Python Pandas is a software library for data analysis that is used with the open source Python programming language. By loading data sets into a Pandas DataFrame, a user can manipulate, analyze, and visualize that data for exploratory data analysis. Python Pandas is important to learn about because its flexibility, speed, and power in data processing makes it one of the most widely used Python libraries in data science.

Pandas is built on the NumPy package, which is the numerical Python library for scientific computing, arrays, and linear algebra. As an example, if you wanted to predict an economic trend with a statistical model, Pandas could be used to import your data set, NumPy machine learning (ML) algorithms could perform the linear regression, and the data visualization library Matplotlib could be used to create your plots and charts. For unstructured data analysis, you could use NLTK (Natural Language Toolkit) to perform text mining for business intelligence applications.

Python Pandas skills have many applications in the real world, as data science is increasingly applied to everything from economics and statistics to neuroscience and advertising. Data scientists are responsible for analyzing massive datasets, designing machine learning algorithms and predictive models, and helping management harness these data-driven insights to answer important business questions.

Although they often need to be familiar with many data frameworks and programming languages, many data scientists rely on Pandas, NumPy, and other Python programming skills as a foundation for their exploratory data analysis. According to Glassdoor, the national average salary for a data scientist is $113,309 per year.

Yes! Coursera offers a wide range of online courses, Specializations, and professional certificates in data science, including courses that teach the use of Python Pandas for data processing, data analytics, and data visualizations. You can take courses from top-ranked institutions like the University of Michigan as well as industry-leading organizations like IBM, so you can rest assured you’ll get a high-quality education. Coursera’s Guided Projects also allow you to build these skills by completing hands-on tutorials with expert instructors in topics like linear regression and data processing with Python, giving you another way to learn online.