Data Scientist: Career Path

There is a global shortage of data scientists in the industry! Enter the world of stats, maths and data & bring valuable insights to the world's top corporations!

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What does the Data Scientist career path entail?

Data Scientist

Data Scientists are more in-demand than ever! While many folks in the data space try to get their hands dirty with AI and Machine Learning, they are leaving a big gap in the job market for data analysts and scientists.

In the US today, over 3,000 new job postings for Data Scientists are found. The space is growing and getting more open for career changers.

A Data Scientist can expect to be among the top range of tech salaries. Well into the six-figures in the US on average, and at top ranges all around the world!

Best books to explore the Data Science career path

A well-written and thorough book can be an amazing path to build deeper understanding and also act as a handbook as you discover the internet's vast resources.

These are our and our experts top picks to get started building career-relevant skills.

Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals

Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals

This book demonstrates how to go beyond conventional tools to reach the root of your data, and how to use your data to create an engaging, informative, compelling story. Specifically, you'll learn how to: Understand the importance of context and audience. Determine the appropriate type of graph for…

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise.

Books / Data science

Books / Data science

In a way, data science has become humanity’s sixth sense. Yet it’s also probably the sense the average person understands the least. So for anyone hoping to learn more, we asked three experts to recommend their favorite data science books from introductory overviews to more advanced content on deep…

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise.

Smarter Data Science: Succeeding with Enterprise-Grade Data and AI Projects

Smarter Data Science: Succeeding with Enterprise-Grade Data and AI Projects

Smarter Data Science outlines an effective and practical way for organizing, managing, and evaluating data, so you can establish an information architecture to better drive AI and data science. You'll learn how to: Simplify data management, making data available when and where it is needed.

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise.

Build a Career in Data Science

Build a Career in Data Science

Build a Career in Data Science teaches you what school leaves out, from how to land your first job to the lifecycle of a data science project, and even how to become a manager. Build a Career in Data Science is your guide to landing your first data science job and developing into a valued senior em…

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise.

Data Science with Python and Dask

Data Science with Python and Dask

Data Science with Python and Dask teaches you to build scalable projects that can handle massive datasets. After meeting the Dask framework, you'll analyze data in the NYC Parking Ticket database and use DataFrames to streamline your process.

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise.

Becoming a Data Head: How to Think, Speak, and Understand Data Science, Statistics, and Machine Learning

Becoming a Data Head: How to Think, Speak, and Understand Data Science, Statistics, and Machine Learning

In Becoming a Data Head: How to Think, Speak, and Understand Data Science, Statistics, and Machine Learning, award-winning data scientists Alex Gutman and Jordan Goldmeier pull back the curtain on data science and give you the language and tools necessary to talk and think critically about it.

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise.

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Courses to deepen your Data Science skills

These days, courses are no longer a sequence of videos. They are usually accompanied by projects and a learning community, keeping you accountable and on the path.

Our experts recommend these courses, from free selections to paid programs.

MIT Open: Linear Algebra

Math is the foundation of Machine Learning and much needed if you need to work on the inner logic of its systems. Senior engineers are encouraged to propose and submit their own papers – and getting your LinAlg back in order is a must for that.

Available on ocw.mit.edu

Machine Learning A-Z™

Kirill Eremenko's course on Udemy is a classic with almost a million (!) students worldwide. A-Z takes you from a bit of coding knowledge to making your own predictions and building ML models pretty swiftly. At prices between $10 - $20 it's also cheaper than many alternatives.

Available on udemy.com

Lex Fridman's MIT Deep Learning

Lex Fridman is the instructor of an immensely popular and fundamental Deep Learning course at MIT. Together with the other MIT AI courses, this can help polish your skills and get the foundations right.

Available on provider

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Data Science A-Z

Learn Data Science step by step through real Analytics examples. Data Mining, Modeling, Tableau Visualization and more!

