Over the last decade, Data Science domain has evolved exponentially. Today it has become the backbone of many organisations across different industries. Data Science has reached a level that it has earned the title of “sexiest job of the 21st century.” Witnessing the skyrocketing popularity of this domain, more and more people are making transitions and following Data Science as a career. According to one of our studies, data analytics professionals are currently earning 26% higher than an average software engineer in India.
Students from the engineering branches are actively taking up data science course in order to get themselves in the field. However, that is not something which is really easy — one needs to have a lot of know-how.
In order to make students Data Science ready, many institutes are offering Data Science courses. And with time the number is just increasing. But there lies a question — how do we figure out whether the course is worth taking?
In this article, we will have a look at some of the important factors that help in differentiating between a generic data science course and a job oriented one.
1) An updated, industry-relevant curriculum
To be a full-stack Data Scientist, one needs to have a tremendous amount of knowledge — whether its machine learning, or computer science, or statistics, or mathematics, or deep learning or python etc. Missing out even a single skill might impact your journey to become a data scientist.
When you plan to join a data science course, it is always advised to first connect with others from the domain and ask them about the things that are really necessary — ask them what kind of curriculum one should go with. This would help you in sorting data science courses.
The curriculum is one of the most important things to look for when taking up a data science course. So, if a course doesn’t include any of the important topic or skills, don’t opt for it as it might be just a generic course.
2) Number of practical sessions
Theory is important, no doubt. One cannot become a data scientist with the basic knowledge of the domain and its different fields. However, only theory won’t make you a to data science — practical experience makes a huge difference. Before taking up a data science, always make sure that they have a significant number of practical sessions. It would help you understand a problem and find a solution to in a more efficient way.
There are many courses available today (both online and offline) that provide you with real-time sessions, which is a great advantage. So, it always advised doing your research on that before enrolling.
3) Do mentors or trainers have significant experience?
This is one of the foremost things to check prior to enrolling for a data science course. The experience of the mentor/trainer plays a vital role in your data science journey. Do you want to be trained under someone who doesn’t have a significant amount of knowledge? No, right!
The world of data science is booming, and amid that, a lot of professionals are faking their experience in order to gain a high-rank position. So, when you opt for a course, make sure you have done enough research about the one who is going to teach you or train you.
4) Placement Records
When you take up a data science course, one of the foremost expectations you keep from the institute is getting placed in a reputed firm. However, not every institute does that even after promising — some even fail to conduct interviews for the students. And one of the major reasons behind this is that these institute doesn’t have a strong base when it comes to data science — amid all the talk about the data science, they just start a course which doesn’t even focus on landing you a job.
So, prior to joining any data science course, make sure that not only the course but also the institute is reputed enough to help you attend interviews.
5) Honest reviews from alumni
This is one of the most effective ways to get to know about a course. Many institutes promise a lot on the ads, however, not everything is true. Seeing those intriguing ads that act as bait, many students end up enrolling to such institutes. So in order to figure out whether they are actually delivering what they promise or its just hoax, talk to the ones who have already completed the course. It would help you know much more about the institute as well the course you want to opt.
Seek answers to these questions:
- What are the topics they cover?
- Do they have hands-on sessions?
- Do they help with getting placed?
- Do they have experience faculty/trainer/mentor?
- Whether have good connections with the leading companies in the industry?
- If they are not placed from the institute, ask them how they landed a job in the domain.
