The Certified Data Scientist (CDS) – Foundation Level certification exam is designed to validate your comprehensive understanding of data science fundamentals, from data wrangling and exploratory analysis to basic machine learning and communication of results using real-world datasets.

This exam certifies that you have the core knowledge and analytical thinking required to function as an entry-level data scientist in a variety of industries, using tools like Python, SQL, and Excel.

✅ Who Should Take This Certification Exam?

• Aspiring data scientists and analysts

• STEM graduates looking to break into data roles

• Working professionals transitioning into data science

• Anyone seeking recognized validation of their data science readiness

🔍 What the Certification Validates

• Strong command of the data science process (Ask → Prepare → Process → Analyze → Share → Act)

• Proficiency in data wrangling, cleansing, and exploration

• Working knowledge of Python, SQL, and Excel for analysis

• Ability to build and evaluate basic machine learning models

• Knowledge of data visualization and communication techniques

• Understanding of model bias, performance metrics, and ethics

🧠 Topics Covered

• Foundations of Data Science: Data lifecycle, CRISP-DM, roles in data science

• Data Preparation & Cleaning: Missing data, outlier detection, feature engineering

• Python for Data Science: pandas, numpy, matplotlib, seaborn

• SQL for Data Extraction: SELECT, JOIN, GROUP BY, filtering

• Statistics & Probability: Descriptive stats, distributions, hypothesis testing

• Machine Learning Basics: Supervised learning, model evaluation, overfitting

• Data Visualization: Charts, dashboards, storytelling principles

• Ethics in Data Science: Fairness, privacy, explainability

📝 Exam & Credential Details

• Format: Online, time-bound, multiple-choice + case-based questions

• Duration: 60 minutes

• Questions: 50

• Passing Score: 70%

• Cost: $70

• Retake Policy: One free retake

• Credential Includes:

  • Official Digital Certificate

  • Verified LinkedIn Credential

  • ✅ Placement in the CDIPS Global Registry of Certified Data Scientists