Successfully perform all steps in a complex Data Science project, read statistical software output for created models and receive professional step-by-step coaching in …

Available on udemy.com

Get help with your learning journey

Learning through online courses can be challenging. Get 1:1 guidance from an experienced mentor who can help you stay accountable and answer your questions along the way.

Harvard Online Data Science

To become an expert data scientist you need practice and experience. By completing this course you will get an opportunity to apply and gain knowledge in R data analysis. This final project will test your skills in data visualization, probability, inference and modeling, data wrangling, data org…

Available on provider

The Data Science Course: Complete Data Science Bootcamp 2024

Complete Data Science Training: Math, Statistics, Python, Advanced Statistics in Python, Machine and Deep Learning

Available on udemy.com

Top Data Science Certifications

Understanding all core concepts of Data Science is key to claiming your next certificate. If you need help brushing up on your skills, consider reaching out to one of our mentors.

Senior Data Scientist SDS™

SDS™ is the world’s most powerful credential for professionally accomplished data science professionals who aspire to stamp their data leadership potential and showcase their knowledge at the forefront of data science innovation. Prices start at $850.

Data Science Certification Coaching

Consider reaching out to a coach specialized in Data Science certifications. They can help you prepare for your exam, and provide you with the necessary resources to succeed. MentorCruise is the best place to find a coach for your Data Science certification.

Principal Data Scientist (PDS™)

As a seasoned leader transforming businesses through data analytics and intelligence, the PDS™ certification recognizes your strategic influence and ability to drive innovation. Elevate your professional stature with a credential designed for high-level technology executives and thought leaders. P…

IBM Data Science Professional Certificate

The badge earner is ready for a career in data science with demonstrated ability to solve for real-world problems. They can apply Data Science methodology - work with Jupyter notebooks - create Python apps - access relational databases using SQL & Python - use Python libraries to generate data visu…

Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Scientist Associate

As a candidate for this certification, you should have subject matter expertise in applying data science and machine learning to implement and run machine learning workloads on Azure. Your responsibilities for this role include: Designing and creating a suitable working environment for data scien…

SAS® Certified Data Scientist

SAS Certified Data Scientists have demonstrated the ability to manipulate and gain insights from data with a variety of SAS and open-source tools, make business recommendations with complex machine learning models, and deploy models at scale using the flexible, robust SAS environment. Competency is…

Data Science Workshop

Consider joining a workshop specialized in Data Science. Workshops are a great way to learn new skills, and get hands-on experience. MentorCruise is the best place to find a workshop for your Data Science certification.

Open Certified Data Scientist (Open CDS)

The Open Group Open Certified Data Scientist (Open CDS) certification is the industry's most comprehensive certification available for Data Scientists and the organizations that employ them. Open CDS is an independent global certification for qualifying the skills, knowledge, and experience of Data…

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Accelerate your Data Scientist career with professional consulting

Already working in the Data Scientist field? Our Data Science consultants can help you and your team overcome challenges, implement best practices, and achieve your professional goals faster.

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Opportunities and projects in the Data Science space

In the end, advancing your career is all about getting the right opportunities at the right time and a good portion of luck.

These are some interesting things going on in the Data Science space and you probably don't want to miss them.

Specialize with Kaggle

It wouldn't be the first time I've seen someone get hired over good Kaggle results! Kaggle competitions are data science and ML projects that are graded through a public leaderboard. A good place on the leaderboard shows that you know your craft and can apply your knowledge to real-life problems!

Read more

Get into open-source

The world thrives on open-source software and this is no exception. Core contributors to core libraries and fast-growing tech like React, scikit-learn, Bitcoin and TensorFlow prove their abilities by going into the inner workings of a framework to improve it. For many companies, that's a desirable skill!

These projects are always looking for fresh faces. Grab an issue from the issue board or review a PR to get started!

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Growing into a Senior Data Scientist role pays off – $20,000 up to per year

Not only is the progression from individual Data Scientist to a Senior role a natural progression, it also makes all the difference in your average salary.

On a global average, Senior Data Scientist receive a $20,000 salary hike over entry-level Data Scientists when they go from individual contributor to senior personnel.

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