Data Engineering Zoomcamp: A Free 9-Week Course on Data Engineering Fundamentals

Master the fundamentals of data engineering by building an end-to-end data pipeline from scratch. Gain hands-on experience with industry-standard tools and best practices.

Join Slack • #course-data-engineering Channel • Telegram Announcements • Course Playlist • FAQ

How to Enroll

2026 Cohort

• Start Date: 12 January 2026
• Register Here: Sign up

Self-Paced Learning

All course materials are freely available for independent study. Follow these steps:

• Watch the course videos.
• Join the Slack community.
• Refer to the FAQ document for guidance.

Syllabus Overview

The course consists of structured modules, hands-on workshops, and a final project to reinforce your learning.

Prerequisites

To get the most out of this course, you should have:

• Basic coding experience
• Familiarity with SQL
• Experience with Python (helpful but not required)

No prior data engineering experience is necessary.

Modules

Module 1: Containerization and Infrastructure as Code

• Introduction to GCP
• Docker and Docker Compose
• Running PostgreSQL with Docker
• Infrastructure setup with Terraform
• Homework

Module 2: Workflow Orchestration

• Data Lakes and Workflow Orchestration
• Workflow orchestration with Kestra
• Homework

Workshop 1: Data Ingestion

• API reading and pipeline scalability
• Data normalization and incremental loading
• Homework

Module 3: Data Warehousing

• Introduction to BigQuery
• Partitioning, clustering, and best practices
• Machine learning in BigQuery

Module 4: Analytics Engineering

• dbt (data build tool) with DuckDB & BigQuery
• Testing, documentation, and deployment
• Data visualization with Streamlit & Looker Studio

Module 5: Batch Processing

• Introduction to Apache Spark
• DataFrames and SQL
• Internals of GroupBy and Joins

Module 6: Streaming

• Introduction to Kafka
• Kafka Streams and KSQL
• Schema management with Avro

Final Project

• Apply all concepts learned in a real-world scenario
• Peer review and feedback process

Testimonials

Thank you for what you do! The Data Engineering Zoomcamp gave me skills that helped me land my first tech job.
> — Tim Claytor (Source)

Three months might seem like a long time, but the growth and learning during this period are truly remarkable. It was a great experience with a lot of learning, connecting with like-minded people from all around the world, and having fun. I must admit, this was really hard. But the feeling of accomplishment and learning made it all worthwhile. And I would do it again!
> — Nevenka Lukic (Source)

One of the significant things I inferred from the Zoomcamp is to prioritize fundamentals and principles over ever-evolving tools and tech stacks. Hugely grateful to Alexey Grigorev for putting together this incredible course and offering it for free.
> — Siddhartha Gogoi (Source)

Such a fun deep dive into data engineering, cloud automation, and orchestration. I learned so much along the way. Big shoutout to Alexey Grigorev and the DataTalksClub team for the opportunity and guidance throughout the 3 months of the free course.
> — Assitan NIARE (Source)

If you’re serious about breaking into data engineering, start here. The repo’s structure, community, and hands-on focus make it unparalleled.
> — Wady Osama (Source)

Community & Support

Getting Help on Slack

Join the #course-data-engineering channel on DataTalks.Club Slack for discussions, troubleshooting, and networking.

To keep discussions organized:

• Follow our guidelines when posting questions.
• Review the community guidelines.

Meet the Instructors

• Alexey Grigorev
• Michael Shoemaker
• Will Russell
• Anna Geller
• Juan Manuel Perafan
• Diana Gromakovskaia

Past instructors:

• Victoria Perez Mola
• Ankush Khanna
• Sejal Vaidya
• Irem Erturk
• Luis Oliveira
• Zach Wilson

Sponsors & Supporters

A special thanks to our course sponsors for making this initiative possible!

Interested in supporting our community? Reach out to alexey@datatalks.club.

About DataTalks.Club

DataTalks.Club is a global online community of data enthusiasts. It's a place to discuss data, learn, share knowledge, ask and answer questions, and support each other.

Website • Join Slack Community • Newsletter • Upcoming Events • YouTube • GitHub • LinkedIn • Twitter

All the activity at DataTalks.Club mainly happens on Slack. We post updates there and discuss different aspects of data, career questions, and more.

At DataTalksClub, we organize online events, community activities, and free courses. You can learn more about what we do at DataTalksClub Community Navigation.