From Spreadsheets to Insights: Eric's story
Tell us about yourself - what first sparked your interest in pursuing a career in data analytics? Was there a specific experience that made you realise this was the right path for you?
I am a linguist at heart, so most of my career so far was spent working with translations. Now, to be a good translator, context is your friend! At one employer, myself and colleagues were known to drive copywriters and developers insane with our flood of content queries. In my final role, I managed and monitored language quality frameworks for corporate clients, which meant a lot of weekly, monthly and quarterly reporting on linguistic quality using a wide range of data tables and visuals to tell a story.
Looking back, the drive to ask probing questions (and not being afraid to do so) and the [the love] for telling stories through data planted the seed for the next career stage.
How did you find out about the bootcamp?
The world of localisation has been in a bit of turmoil, and after my second redundancy in four years, I decided to pivot. A brief spell of self-learning JavaScript lacked a bit of structure, and I stumbled (by chance) on a LinkedIn advert of the Curious Academy’s Data Analytics Skills Bootcamp while browsing for jobs. I had an interview with Louize Clarke at the start of October 2023 and joined the bootcamp a couple of weeks later.
What goals did you set for yourself going into the bootcamp?
Were there certain skills you hoped to develop or strengths you hoped to build on? I started the course with an open mind, even though I was told the first weeks of spreadsheet-based learning may not contain a lot of new info (which proved not to be the case). If anything, I wanted to switch on the part of me that liked programmatic, logical and critical thinking.
Walk me through a typical day in the bootcamp - what was the learning experience like?
Rather than focusing on a single day, I’ll consider a week, though experiences may differ from student to student. For me, it centred around two 3-hour in-person group sessions at HQ, one on a Monday and one on Wednesday morning. This is where everyone collaborated together on new course material presented by course leader Matt, and had the opportunity to socialise (and enjoy some great coffee and tea). However, this only presented 6 hours. As a “full-time” unemployed, I wanted at least 30 hours of learning to keep me going, which is where the Datacamp platform came in. Where Matt’s lessons and guidance are the thread and needle, Datacamp’s content was the fabric, which offered the hard skills needed to be able to become a Data Analyst.
What key skills and concepts did you learn through the bootcamp?
During the in-person sessions, focus was given on the “soft skills” side, such as the foundations of Data Analytics (critical thinking/questioning) and the Principles of Data Storytelling, combined with “hard skills” sessions on SQL, Google Sheets and Tableau through shared exercises and tasks. Most of these hard skills have to be honed, practised and fine tuned through the numerous Datacamp modules and skills tracks. I embraced Datacamp’s offering and very early on enjoyed studying Tableau, SQL and Power BI. Datacamp not only offers their own branded certification exams (of which I gained two) but also helps students to gain external accreditation through its partnerships with renowned brands. Thanks to Datacamp, I managed to pass the Microsoft PL-300 Power BI Data Analyst Associate exam at the first attempt.
Can you share your portfolio piece? Why did you select it? What did you learn? What were the challenges along the way?
My “graduation” project is the Road Safety Statistics Dashboard, which I built in Tableau. Mainly because I knew there’d be a lot of data available from the government, and secondly because I knew Tableau would allow me to showcase some cool custom visuals. I mainly learnt that data cleaning and normalisation is never finished, because there’s always pieces of data that can do with a bit more prep work if you want to create that extra layer of insight. And also, that it’s worth documenting your choices (how did I deal with lack of road network data, or local authority borders changing?)
Which elements from the bootcamp are you most proud of or excited to showcase to potential employers?
I’m proud to show my Datacamp certifications and my graduation project, due to the vast amount of time spent working and learning on it.
What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in the bootcamp? How did you overcome them?
I struggled with making choices: choosing how to tackle visualisation challenges in Tableau, and choosing which Modules to learn in Datacamp. All of these were borne out of the idea that I wanted to come out of the bootcamp with a portfolio that stood out for a junior Data Analyst, because my fear was that without a 100% DA background on my CV, I would struggle in the job market.
What superpowers did you discover on the course?
That I am not too bad with numbers. With a linguistics background, I’ve always been wary of working with big numerical data, but there is no real reason to be put off by it, since your tools will do the leg work as long as you understand the purpose and meaning of the data you are working with.
How do you think the bootcamp prepared you for a career in data analytics? What were the most useful aspects?
The development of a analytical mindset: asking questions, being critical, testing hypotheses, and being able to tell a good data story
What is The Curious Academy like as a training venue?
The in-person environment was a great help to stay motivated. Matt is knowledgeable, encouraging, but also doesn’t lead you by the hand to solve a problem, which encourages you to be active. The Reading location is modern, easy-to-reach, and the staff were wonderful.
What kind of data analytics role are you hoping to secure/have you secured?
I secured a Junior data Analytics role at an IT Consultancy company, where I assist the Support Department with client reporting in Power BI. However, my scope won’t be limited, as my work has been noticed already by the leadership team, and soon I’ll be crunching some more numbers for other departments.
What additional skills do you hope to develop now that you’ve completed the course?
I want to extend my Power BI capabilities, and learn a bit more on Azure and AWS. I need to make time to dive into datacamp again
If you were to give advice to someone considering attending a similar bootcamp, what would you tell them about how to get the most out of the experience?
Don’t hesitate. Change is scary, but if you’re driven to do it, and you set aside enough time to learn (and learn regularly), it does not matter what type of bootcamp you join. You will typically join the course with others who have the same basic understanding as you, but probably also the same level of enthusiasm, so help each other!