Most Recommended Data Science and Machine Learning Books by Top Master's Programs

This book was either the assigned textbook or recommended reading in every Masters program I researched. Due to its advanced nature, you'll find that book #5 in this list -- An Introduction to Statistical Learning with Applications in R (ISLR) -- was written as a more accessible version, and even includes exercises in R. It's usually recommended for beginners in data science to master the content in ISLR before moving to ESL, where you'll get a more theoretical background. Just mastering ISLR is often enough for data analyst roles. Overall, ESL takes an applied, frequentist approach, as opposed to a Bayesian approach like in the next book. Exercises in this book are not only challenging, but also very useful for individuals generally interested in machine learning research.