1.
Linux – Mastering Command-Line Operations
Key Skills to Learn:
o Basic commands: ls, cd, mkdir, rm, cp, mv, cat, grep, find, chmod, chown.
o File system navigation and permissions.
o Shell scripting (Bash) for automation.
o Process management: ps, top, kill, nohup.
o Networking commands: ping, curl, ssh, scp.
o Environment variables and configuration files (e.g., .bashrc, .profile).
o Package management: apt, yum, brew.
o Logs and debugging: tail, less, journalctl.
2. Git – Version Control and Collaborative Coding
Key Skills to Learn:
o Basic Git commands: init, clone, add, commit, push, pull.
o Branching and merging: branch, checkout, merge, rebase.
o Resolving merge conflicts.
o Working with remote repositories (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket).
o Best practices for commit messages and branching strategies (e.g.,
GitFlow).
o Advanced Git: stash, cherry-pick, reflog, submodules.
o Collaboration workflows: pull requests, code reviews.
3. Python – Writing Efficient Scripts
Key Skills to Learn:
o Python basics: variables, loops, conditionals, functions, and classes.
o Working with libraries: pandas, numpy, requests, os, json.
o Writing scripts for ETL processes.
o Error handling and logging.
o Object-oriented programming (OOP) in Python.
o Writing unit tests with pytest or unittest.
o Optimizing Python code for performance.
4. SQL & Data Modeling
Key Skills to Learn:
o Writing complex SQL queries: joins, subqueries, window functions, CTEs.
o Database design: normalization, indexing, constraints.
o Data modeling techniques: star schema, snowflake schema.
o Optimizing queries for performance (e.g., query execution plans).
o Working with analytical databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, MySQL, Snowflake).
o Data warehousing concepts: fact tables, dimension tables.
5. DBT (Data Build Tool)
Key Skills to Learn:
o Understanding DBT’s role in the modern data stack.
o Writing DBT models and transformations using SQL.
o Using Jinja templating for dynamic SQL.
o Testing and documenting data models.
o Working with DBT Cloud or CLI.
o Integrating DBT with data warehouses (e.g., Snowflake, BigQuery).
6. Docker – Containerization
Key Skills to Learn:
o Docker basics: images, containers, Dockerfile.
o Building and running containers.
o Docker Compose for multi-container applications.
o Networking and volumes in Docker.
o Best practices for containerizing data pipelines.
o Deploying Docker containers to cloud platforms.
7. Airbyte – Data Ingestion
Key Skills to Learn:
o Setting up Airbyte (self-hosted or cloud).
o Configuring connectors for data sources (e.g., APIs, databases).
o Building ELT pipelines with Airbyte.
o Monitoring and troubleshooting data ingestion.
o Integrating Airbyte with DBT and data warehouses.
8. Apache Airflow – Workflow Orchestration
Key Skills to Learn:
o Writing DAGs (Directed Acyclic Graphs) in Airflow.
o Using operators, sensors, and hooks.
o Scheduling and monitoring workflows.
o Error handling and retries.
o Integrating Airflow with cloud services (e.g., AWS, GCP).
o Best practices for scaling and optimizing Airflow.
9. AWS – Cloud Services
Key Skills to Learn:
o Core AWS services: S3, EC2, IAM, Lambda, RDS.
o Data-specific services: Glue, Redshift, Athena, EMR.
o Setting up and managing cloud storage (S3 buckets).
o Deploying data pipelines on AWS.
o Monitoring and logging with CloudWatch.
o Cost optimization and security best practices.
10. Apache Spark – Distributed Data Processing
Key Skills to Learn:
o Understanding Spark architecture: RDDs, DataFrames, Spark SQL.
o Writing PySpark scripts for ETL.
o Working with structured and semi-structured data.
o Optimizing Spark jobs (partitioning, caching).
o Integrating Spark with cloud platforms (e.g., Databricks, EMR).
o Streaming data with Spark Streaming or Structured Streaming.
11. Terraform – Infrastructure as Code
Key Skills to Learn:
o Writing Terraform configuration files (HCL syntax).
o Managing cloud resources (e.g., AWS, GCP, Azure).
o Using Terraform modules for reusable code.
o State management and remote backends.
o Best practices for versioning and collaboration.
o Deploying data infrastructure (e.g., databases, clusters).
Suggested Learning Plan
Month 1: Linux, Git, Python, SQL.
Month 2: Data Modeling, DBT, Docker.
Month 3: Airbyte, Apache Airflow, AWS.
Month 4: Apache Spark, Terraform, Capstone Project.
