How can I become a data scientist?

The Upcoming Big Thing – Career in Data Science

A field that did not even exist 10 years back, Data Science is projected to grow in demand by 48% by the year 2030 (Source: IBM Study). In its 2017 U.S Emerging Jobs report, LinkedIn ranked Machine Learning Engineers, Data Scientists and Big Data Engineers among the top emerging jobs (which have grown by up to 650% since 2012).

With such big growth numbers related with it, Data Science as a field is popping many heads in the technology and business spaces.

Big Data, Data Analytics, Machine Learning and Data Science are the big buzzwords doing the round these days and you’d have surely have heard them at least once. So what is all this hype about? What are the differences between them? And is Data Science a good career option?

So let’s first understand what these fields are all about and then delve into the career opportunities, path and the skills required to be successful in this domain.

What is Data Science?

Remember the last time you logged on to Youtube to watch a video? After you’ve finished watching, your feed would be refilled with further suggestions, claiming that the website has filtered several videos that match your viewing pattern, and some of those which most people watch. Similarly, you often get pop-up ads on Facebook, based on your interests and age group. And, haven’t you checked Google Maps at least once to see if your route has any unusual traffic? If you can relate to any of these examples, well, then you might already have realised the significance of a data scientist in the digitised world.

Data Science may be a broad field that has data at its core, as the name suggests. This data is accumulated, arranged and analysed to examine its effect on businesses.

Netflix’s use of viewership data to give better movie recommendations, and Facebook’s use of past interactions to give more targetted ads to users, are all examples of data being put to use to gain a deeper level of understanding.

In this way, Data scientists are like detectives, finding patterns out of data to help businesses make smarter decisions.

They also help create the algorithms behind products and websites that make use of huge amounts of data to make recommendations. For instance, Google Maps estimates your ETA supported huge amounts of knowledge accumulated from people on an equivalent route using the app.
Data Scientists convert data into valuable information for businesses. For this, they possess knowledge in various areas including software development, data munging, databases, mathematics, statistics, machine learning and data visualization.

Common career paths to become a data scientist

Here are some common ways to become a data scientist.

Career Path 1:

Earn a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science → Get certification in Big Data/Data Analytics → Join as a Data Scientist or Engineer intern or employee at a firm

Career Path 2:

Earn a Bachelors and/or Master’s degree in Applied Mathematics or Statistics → complete online courses in Programming languages and Data Science/Analytics → complete projects on platforms like Kaggle and build a portfolio → Apply for jobs in Data science

Career Path 3:

Earn a Bachelor’s degree in Physics → Take online courses in Programming languages→ Collect professional certifications in Data Science and Machine Learning → Intern or get a job as a Data Scientist or Machine Learning Engineer

Career Path 4:

Earn a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration → Opt for a Master’s degree in Data Science or Marketing/Business Analytics → Intern or find a job as a Data Analyst

Note: The above career paths are just examples of common career paths. There is no fixed career path to start a career in data science. The career steps can vary as per the background, interests, and skills of the individual.

Thus, to build a career as a Data Scientist, degrees in Mathematics, Statistics, Economics, Engineering, Computer Science, etc. can help form a good base.

Some Top UG Institutes to Build a Career in Data Science/ Data Analytics:

1. Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Multiple locations

Course: B.Stat Hons., B.Math Hons.

2. Delhi University (Various colleges)

Course: B.Sc Maths Hons., B.Sc Statistics Hons., B.A Economics Hons., B.Sc. Computer Science Hons., etc.

3. IIT Kanpur

Course: B.Tech (various branches), B.S. in Mathematics and Scientific Computing

4. IIT Bombay

Course: 5-year M.Sc. program in Mathematics

5. Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Multiple locations

Course: BS-MS program for science befitted students

For post-graduation, you could pursue a postgraduate degree in business analytics, big data, data science, or any of the other fields mentioned before (Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, etc.)

