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Berkley Data Science

The document discusses what data science is and the career of a data scientist. It defines data science as involving the full data life cycle from capturing to analyzing data to communicate findings. A data scientist masters techniques like machine learning, programming, statistics, and storytelling to analyze large amounts of data, identify meaningful insights, and effectively communicate them. The career outlook for data scientists is strong with demand across many industries and competitive salaries.

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23 views4 pages

Berkley Data Science

The document discusses what data science is and the career of a data scientist. It defines data science as involving the full data life cycle from capturing to analyzing data to communicate findings. A data scientist masters techniques like machine learning, programming, statistics, and storytelling to analyze large amounts of data, identify meaningful insights, and effectively communicate them. The career outlook for data scientists is strong with demand across many industries and competitive salaries.

Uploaded by

Bharath
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as TXT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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What Is Data Science?
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What is Data Science?
Data science continues to evolve as one of the most promising and in-demand career
paths for skilled professionals. Today, successful data professionals understand
they must advance past the traditional skills of analyzing large amounts of data,
data mining, and programming skills. To uncover useful intelligence for their
organizations, data scientists must master the full spectrum of the data science
life cycle and possess a level of flexibility and understanding to maximize returns
at each phase of the process.

The Data Science Life Cycle

The image represents the five stages of the data science life cycle: Capture, (data
acquisition, data entry, signal reception, data extraction); Maintain (data
warehousing, data cleansing, data staging, data processing, data architecture);
Process (data mining, clustering/classification, data modeling, data
summarization); Analyze (exploratory/confirmatory, predictive analysis, regression,
text mining, qualitative analysis); Communicate (data reporting, data
visualization, business intelligence, decision making).
The term “data scientist” was coined when companies first realized the need for
data professionals skilled in organizing and analyzing massive amounts of data. Ten
years after the widespread business adoption of the internet, Hal Varian, Google’s
chief economist, first dean of the UC Berkeley School of Information (I School),
and UC Berkeley emeritus professor of information sciences, business, and
economics, predicted the importance of adapting to technology’s influence and
reconfiguration of different industries.

“The ability to take data — to be able to understand it, to process it, to extract
value from it, to visualize it, to communicate it — that’s going to be a hugely
important skill in the next decades.”

– Hal Varian, chief economist at Google and UC Berkeley professor of information


sciences, business, and economics1

Today, effective data scientists masterfully identify relevant questions, collect


data from a multitude of different data sources, organize the information,
translate results into solutions, and communicate their findings in a way that
positively affects business decisions. These skills are now required in almost all
industries, which means data scientists have become increasingly valuable to
companies.

Develop Specialized Data Science Skills Online


Get your master’s in information and data science and earn a certificate
from the UC Berkeley School of Information (I School).

What Does a Data Scientist Do?


Data scientists have become assets across the globe and are present in almost all
organizations. These professionals are well-rounded, analytical individuals with
high-level technical skills who can build complex quantitative algorithms to
organize and synthesize large amounts of information used to answer questions and
drive strategy in their organizations. They also have the communication and
leadership experience to deliver tangible results to various stakeholders across an
organization or business.

Data scientists are typically curious and result-oriented, with exceptional


industry-specific knowledge and communication skills that allow them to explain
highly technical results to their non-technical counterparts. They possess a strong
quantitative background in statistics and linear algebra as well as programming
knowledge with focuses in data warehousing, mining, and modeling to build and
analyze algorithms.

They also use key technical tools and skills, including:

Python

Apache Hadoop

MapReduce

Apache Spark

NoSQL databases

Cloud computing

D3

Apache Pig

Tableau

iPython notebooks

GitHub

Why Become a Data Scientist?


As increasing amounts of data become more accessible, large tech companies are no
longer the only ones in need of data scientists. There’s now a demand for qualified
data science professionals across organizations, big and small.

With the power to shape decisions, solve real-world challenges, and make a
meaningful impact in diverse sectors, data science professionals have the
opportunity to pursue various career paths.

Versatile
Choose the industry you want to work in
Remote Options
Work from the comfort of your home

Ever-Evolving
Gain new skills as data uses continue to grow
Where Do You Fit in Data Science?
Data is everywhere and expansive. Various terms related to mining, cleaning,
analyzing, and interpreting data are often used interchangeably, but the roles
typically involve different skill sets. The complexity of the data analyzed also
differs.

Data Scientist
Data scientists examine which questions need answering and where to find the
related data. They have business acumen and analytical skills as well as the
ability to mine, clean, and present data. Businesses use data scientists to source,
manage, and analyze large amounts of unstructured data. Data scientists also
leverage machine learning techniques to model information and interpret results
effectively, a skill that differentiates them from data analysts. Results are then
synthesized and communicated to key stakeholders to drive strategic decision making
in the organization.

Skills needed: Programming skills (SAS, R, Python), statistical and mathematical


skills, storytelling and data visualization, Hadoop, SQL, machine learning

Data Analyst
Data analysts bridge the gap between data scientists and business analysts. They’re
provided with the questions that need answering from an organization and then
organize and analyze data to find results that align with high-level business
strategy. Data analysts are responsible for translating technical analysis to
qualitative action items and effectively communicating their findings to diverse
stakeholders.

Skills needed: Programming skills (SAS, R, Python), statistical and mathematical


skills, data wrangling, data visualization

Data Engineer
Data engineers manage exponentially growing and rapidly changing data. They focus
on developing, deploying, managing, and optimizing data pipelines and
infrastructure to transform and transfer data to data scientists and data analysts
for querying.

Skills needed: Programming languages (Java, Scala), NoSQL databases (MongoDB,


Cassandra DB), frameworks (Apache Hadoop)

Data Science Career Outlook and Salary Opportunities


Data science professionals are rewarded for their highly technical skill set with
competitive salaries and great job opportunities at big and small companies in most
industries. Data science professionals with the appropriate experience and
education have the opportunity to make their mark in some of the most forward-
thinking companies in the world.

Gaining specialized skills within the data science field can distinguish data
scientists even further. For example, machine learning experts use high-level
programming skills to create algorithms that continuously gather data and adjust
their learning to improve prediction performance.

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Learn how a Master of Information and Data Science from UC Berkeley can prepare you
for a successful career in data science.

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1Hal Varian on How the Web Challenges ManagersExternal link:open_in_new. (2009).
Mckinsey. Retrieved December 2023.arrow_upward

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