Data Science

 

What is Data Science? How Can I build a successful career in the IT domain? How can working as a Data Scientist give me massive professional success? 

These are some of the questions every aspiring student, graduate or professional has. Rightly so, because the thing with any new and in fashion career option in India is there is a lot of hype and blind aping. This also comes with its set of so called experts and gurus and a host of educational institutions offering programs. There are all kinds of offerings, certificate courses, long term degrees, masters, specialisation and more. One is bound to get confused, it's a whole new galaxy and lexicons like Data, Data science, Big Data, Data analysis, business analysis are quite fascinating. Different schools like Relevel, Scaler, Codecademy, Great Learning, Newton school, Masai School, Almabetter, Guvi, Ineuron and more. The list is long and tiring. 

As per Wikipedia The term "data science" has been traced back to 1974, when Peter Naur proposed it as an alternative name for computer science. 

Data science is an interdisciplinary field that uses scientific methods, processes, algorithms and systems to extract or extrapolate knowledge and insights from noisy, structured and unstructured data, and apply knowledge from data across a broad range of application domains. Data science is related to data mining, machine learning and big data. 

A data scientist is someone who creates programming code and combines it with statistical knowledge to create insights from data. 

According to Data Flair training, Data Scientists help to analyze the health of the businesses. With data science, companies can predict the success rate of their strategies. Data Scientists are responsible for turning raw data into cooked data. This helps in summarizing the performance of the company and the health of the product.

The key application of data science in business is decision making. The raw data when systematically analysed allows businesses to make sense of the information and then take a strategic decision. 

This can direct the financial planning and direction of the company for years. Therefore a seemingly boring job becomes extraordinarily important for the current and future health of a business. 

As a data scientist you must have the grit and determination to see through the entire gruesome process of achieving the final outcome. 

You must be curious as a cat to keep digging and finding relevant information that can be cleary understood and used for business decisions. 

Not to mention that a great deal of technical acumen and a solid grounding in mathematics and arithmetic is necessary. 

Combine all of this with the ability to communicate effectively your ideas, not just using tools like Power BI but your own acumen of connecting with the audience is crucial. 

Again, the way you say something to a novice or junior is very different from how you would say the same thing to senior management. Therefore as a data scientist you actually play a pivotal role maintaining sanity in the business decision making process and allow all the teams to align and perform to the best of their abilities. 

Now, is a course, or degree or certificate going to help you? Or will it take something else to get success as a data scientist? 

There is a whole spectrum of learning tools available for one to utilise and start the journey in the field of data science. 

But then every journey begins with the single most important factor, that is acting on what you intend to do. 

Fortunately for you, today you have Google for everything. All the information you need is at the tip of your finger. A Single click and there you go. 

Let us look at some of the most searched and followed courses in the country. 

Intellipaat: Advanced Certification in Data Science and AI - 

Master the skills of Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence with this advanced Data Science and Artificial Intelligence by IIT Madras & Intellipaat. Learn from top professors & Industry experts along with 1:1 mentorship.

Online course for 7 months and a fee structure of 85,044+ GST

Boston Institute of Analytics - DATA SCIENCE COURSE:

CORE MODULE

Learn from scratch the key concepts of Analytics and get trained on modelling techniques, with a focus on Python/R computing, machine learning, statistical concepts, BI dashboarding tools, and their real world business applications - Online course for 4 months and a fee structure of 25000 (Please note this is a basic course)

upGrad - Executive Post Graduate Programme in Data Science

Begin your journey with India’s #1 online Data Science Program, aligned to NASSCOM competency standards and approved by the Govt. of India.

Earn a WES recognised degree equivalent to a 1 year PG diploma from Canada.

Eligibility: Bachelor’s degree with 50% mandatory.

Online / 12 months / 2,99,999 Rs 

Online Manipal - M.Sc. in Data Science

This Master of Science in Data Science programme is designed for you to build a distinctive career in analytical and leadership roles in various sectors. With a perfect blend of machine learning, big data analytics, and statistics, the programme helps you gain experience in solving problems with real-world data.

Online / 24 months / 2,60,000 Rs 

Coursera - University of Michigan - Master of Applied Data Science

The University of Michigan School of Information’s online Master of Applied Data Science (MADS) degree is designed for aspiring data scientists to learn and apply skills through hands-on projects. You’ll learn how to use data to improve outcomes and achieve ambitious goals.

Online / 12-36 months / $ 34,759 

Udemy - The Data Science Course 2022: Complete Data Science Bootcamp

Complete Data Science Training: Mathematics, Statistics, Python, Advanced Statistics in Python, Machine & Deep Learning

Data scientist is one of the best suited professions to thrive this century. It is digital, programming-oriented, and analytical. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that the demand for data scientists has been surging in the job marketplace.    

Online / 1-2 months / 999 Rs 

Simplilearn - Data Scientist Master's Program

This IBM-sponsored Data Science course includes unique hackathons, masterclasses, webinars, and Ask-Me-Anything sessions. The online training will give you hands-on experience with technologies like R, Python, Machine Learning, Tableau, Hadoop, and Spark. Improve your knowledge with this Data Science course and live interaction with other practitioners and Machine Learning Engineers.

Online / 54,000 Rs 

Scaler Data Science & Machine Learning Program

Get hands-on experience by working with real data sets, on projects built in partnerships with top companies. Get 1:1 Mentorship from Expert Data Scientists and ML Engineers!

Online / 11-14 months / 2,64,000 Rs 

Great Learning - PGP - Data Science and Business Analytics

Build a successful career in Data Science and Business Analytics. Data Science Foundations

The Foundations block comprises five courses where we get our hands dirty with the introduction to Data Science, Statistics, Code, SQL Programming, and some domain-specific knowledge head-on. These courses set our foundations so that we sail through the rest of the journey with minimal hindrance.

