Top 5 Courses to Learn Recursion for Dynamic Programming in 2024 - Best of Lot

Hello guys,  if you want to learn and Master Recursion and looking for the best resources like books, online courses, and tutorials then you have come to the right place. Earlier, I have shared the best dynamic programming courses, and 15 Recursion exercises for beginners, and today, I am going to share the best courses to learn Recursion for beginners. Recursion is the process by which a function calls itself again and again directly or indirectly. These types of functions are called recursive functions. All successful software programmers need to have an understanding of how recursive functions work as well as how to build recursive functions. 

If you are a programmer then Recursion is your friend. Recursion helps you to break down big and complex programs into smaller parts. A function that calls itself directly or indirectly is called a recursive function.

Recursive algorithms can be used to solve complex problems particularly involving recursive data structures like linked lists, binary trees, strings, numbers, and graphs. 

In recursive functions, there is a base condition that needs to be provided and then the solutions of bigger problems are expressed using smaller problems. This base condition will stop the recursive function from executing endlessly and going on an infinite loop. Once the base condition is met, the recursive function will stop and exit. 

The basic idea behind recursion is to break down bigger, complex programs into smaller, manageable parts. And then, you can add one or more base conditions that will stop the function from looping endlessly.

Recursive functions are used in C++, Java, Python, and other programming languages. They also play a big role in solving dynamic programming-based coding problems which can be really challenging during a coding interview. 

5 Best Recursion Online Courses and Tutorials for Beginners to Learn in 2024

There is no doubt that Recursion is a difficult concept to master. While it's easy to say that you just need to find the base case and it's nothing but function calling itself. Understanding and applying Recursion on real-world problems like reversing a linked list or binary tree requires practice and that's where you need resources. 

We have compiled a list of the best courses that will help you master recursive functions and make you a more expert programmer. These are the best online courses to learn Recursion from popular online learning websites like Udemy, Coursera, Educative, and edX.  You can join any of these courses or a couple of them to learn and master Recursion in 2024. 

Keep reading to check out the list.

1. Recursion [Udemy]

This is one of the most detailed courses on this list and will make you a fearless programmer by helping you master recursive functions and deploy them in your programs. The course is offered on Udemy and is one of the highly rated courses on the platform with a 4.5 rating.

In this course, you will learn how to optimize your recursive functions with memorization and dynamic programming. You will learn about the basics of recursion as well as tail recursion. What more do you want from a course on recursion?

You will learn about the different kinds of recursive processes and algorithmic techniques based on recursion. You will be introduced to terms like backtracking and the divide-and-conquer methodology. You will be able to break down a big problem into smaller subproblems of the same type, which you can solve easily.

You need to have a basic understanding of the different programming languages before attempting this course.

Course Duration: 5 hours

Course Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Course Instructor: Inside Code

Course Price: $45

The course includes 5 hours of on-demand video lectures, 3 articles, 55 downloadable resources, and 11 coding exercises. The good thing is that you get lifetime access to all these once you purchase this course. The entire course is divided into 23 sections and 44 lectures.

2. Recursion, Backtracking, and Dynamic Programming in Java [Udemy]

This is a highly popular course on the Udemy platform with more than 11,000 students giving it a 4.6 stars rating. As a student, you will be introduced to the different kinds of algorithmic problems in Java with an emphasis on Common Interview Questions. You will learn about the different kinds of algorithms like recursion, backtracking, and divide-and-conquer algorithms.

This course focuses on the fundamental concepts of the different algorithms in Java. As a budding programmer, you will know that these algorithms are very important, especially now. These algorithms can be used in a variety of fields and can be used in fields like software engineering, investment banking, and Research and Development. 

You will learn about the different kinds of recursive approaches and what is meant by Dynamic Programming. Sounds interesting, right?

Course Duration: 10 hours

Course Rating: 4.6 stars out of 5

Course Instructor: Holczer Balazs

Course Price: $57

By the end of this course, you will understand what backtracking is. This will help you in implementing more than 15 algorithmic problems from scratch. This course will help you in improving your problem-solving skills and make you a stronger and rounded developer.

3. Python Object Basics: Function, Recursion, and Objects [Coursera]

This is one of the most helpful courses on this list and is offered by Coursera. Do you want to code and run your first python program in minutes? Without installing any special software? Sign up for this course. Now.

One of the main advantages of this course is that it will provide you with a strong foundation of not just the Python programming language, but also basic Computer Science topics. You will be able to learn any other computer language after this course. Because of this, this course is perfect for beginners with limited coding experience.

The course is divided into different modules and you will learn about things like functions, recursion, objects, and mutability. This course is the third course in a four-course Python specialization that will give you a hands-on introduction to programming in Python.

Course Duration: Approximately 11 hours

Course Rating: 4.9 stars out of 5

Course Instructors: Patrick Ester and Elise Deitrick

Course Price: $41 for 3 months

This is course is completely unique, in the sense that there are no videos in this course, which means that you will get a practical and hands-on introduction to programming. 

