A survival guide for ML courses
By: Davide Riva
Tags: AI, University, Machine Learning, Linear Algebra, Data Science

A survival guide for ML courses

How I went from zero to hero without a solid math background

During the last year, I took a ML course at university (http://lcsl.mit.edu/courses/ml/1819/) but I realize immediately that I hadn’t a solid math background.

I understood that something was changing after one month when people started to ask me questions about the course. By the way, I got 30 with honors out of 30. Now I’m planning to do a PhD in the field.

Through this story, you will learn the do’s and don’ts.

What you shouldn’t do

Don’t search random stuff every time you’re stuck : there are a lot of ML tutorials online but don’t try to search what you need every time you don’t understand something. Instead, you should consider to take one or more courses about Linear Algebra / Calculus and then try to apply in the ML class what you’ve learned.

If you just need a refresh about math and you don’t want to spend money, consider taking the Mathematics for Machine Learning Specialization from Coursera.

: there are a lot of ML tutorials online but don’t try to search what you need every time you don’t understand something. Instead, you should consider to take one or more courses about Linear Algebra / Calculus and then try to apply in the ML class what you’ve learned. If you just need a refresh about math and you don’t want to spend money, consider taking the Mathematics for Machine Learning Specialization from Coursera. Don’t skip proofs: they are important to understanding what’s going on. Skipping them won’t help you to understand what you’ll have to do next.

What you should do

Keep a list of mathematical symbols : when I was in my bachelor’s, my professors didn’t use lots of symbols so when I moved to the MSc I started wondering what was the meaning of 𝔼 (expected value), 𝟙 (indicator function), * (convolution), etc.

The problem was not that I didn’t know the math behind these symbols, but I didn’t know that these symbols were related to something I had studied before.

For this reason, I started keeping with me the List of mathematical symbols from Wikipedia while I was studying.

: when I was in my bachelor’s, my professors didn’t use lots of symbols so when I moved to the MSc I started wondering what was the meaning of 𝔼 (expected value), 𝟙 (indicator function), * (convolution), etc. The problem was not that I didn’t know the math behind these symbols, but I didn’t know that these symbols were related to something I had studied before. For this reason, I started keeping with me the List of mathematical symbols from Wikipedia while I was studying. Help the others : teaching will help you keep in your head the core concepts of what you’re studying. You can’t truly understand something until you’re able to teach it. Also, your classmates will return the favour when you’ll need help.

: teaching will help you keep in your head the core concepts of what you’re studying. You can’t truly understand something until you’re able to teach it. Also, your classmates will return the favour when you’ll need help. Take part in discussions during lessons: usually, professors ask their students questions during lessons. You should see it as an opportunity to refresh your knowledge and ask them if you have any doubts about the topic. Don’t be shy, it isn’t a test!

Leave a comment down below with your hints and let me know if my “do’s and don’ts” worked for you!