Online / 11 months / 2,50,000 Rs 

Guvi - Become an IIT Certified Programming Professional & Master Data Science

Take delight in a progressive career with Data Science competencies and earn 100% Job Placement assistance while working on hands-on projects from IIT-M recognized Institute of excellence.

IT-M Certified Advanced Programmer with Data Science Mastery Program is a leading-edge Technological Program paving your way to an assured lucrative career. It is an integrated course directed by GUVI - an IIT-Madras incubated company. Instructed by the industry’s best Technical Experts & Founders(Ex-Paypal Employees), this program offers mentorship through Data Experts and directs you to the Fortune 500 companies. The vision is to make the premium organizations discover the Right Talent.

Online / 3-5 months / 89,999 

Panandro Education Technologies - Data Science 

Data is the currency of the future, a great Data scientist makes sense of the raw information and serves invaluable reports that allow crucial decision making. This is what we will train you to do and even better get you placed. - Online / 3 months / 40,000 

Curriculum and offerings compared:

If you look at the curriculum we are offering, you will find that there’s nothing special really in terms of the content per se that Pananadro doesn’t offer or deliver on. 

I am sharing the complete Data Science curriculum that will allow you to start off your career as a Data Scientist, you’ll find it easy to make a comparison. 

• Python Basics
• Python Advanced
• Algorithmic Thinking
• Data handling in Python - Pandas & MongoDB
• MongoDB
• MongoDB - Continued
• Probability and Statistics with Numpy
• Probability and Statistics with Numpy - Continued
• Data Visualisation in Python (Matplotlib, Seaborn)
• Data Visualisation with Plotly’s dash
• Data Engineering with Python
• Data Analysis on Image and text data
• Machine Learning with Sklearn
• Machine Learning with Sklearn - Continued
• Natural Language Processing
• Natural Language Processing - Continued
• Putting it together - Solving DS problems
• Case study 1: CC fraud detection
• Case Study 2: Airline customer segmentation
• Case Study 3: Product recommendation engine

The key differentiating factor, that none of the other education providers talk about:

Have you heard of the term DSA in the Data Science domain or tech parlance? To a layperson it may sound like an unknown or financial term. DSA stands for Data Structures and Algorithms. 

According to Wikipedia, In computer science, a data structure is a way of storing data in a computer so that it can be used efficiently. Often a carefully chosen data structure will allow a more efficient algorithm to be used. The choice of the data structure must begin from the choice of an abstract data structure. 

In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is a finite sequence of rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific problems or to perform a computation. Algorithms are used as specifications for performing calculations and data processing. 

More advanced algorithms can perform automated deductions (referred to as automated reasoning) and use mathematical and logical tests to divert the code execution through various routes (referred to as automated decision-making). 

Using human characteristics as descriptors of machines in metaphorical ways was already practiced by Alan Turing with terms such as "memory", "search" and "stimulus".

According to a top recruitment agency Kofi Group, Being a pure programmer (without DSA knowledge) can work for years, that is, until you encounter a product where you need to be able to scale. Startups and FAANG typically hire engineers with a solid DSA understanding as they are more likely to innovate and create unique, scalable solutions to new and existing problems. 

Not all companies will ask technical questions surrounding DSA. For some, it is implied knowledge, for others, it’s not necessary for your siloed tasks. But high-growth startups and the big tech giants at FAANG will most certainly test your knowledge and problem-solving Skills.

The tough part about soft skills:

A final touch to get you placed with a great company would be interview preparation and resume building. Soft skills aren’t soft and hard to acquire and master. 

Communication, emotional intelligence and cultural sensitivity are important skills to master when it comes to a great corporate or IT career. Remember, you will be required to interact and get along with your fellow workers and managers. You will have to build relationships that will serve you for a long time. 

I am sharing with you a part of the article that was published by the National Association of Sales Professionals. It discusses the behavioral skills needed to be an extraordinary performer at work; these are sets of qualities you need to inculcate in order to have a great career. 

Simply stated, the level of integrity you gotta operate from is directly correlated to what your goals are in life. If you fancy being an extraordinary salesperson, start behaving like one.

EI for me is a measure of the awareness and presence of my mental and emotional states and at all times being given by what matters. Let me say that in English for you. Human beings are emotional, social and they express their emotions in a social setting. This vulnerability is what makes us special.

No matter what’s happening in my head and heart, the focus is on getting the job done. You do this consistently over a period of time (Yeah, yeah, I know I’m repeating) and you master the skill. You have better workability, people find you sensible and reliable.

The thing you fail to get is, when you perform exceptionally well it reflects on your boss and his boss too. The idea is to at all times ensure that everybody gets to look good because you are doing a damn fine job. This will always have you be in their good books and not like a bootlicker but as a matter of someone who did good for people, and honestly people feel they actually owe you one.

At the end of the day what matters is the career build for yourself, the life you lead and the quality of life you provide for your family and yourself. Data has always been important, not just a science but as a tool to make intelligent predictions in business. With billions at risk and stake no company shy’s from paying a great data scientist. 

A day in your life will look like a boring job though, lots and lots of number crunching and then having to make sense of all the numbers. Next comes an important aspect of your job profile which is creating reports, charts, graphs having analysed the data in a way that you can make it presentable to your boss and all the key stakeholders in the company. 

What gives you an edge is you understand the complex web of data jungle and given that you have the skills to explain the same to another person, a great data scientist is indispensable in today’s business environment. The world is shrinking with the tech dynamism and evolution, at a pace unprecedented and unknown to mankind. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Now that you are on our website, go on and fill the application form, our team will get in touch with you for the further steps to help you make your participation smooth in the program.