My Transition Into a Thriving Field of Data Science

By - Rahul Padwani, Board Infinity Alumni

Invest in yourself and your career: My transition into a thriving field of data science.

1. My Background

To tell you about myself, I was a below-average student. In the 12th standard, I barely scraped through and got 42 per cent. This percentage demotivated me in life. However, when I started college, I did it purely out of interest. During my school days, I used to love computers. I used to hack and was very keen on the tech side of things. As a part of my college pursuing Computer Science, I got an opportunity to go to Canada for a big data analysis program. That's when I realized this field is interesting and became curious to find out more. The student exchange program in Canada ran for 2 months but honestly, you cannot learn everything in the span of just 2 months.

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After returning from Canada, I came back to India and did a lot of research. Upon my research, I got into training at IIT Hyderabad. Even after this training, I felt like something was missing.

I was interested in analytics and from school time itself, I used to love maths. I wanted to work in a field where I got a blend of both programming and maths. As mentioned, I researched a lot and experimented a lot as well. I got into IoT, cyber security, ethical hacking and even developing but none of these gave me that kick. That's when it struck me that I need to pursue something that is more interesting and challenging.

During this time of my life, I started looking for a job but failed to get any as companies are looking for experience. I did not have enough experience as I had knowledge of just 1 programming language. That's when I stumbled across Board Infinity. I spoke to a program manager and a few more people here who were very kind and helped me understand the entire process. After 4-5 months of speaking and consulting people, I decided to take up the course in Data Science.

2. Experience at Board Infinity

I applied for Learning Path in Data Science from Board Infinity and also completed the microlearning course.

To grow in any field, I believe you need to have a strong base. The sessions at Board Infinity helped me build a strong base. Learning did not stop there. After a strong foundation was formed, then there was a focus on advancing and learning new skills. In particular, one guest session comes to mind which was taken by coach Kunal Naik. He taught us how to build a dashboard within one hour. His tips and tricks are still fresh in my mind. Even now, if you wake me up at night and ask me to make a dashboard, I can do it in my sleep.

In many of the institutes, they teach you simple theories but at Board Infinity they taught us how to showcase ourselves and how to be more hands-on in the industry.

3. My Placement Journey

During the 1 on 1 mentor sessions, I received valuable tips and instructions on how to go ahead with my career. The mentors helped me identify my weak spots and how one can cope in today's job scenario. The 1 on 1 session was extremely beneficial to me as they explained projects and answered difficult queries.

With the help of Board Infinity and my own abilities, I got placed at eClerx as a senior data analyst. At the moment, I am undergoing training on how to be hands-on. In addition, I am also being inducted into the rules and regulations of the company as it's still early days.

I am ecstatic that I got this role. In the future, I wish to learn more about machine learning. For me, knowledge and experience are of utmost importance. This experience right now at eClerx is the best thing for me.

Due to covid, everything has moved online. I think learning online is great if you are honest with yourself. If you are consistent in your learning, then it will help you but if you are learning and not implementing anything, that knowledge and experience go to waste. Offline is a good platform too as that helps you connect better with teachers.

Lastly, I want to say that if you are choosing to build a career in data science, be persistent, do your research, and feel free to ask for career guidance from a professional.

Connect With Me

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