Last updated on October 20th, 2021 at 06:03 am
Data Science is a rapidly growing field with over 2.7 million data science and analytics job openings expectations in 2020 alone. The number of online users is increasing at a tremendous rate, and with it, the need for data science professionals is also increasing.
As per reports, 2.5 quintillions bytes of data are produced every single day. And there is a huge demand for professionals who can clean, monitor, visualize this data and obtain valuable insights from it to innovate Big Data solutions for technological advancements.
The field of data science is very wide and offers plenty of job opportunities for professionals. If you are interested in computers, maths, and data analysis and share a passion for technological discoveries, then Data Science is the perfect career for you. By enrolling in a data science course, you can become a qualified data science professional and help transform the world for the better.
What is Data Science?
Data Science is the science that helps in data-driven decision-making using methods of collecting, storing, computing, analyzing, and managing data of organizations. Every technology that we use today is based on data. Our online purchases, YouTube recommendations, Instagram feed, etc. are all examples of human-data interactions.
Data collection helps improve the user experience while surfing the internet. You might have noticed that while shopping on Amazon, the site recommends other useful products that can help you along with your original purchase. These recommendations are based on your previous purchase history, search history, and payment history. It also sends you a reminder for your habitual purchases like groceries, etc. They act as a trigger to make you purchase the product without being spammy.
In this way, Data Science professionals help both businesses and consumers. It is proven to increase a company’s profit revenue and helping customers spend less money on a purchase with strategic placements of ads of products at discounts. Thus, it creates a win-win situation for both the company and the customers leading to healthier economic development.
Benefits of Data Science
Data Science not only has commercial benefits but also improves the performance of multiple industries such as public health, food, farming, education, airlines. From its wearable trackers to monitor and improve patient’s health to accurately diagnosing diseases and finding cures, data science is contributing a lot to the healthcare sector.
Its image and voice recognition applications give you recommendations for tagging your friends in pictures on social media. With Google and Siri, you get the job done without the need to type on your smartphone. Data Science helps the airline industry by predicting flight delays, identifying weather, and helping in decision-making for airplane buying.
Data Science has also transformed the Education Sector with its features, including analytical evaluations of students, helping in decision-making for student admissions, etc. It has been very useful in lowering the dropout rate and increasing the engagement rate of students in schools.
Data Science course helps farmers with solutions on the right amount of seed planting, fertilizer, water, etc. It also predicts weather conditions that let farmers modify their harvesting plans accordingly.
The benefits of data science are countless. It is impacting almost every industry in one way or the other. It has become such an inherent part of our lives that we do not even recognize its presence. It is at the center of all the industries today. Building a career in Data Science is a wise option. It not only pays well but also lets you drive the transformation of the world towards a better version of itself.
There are a lot of in-demand data science careers these days. So, let us explore the top 5 data science careers that you can build a substantial career in.
Top 5 Data Science Careers
1. Data Scientist
Data Scientist is one of the most popular jobs worldwide. Data Scientists examine Big Data and perform cleaning and organizing of the data. They process a large amount of complex information and find patterns in the data that help them drive strategic decisions. Data Scientists are well-versed with Machine Learning algorithms.
The solutions discovered by Data Scientists are very important for companies for their business growth. These solutions also let companies have an edge over their competitors and achieve all their business goals. Data Scientist is a technical job and demands a variety of skills. The salaries in this career are among the highest-paid jobs.
Prerequisites for Data Scientist Job
- Problem-solving skills
- Coding Language
- Data Visualization
- Business Awareness
- Machine Learning Algorithms
2. Machine Learning Engineer
Machine Learning Engineers create data funnels of the cleaned and organized data. They train a predictive model to help predict the target variable. Their developed models analyze the data trends in the future to help businesses make the right decisions.
The data used has a lot of dimensions to it. Machine learning algorithms make the tasks easy. These engineers test and analyze their models for the best possible outcomes. They are good with statistics, programming, and software engineering skills. In addition to training, they also do data analysis at times to better understand the datasets.
Prerequisites for Machine Learning Engineer Job
- Programming
- Data Modeling
- Machine Learning Algorithms
- Software Engineering & Systems Design
3. Data Engineer
Data Engineers integrate data from various sources and perform batch processing on it. Every company needs the development and maintenance of its data pipelines. Data Engineers collect big data from various sources and then optimize this data as per the problem statements. They are responsible for writing queries and providing a streamlined flow of big data.
They create an interconnected data ecosystem that helps data scientists by making the information easily accessible to them. Their prime focus is on the system and hardware which assist in the analysis of the data. They deliver effective warehouse methods to the organization as well.
Prerequisites for Data Engineer Job
- Machine Learning Algorithm
- Coding
- Data Warehousing
- Database knowledge
4. Business Intelligence Developer
Though Business Intelligence (BI) Developer is more of a non-technical job, it is a big role to play in the successful implementation of data science solutions in the organization. Before going into the job responsibilities for this role, let us first understand: what is business intelligence? Business Intelligence is a combination of strategies and technologies that helps in the data analysis of an organization for business information.
BI Developers formulate and implement business policies created using the insights from data analysis done by the technical team. They act as a bridge between the technical and the non-technical team through their ability to understand the technical stuff and presenting that in a simple non-technical way to the clients. They have a good understanding of business. Using their deep understanding of data, they develop BI tools and applications that help the end-users comprehend the system.
Prerequisites for Business Intelligence Developer Job
- Business Acumen
- Data Warehousing
- Business Intelligence Software Integration
- Communication Skills
- Problem Solving
5. Data Analyst
Data Analyst is another important career in the field of data science. Data Analysts are responsible for understanding, transforming, and manipulating the data to suit the needs of the company. They store the data of the different departments of the company. Data Analysts help companies to understand the reason behind the success or failure of their projects.
Their roles also involve web analytics and A/B testing analysis for businesses. The results of their analysis help companies understand the loopholes in their plans. They provide solutions to business problems and also assist in the decision-making processes. They are also an important link between the technical and other working departments of the company.
Prerequisites for Data Analyst Job
- Critical Thinking
- Machine Learning
- Data Visualization
- Communication
- Process Modelling
- Microsoft Excel
Data Science careers are in constant demand as businesses are quickly moving towards automation. Data Science professionals are needed in almost every field, be it government organizations or private firms. Owing to their high importance, the data science salary packages are also quite lucrative. The average salary range varies from job role to job role in this field. Nevertheless, a career in data science is among the highest paying careers for professionals.
If you are looking to break into the data science field, there are various ways to prepare yourself. One can join a data science course and gain the required knowledge and skill-set for making a career in this field. There are various certificate courses, degrees, and diplomas available these days, both online and offline that you can pursue. After gaining the required qualification and skill base, you can apply for fresher roles in this field.
Many companies are on the lookout to hire data science professionals. So, finding a job would not be that difficult. Once you gain some experience, you can also take on another career pathway in this field as most of the data science careers are interconnected and complementary to each other. To succeed in this field, you need to have a technical mindset, an eagerness to learn, and a passion to develop solutions to problems.