HOW TO REGISTER
Who can attend Data Academy trainings?
Data Academy trainings are free and are only available to employees of the City & County of San Francisco with a valid DSW#. Please make sure to get your supervisor’s approval before signing up to attend!
Do you have a calendar where I can view upcoming trainings?
Yes! You can find it at https://datasf.org/academy/calendar/.
How do I sign up to be notified when future trainings are open for registration?
On the Data Academy website (https://datasf.org/academy/) you will find our full course catalog. Click on the course you are interested in taking. On the right side of each individual course page, select the green button “Notify me when course is scheduled”. Fill in your contact information, and you’re good to go!
I signed up to be notified when future trainings are open for registration, but I’m not getting any emails! What’s going on?
If you have signed up to receive course announcements and but haven’t been getting emails, one of a few things might be happening! We might not have offered it since you signed up to receive notifications, OR you may fall into one of these two categories, in which case you won’t get the notification of signups:
- Already taken the class
- Previously signed up for the class but not attended
If you have questions, feel free to reach out at [email protected].
How do I register for a training?
Roughly three weeks before a training, we send a course announcement to the class’ notification list with a sign-up link for the course (see “How do I sign up to be notified” for instructions to join the list). Simply fill out the online form included in the announcement email with the required information, and your spot is reserved!
TIP: Seats are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis and fill up quickly. Therefore, we recommend getting your supervisor’s approval to take a Data Academy class ahead of time so that you can sign up when you see the email.
Please note: Demand for classes is very high, so we ask that you not register for a class unless you are sure you can attend. Per our standard process, anyone who registers for a class is removed from the notification list even if you later decide to not attend. Please consult our calendar to make sure you are available for the course you are interested in taking before signing up.
I AM HAVING TROUBLE REGISTERING FOR A CLASS
I wanted to register for a training, but it filled up before I had a chance! What do I do?
We’re very sorry that you weren’t able to get a spot this time around! We are trying to increase our capacity to offer more classes, but in the meantime make sure you’re on the notification list and ready to sign up next time the class is offered. Remember that we generally send out the registration link ~3 weeks before a class is offered, so check out our calendar to keep an eye out for the next one!
I am interested in a training that has just been announced, but I can’t go this time. What do I do?
We try to offer classes as often as possible – make sure you’re on the notification list so you can sign up next time the class is held!
How do I cancel my registration?
We ask that you do your best to attend any class you sign up for and avoid allowing conflicts to arise. However, we know that sometimes things come up and you will have to cancel your reservation.
When you register for a class, you will receive a confirmation email and be added to an Outlook calendar event. If you must cancel your reservation, please decline the calendar event.
Please note: Everyone who registers for the class will be removed from the notification list, even if you don’t attend and provide advanced notice.
My schedule tends to fill up a few weeks in advance. Can you send out training announcements earlier?
We send out class registration approximately three weeks before the class date, because we have found that opening sign-ups earlier than that leads to more cancellations as the date approaches.
How do I provide evidence of supervisor approval?
No formal evidence of supervisor approval is needed. We just ask you to self-certify that you have received supervisor approval. You will be asked this as part of the enrollment/ registration process.
No-Show Policy - Effective 1/1/2020
No-Show Policy
Data Academy’s course attendance policy is that any learner who registered for a course, but whose seat goes unused, is considered a no-show and could be removed from future notifications for that course. Additionally, after three no-shows within a year (calculated as trailing from the current date), the attendee will not receive notifications for any class until there are fewer than three no-shows within the trailing year.
The policy is clearly stated in the course announcement email, and course registration forms ask attendees to agree to the policy’s terms before reserving a seat. Exceptions to this policy may be made on a case-by-case basis.
No-Show Definition
A potential attendee is considered a no-show if the seat they reserved is empty on class day based on our sign in sheet. Once a learner has reserved a spot in a class, they are responsible for filling that seat either through their own attendance or by finding a replacement if they can no longer attend. Therefore, failure to attend a class is considered a no-show even if advance notice of absence is given. This is due to the high administrative burden of filling vacated seats in classes, even with significant advanced notice.
We know that conflicts will periodically arise between when one signs up for a class and the course date, and that’s ok! However, demand for Data Academy classes is exceptionally high, with many filling up in under an hour. Therefore, those who are able to reserve a spot are expected to block off time for the class make every effort to attend, as empty seats might have been used by some of the many others who would like to participate.
No-Show Policy Background
Every time a potential student does not show up at the class, regardless of the reasons, it is discourteous to the instructors who volunteer their time, withholds the learning opportunity from other colleagues who were not able to sign up for the class, and makes inefficient use of taxpayer money.
Data Academy’s FY19 cost per student was approximately $200, and in FY19 and the first half of FY20, Data Academy classes saw an average no-show rate of approximately 17%, with some courses as high as 30% and others as low as 4%. This variability makes it difficult to determine how many registrants to allow per class. Standard process has been to overenroll classes to ensure seats are used, however this increases the risk of an overly full class. Even with this precaution, it is not uncommon for there to be empty seats in classes despite interest lists in excess of 200 people.
PARTNER WITH DATA ACADEMY
I heard you guys offer customized, department‐specific trainings! Could you do one for my department?
We do occasionally offer custom trainings, please contact [email protected] for more information.
My team/ division/ department would like to partner with Data Academy to offer private courses at our own location – who should I talk to about setting this up?
We’d love to help you build the skills of your team and make training as accessible as possible – email us at [email protected] and let’s see what we can do!
MORE INFO AND CONTACT DATA ACADEMY
Where can I find course materials?
Every course page on the Data Academy website has a link on the right side of the page called “View course materials”. This will take you to a Google Drive folder, where you can find the materials used for that class.
I am a City employee and I want to teach a Data Academy course! Can I?
Let’s talk! Email us at [email protected].