By the way, instead of joining these courses and specialization individually, you can also join the Coursera Plus, a subscription plan from Coursera which gives you unlimited access to their most popular courses, specialization, professional certificate, and guided projects. 

4. Databases: OLAP and Recursion [edX]

As you can see, this course is somewhat different from the other courses on the list and is focused on Databases. In fact, this is one of the five self-paced courses on the edX platform that will teach you all about Databases. These courses are offered by the reputed Stanford University and were first introduced in the fall of 2011.

Course Duration: 2 weeks

Course Instructor: Jennifer Widom

Course Price: $50

This course can be considered as a sequel to the Databases: Relational Databases and SQL. It is perfect for students looking to learn On-Line Analytical Processing(OLAP), and Recursion in the SQL language.

5. Recursion, Backtracking, and Dynamic Programming in Python [Udemy]

In one of the earlier courses on this list, you saw a course about Recursion, Backtracking, and Dynamic Programming in Java. Well, this is one of the best courses on this list for you to learn recursion, backtracking, and Dynamic Programming in the Python language.

Course Duration: 9 hours

Course Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5

Course Instructor: Holczer Balazs

Course Price: $57 

This course is also offered by the same instructor and as of now, exactly 6,950 students have signed up for this course on the Udemy platform. I don't see any reason why you shouldn't be the 6,951st. What are you waiting for?

6.  Recursion for Coding Interviews in Java

If you want to learn Recursion for coding interviews then this is the course for you. In this course, you will not only learn how to solve coding problems with recursion but also how and when to use recursion with different data types and data structures. 

You will also be tested with some of the most common recursion interview questions to build the knowledge and confidence needed to solve complex real-world problems and unknown problems in real coding interviews. 

Just in case if you are not familiar with JavaScript, this course is also available with Python and Java and you should use it in the language you are most comfortable with.

Educative as a platform is also a great resource for coding interviews and you can get all of their course access by just $14.9 per month by joining an Educative subscription. I highly recommend this to anyone preparing for programming job interviews.

Recursion Frequently Asked Questions with Answers

Here is a list of common questions programmers ask about Recursion, particularly beginners who have just started with recursion or want to learn Recursion concepts.

1. What is Recursion?

It is defined as the process by which a function calls itself again and again directly or indirectly. 

2. What is Recursion used for? 

Recursion is mainly used to solve complex problems breaking them down into smaller problems. This is done with the help of recursive functions. 

3. Who invented Recursion? 

The theory behind recursion was first invented in the 20th century by Thoralf Albert Skolem. 

4. What are recursive data structures?

Tree, Graph, and Linked list are recursive data structure because if you take out one element the remaining are still a tree, graph or linked list data structure and you can process them like original tree, graph, or linked list. 

5. What is base case on recursion?

The last case after which recursion rolls or finishes are known as base case. For example factorial(0)= 1 is the base case for calculating factorial and reaching at the end of linked list or binary tree is base case. 

Conclusion

These are the best courses you can use to learn Recursion for Dynamic programming in 2024. The cream of the crop. These courses will turn you from a budding programmer into an expert. All of these courses have their own advantages and USPs. Sign up for one and you will be on your way to becoming a successful software developer. Considering Recursion is a really important concept in Computer Science and heavily used in programming, especially in Coding interviews, I highly recommend every programmer to learn Recursion in depth. 

Other Useful Resources for Coding Interviews:

• Top 5 Courses to learn Dynamic Programming for Interviews
• 10 Best Courses to learn System Design for Interviews
• 25 Recursion Interview Questions for Beginners
• 10 Courses to Prepare for Programming Job Interviews
• 7 Best Courses to learn Data Structure and Algorithms
• 10 Algorithm Books Every Programmer Should Read
• Top 5 Data Structure and Algorithm Books for Java Developers
• Top 5 Free Data Structure and Algorithm Courses
• 10 Algorithms Courses Junior Developer should join in 2024
• 20+ String Algorithms Interview Questions
• 10 Books to Prepare Technical Programming/Coding Job Interviews
• Review these Java Interview Questions for Programmers
• 20+ array-based Problems for interviews
• 25 Software Design Interview Questions for Programmers
• Top 30 Object-Oriented Programming Questions
• 10 Dynamic Programming Problems from Coding interviews

Thanks for reading this article so far. If you liked this list of best Recursion online Courses and tutorials, why not share it with your friends and family? Post a comment if you have any doubts or questions and we will get back to you in the blink of an eye.

P. S. - If you are learning Recursion to solve Dynamic Programming and need more practice, including dozens more Dynamic programming problems and solutions covering popular Dynamic programming patterns then you can also check out Grokking Dynamic Programming Patterns for Coding Interviews on Educative is a great resource to start with. It will teach you common DP patterns which can be used to solve multiple coding problems.