Data analysis is used in almost every industry today, which is why it’s considered a top trending skill to date. You can’t go without it: the average person generates almost 2MB of data every second. Industries need to sift through this information and find meaningful patterns in it if they’re going to improve. This is driving the rise of the data analyst job. Our guide covers the following:
- best education pathways to get a data analyst job
- the requirements needed to succeed in this field
- data analyst salary and prospects
- top companies offering data analyst jobs
What Does a Data Analyst Do?
Data analysts are skilled professionals who use data-driven insights to improve business processes and decision making. They help organizations to make sense of the massive amounts of data they generate on a day-to day basis. The data analyst might perform any of the following
- create and maintain databases and other data structures
- research on data for reporting purposes
- identify patterns in the data
- create reports related to the findings of the research
- present its findings to the company’s stakeholders
Data Analyst versus Data Scientist
Data analysts are hired to analyze data coming from different sources, while data scientists use their knowledge of mathematics and statistics to find patterns in the data and identify the cause of an event.
The difference between them lies in the type of work they do. Data analysts are more focused on querying databases and extracting insights from data sets. On the other hand, data scientists are more involved in analyzing relationships between variables and finding meaningful patterns to create insights.
Why You Should Become a Data Analyst?
In a typical data analyst job, you’ll be the part of a company or organization that generates useful, actionable information. Information means nothing by itself: it requires a data analyst to sift through it, use models to make it intelligible, and pick up on trends.
This is not an isolated role. You’ll work with other departments to acquire and present information. This may include:
- Working with developers
Analysis in a software firm means you’ll work closely with developers. Back-end developers will provide you with information from the software’s database that will allow you to observe trends in user behavior and identify problems. In turn, you can help developers find intuitive ways to acquire useful data.
- Working with marketing
You’ll work closely with your organization’s marketing department to create customer surveys and use marketing analytics to gather information. Finding out how customers respond to your product is essential for useful analysis.
- Presenting actionable information to directors
Presentations will be a big part of your life in your data analyst career. All the time you spend interrogating data and finding useful trends builds up to when you present it to your organization’s directors. So you need to convey your conclusions clearly, why they’re important and actionable, and how you arrived at them.
Whether it’s in healthcare, software development, or an industry like construction or energy, your skills will inform decisions at the highest level. This is a lot of responsibility, but it’s what makes a data analyst job so exciting.
High Demand
Speaking of exciting, huge businesses are realizing the importance of this field. This means demand is skyrocketing for intuitive professionals who can help them spot trends before the competition. Data-driven marketing is already a huge field, and as it grows, the demand for skilled analysts grows with it.
Furthermore, some of the biggest names in tech are also the biggest names in data analysis. Have you heard of Google? Or Facebook? These are the companies that are at the cutting edge of data collection and analysis, and they’ve achieved that by hiring the best in the business. They still are. There are so many amazing roles at these companies in diverse areas, and you could work on something truly incredible if you succeed in this career path.
Working with Data in an Information Society
Another reason that these careers are so exciting and in-demand is that our society has progressed into what some call the “information society.” Again, this change has been made possible by tech innovations like Google’s search algorithm and Facebook’s use of data to connect people. It’s also been driven by the advent of the smartphone, which has exponentially increased the amount of data that an individual puts out into the world.
We’re still learning how to read this information. Businesses and organizations offer high-paying data analyst jobs to individuals who can help them manage information and make sense of how it can be used. So much is still new: this is why there’s never been a better time to search for data analyst jobs.
Data Analyst Salary & Job Growth
Glassdoor.com estimates the median salary for a data analyst job to be around $68,000. This can rise substantially with experience and is typically higher at companies at the cutting edge of technology, such as the tech giants listed above.
The BLS doesn’t provide concrete statistics for this profession, but by comparing 2 related professions (computer systems analyst and operations research analyst), we can get a general picture:
- The BLS reports that computer systems analysts earn a median pay of around $94,000 per year. It projects a growth of 7% in this field from 2019 through 2029 (higher than average).