Some Top PG Institutes to Build a Career in Data Science/ Data Analytics

1. Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad

Course: Certificate in Business Analytics (CBA)

2. IIM Bangalore

Course: Program in Business Analytics and Intelligence

3. IIM Calcutta

Course: Executive Program in Business Analytics

4. IIT Kharagpur (ISI, IIT Kharagpur and IIM Calcutta joint program)

Course: Post Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics (Pgdba)

5. IIM Lucknow

Course: Certificate program in business analytics for executives (CPBAE)

6. Upgrad, IIT Bombay

Course: PG Diploma in Business Analytics

7. S.P Jain School of Global Management

Course: Certificate Program in Big Data and Analytics (BDAP)

8. Aegis School of Business

Course: Post Graduate Program In Business Analytics & Big Data

9. Great Lakes Institute of Management

Course: Post Graduate Program in Business Analytics

List of some popular data science courses and certifications.

1. Website: Coursera/University of Michigan
Course: Applied Data Science with Python Specialization
Price: INR 3,474 per month
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced (Approx. 5 months)

2. Website: Udacity
Course: Intro to Machine Learning
Price: Free
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self paced (Approx. 6 months)

3. Website: Dataquest
Course: Data Analyst in R
Price: Free
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced

4. Website: Udemy
Course: Python for Data Science and Machine Learning Bootcamp
Price: INR 12,480
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced

5. Website: Coursera
Course: IBM Data Science Professional Certificate
Price: INR 2,765 per month
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced (2 months approx.)

6. Website: Coursera/John Hopkins University
Course: Data Science Specialization
Price: INR 3,474 per month
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced (8 months approx.)

7. Website: Udemy
Course: The Data Science Course 2019
Price: INR 12,800
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced

8. Website: Datacamp
Course: Introduction to Machine Learning
Price: Subscription-based (INR 2020 per month for 247 courses)
Format: Online
Learning duration: 6 hours

9. Website: Edureka
Course: Data Science Certification Course using R
Price: INR 24,899
Format: Online
Learning duration: 30 hours

10. Website: Edx/Harvard University
Course: Professional Certificate in Data Science
Price: $441.9/INR 30,723(approx.) for 9 courses
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced (2-4 months)

11. Website: Digital Vidya
Course: Data Science Master Program
Price: INR 34,900 + GST
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced (Minimum 21 weeks)

12. Website: Simplilearn
Course: Data Scientist Master’s Program
Price: INR 44,999
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced or online classroom

13. Website: Coursera/Duke University
Course: Statistics with R Specialization
Price: INR ₹3,474 per month
Format: Online
Learning duration: Self-paced (Approx. 7 months per course)

14. Website: Upgrad/IIIT Bangalore
Course: PG Diploma in Data Science
Price: INR 2,85,000
Format: Online
Learning duration: 11 months

Why build a career in data science?

All sorts of businesses today invest in data science and analysis to make better decisions for both themselves and their customers. Data scientists have become an asset to most companies and teams.

Scope of Data Science

1. In India, major sectors like healthcare, pharmaceuticals, banking, telecommunications, e-commerce, and media require data scientists.

2. India is second only to the US when it comes to data science jobs. 1 out of every 10 data science or analytics jobs is accounted for by India. (Quartz India)

3. There are up to 50,000 data science job vacancies in India right now, which means plenty of opportunities for skilled job seekers to look forward to. (Business Today)

Demand for Data Science

1. Currently, the biggest employer of data scientists is the banking and finance sector, comprising about 44% of total data science jobs. By 2020, India will create 39,000 more data science jobs spanning sectors like agriculture and aviation.(Business Today)

2. Evolving technologies mean that data science will see a big demand in fields like AI, cyber security, space exploration and driverless transportation too. (The Economic Times)

Pros and cons of a career in Data Science

Qualification required for data science

A significant percentage of data scientists also earn a PhD in their fields. It is important to learn programming skills as part of your university or as add-on skills. Online courses and certifications, internships and work experience also go a long way in a data science career.

Data science jobs in India

Let us look at the vacancies for data science and related jobs in India.

(Source: Naukri.com, March 2019)

Job roles in Data Science

Data science salaries

Average data science job salaries can vary according to skills and experience. Here is an average annual salary data for data science and related job roles.

(Data source: AmbitionBox)

Data science skills

Take a look at the skills necessary to work in data science.

Core skills:

Soft skills:
Curiosity, creativity, communication, critical thinking, business sense, and teamwork

Data Science Tools