or Pre-Calculus 12 with a C or equivalent 

OR currently active in:

PDD Data Analytics

PBD Computer and Information Systems

Corequisites

No corequisite courses.

Equivalencies

 

 

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for CSIS 3860
Athabasca University (AU) AU COMP 3XX (3)
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU COMP 1XX (3)
College of the Rockies (COTR) COTR COMP 3XX (3)
Coquitlam College (COQU) No credit
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU SOBU 1XXX (3)
Northern Lights College (NLC) NLC CPSC 3XX (3)
Okanagan College (OC) No credit
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU STAT 1XXX (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO DATA_O 1st (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV CPSC_V 1st (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC CPSC 1XX (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV COMP 1XX (3)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC CSC 1XX (1.5)

Course Offerings

Fall 2025

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
0
Remaining seats:
35
On waitlist
0
Building
Anvil Office Tower
Room
816
Times:
Start Time
9:30
-
End Time
12:20
Section notes

CSIS 3860 001 - This section is restricted to PBD Data Analytics Stream, PDD Data Analytics, and Computer Studies & Info Systems Diploma students.

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
35
Currently enrolled
2
Remaining seats:
33
On waitlist
0
Building
New Westminster - North Bldg.
Room
N6105
Times:
Start Time
12:30
-
End Time
15:20
Section notes

CSIS 3860 002 - This section is restricted to PBD Data Analytics Stream, PDD Data Analytics, and Computer Studies & Info Systems Diploma students.