- It reports that operations research analysts earn around $86,000 on average per year. Growth in this sector is projected to be around 25% from 2019 through 2029, which is several times faster than the national average.
The growth prospects are impressive in both cases. This, combined with the fact that this field is still fairly young, suggests that data analyst jobs will grow at an impressive rate over the next decade.
Data Analyst Career Pathways
Below we give an overview of the diverse roles in this career path.
Data Visualization Analyst
Data visualization is a key facet of most careers in this field, but some specialize in this area. As a specialist in visualization, you’ll be in charge of creating intelligible, useful ways to show information to stakeholders. You’ll have expert knowledge of visualization processes and writing software that interrogates the most relevant information and displays it in a way that your organization can draw actionable conclusions from.
Marketing Analyst
In this role, you’ll be in charge of examining information on market trends and the field that your organization operates in. You’ll be tasked with evaluating the success of different marketing strategies and identifying key demographics that should be the target audience for your company. Your work will inform key decisions on your company’s future marketing strategy.
Business Analyst
This position is focused on using data to improve the performance of an organization. You’ll evaluate internal reports and gather information from them to identify areas for improvement in terms of productivity. You’ll present your findings to stakeholders, along with actionable suggestions
Information Security Data Analyst
This career path is ideal for data analysts who possess strong coding skills. You’ll write software to monitor your organization’s computer security systems, using your findings to assess vulnerabilities and deliver reports on how to increase your company’s security structure.
Market Research Analyst
Like a marketing analyst, you’ll work closely with your business’s marketing department — but you’ll be at the forefront of collecting information. You’ll need a strong understanding of research methodologies to help you design research surveys and information. This includes gathering software to help your company better understand its audience.
How to Become a Data Analyst
Many data analyst jobs require a bachelor’s or master’s degree. However, there are other education pathways to finding employment in this field. Shorter, less expensive options like certificate programs and coding bootcamps can provide a strong foundation for success in this field.
Remember that life in this field isn’t just about the tech side of things: you need strong business acumen as well. You’ll spend a lot of time designing collection methods, liaising with other departments, and most importantly, delivering presentations to present your findings.
This is also a reason why specialized analysis & coding bootcamps are great tools even if you have a college degree: they can teach you “soft” skills to supplement your technical expertise.
Below we discuss some of the best education pathways for finding data analyst jobs.
Bachelor’s Degree
There are many bachelor’s degrees that teach you the skills needed to succeed in this field. These include:
- Mathematics
- Statistics
- Engineering
- Computer science
- Economics
These bachelor’s degrees give you a strong grasp of evaluative methods and problem-solving. And each one comes with advantages. For example, statistics will teach you how information can be displayed and interpreted, which is a core component of data analyst jobs.
Meanwhile, a degree like economics may help you learn more about how to present your findings in a way that helps a business or organization make good decisions.
Master’s Degree
Master’s degrees are more specialized, and if you know the type of industry you’d like to work in, you can use this to guide your choice of master’s program. Good master’s degrees for access to top data analysis roles include:
- Data analytics: This program will not only hone your skills but give you a great understanding of what life is like in data analyst jobs day-to-day.
- Business analytics: if you’re looking to move into a corporate role, this program can teach you how to use your skills in the framework of a business or organization.
- Data science: While this is a distinct role and slightly different from a data analyst job, there is substantial overlap between these fields. It can help you learn more about the technical side of your field.
Certificate Programs in Data Analysis
Certificate programs are an excellent way to learn the fundamentals of a data analyst job without investing heavily in a college degree. They typically take a few months to complete and are very affordable compared to other options.
If you’re looking to transition to this field from another profession, this is a great place to start. It will introduce core components of the role, such as modeling information, and may give you a grounding in an essential programming language like SQL or Python.
Data Analytics Bootcamps
Data analytics bootcamps are great education pathways to get you started in your search for a data analyst job. Like in a certificate program, you’ll learn programming languages like SQL and Python in coding bootcamps. However, you’ll have increased 1-to-1 tuition over a greater length of time (often over a year).
These programs will also give you substantial insight into the day-to-day life of someone working in a data analyst job. As you learn from home, they’re often more accessible than college courses.
Self-Study Courses in Data Analysis
Self-study is an essential component of these roles, even if you have qualifications like a master’s degree. The field is always evolving, which means there’s always more to learn. However, self-study can also be a great way to teach yourself fundamentals, like learning your first programming language.
SQL is considered a top programming language for writing analysis programs. Python is another extremely popular choice, and you can begin to learn these languages through online courses at your own pace.
Data Analyst Skills Needed to Succeed in Your Career
Here we list some skills you’ll need to pick up during any of the education pathways above. These skills will be essential to your success in data analyst jobs, so it’s always worth investing some time into self-study if you feel your knowledge is incomplete.
- Statistical modeling. This involves using statistical assumptions to generate useful data. It’s a fundamental tool in this field, and you’ll need to understand different techniques such as time series modeling and decision trees.
- Expert-level Excel. This isn’t one of those admin jobs where you see “must have strong Excel skills” on the application, but it just means “can you use the SUM function on Excel.” Excel’s enduring popularity is half due to its accessibility for novices and half because it’s an incredibly detailed tool for organizing and studying information. Your learning should teach you how to implement modeling techniques and display vast amounts of data in usable ways.
- Programming skills. You’ll be tasked with writing software programs in your job, and for this, you’ll need strong skills in a programming language like Python or SQL. This is especially useful to help you progress to more senior positions.
- Presentation. Being able to display your findings clearly and explain how they’re relevant to your organization’s goals is essential. This doesn’t just require a crash course in PowerPoint. You’ll also need a strong understanding of business goals and objectives to design your research and communicate its importance to your organization’s directors.
- Research design. Acquiring information is an active process. You’ll need to learn research methods like survey design if you’re working with other departments effectively to gather information.
Data Analysis Career Growth
Below are the general responsibilities of people in this career path at 3 levels.
Entry-Level Positions
At the entry level, your work will be research-heavy. You’ll design surveys for collecting information and spend a lot of time inputting figures. You’ll also learn how to use tools to evaluate this information and help design presentations.
Mid-Level Positions
When you’ve acquired more experience, you may be tasked with designing analytic tools and work in a more coding-intensive role. You could be put in charge of a project and be tasked with presenting key findings to stakeholders.
Senior-Level Positions
At the senior level, you’ll oversee your organization’s data collection methods and be in charge of the software and methods used to interrogate this information. You’ll work closely with other departments to make sure you meet key objectives. Data analyst jobs are in high demand throughout the world. Learn everything you need to know about data analyst careers.
What Companies Hire Data Analysts?
Many top companies worldwide rely on data professionals for their continued success. You can find exciting opportunities at employers like these:
- Google. Arguably the company that has driven our transition to an information society more than any other. So it’s no wonder that finding a data analyst job at Google is a dream come true. You could be working in areas like optimizing the company’s famous search algorithm or behind-the-scenes on its exciting AI project.
- Microsoft. A data analyst job at Microsoft will involve helping provide solutions for its huge range of business customers, as well as working with top experts in the field. Microsoft has been at the forefront of computing for many years, and you’ll learn from the very best as you use your knowledge to inform UX/UI decisions.
- Amazon. The world’s largest online retailer has built its marketplace and web services on its intuitive use of information. It’s constantly looking to improve its user experience. As a data analyst at Amazon, you’ll be tasked with identifying low-performing areas and using your expertise to suggest ways to improve its offerings.
Interview Questions – Examples
- What is your experience with SAS, R, and other data analytics tools?
- What are some of the challenges you’ve faced in your work? How did you solve them?
- If we hired you, how would you approach each day?
- How would you go about building a data analysis pipeline from scratch?
- How would you use your skills and knowledge to identify and analyze trends and patterns in our data sets?
- What is your favorite type of data analysis technique and why?
For more interview help, check out our short data analyst interview question guide.
Conclusion
If you’re the type to take a methodical, rigorous approach to see what others don’t, you might be the perfect fit for a data analyst job. Discover the best route to these in-demand, high-paying roles today by learning more about which education pathways suit you and signing up for an exciting future.
