Data science is the domain of study that deals with vast

volumes of data using modern tools and techniques to

find unseen patterns, derive meaningful information, and
make business decisions. Data science uses complex
machine learning algorithms to build predictive models.

The Data Science Lifecycle

Data science’s lifecycle consists of five distinct stages,

each with its own tasks:

Data science is an essential part of many industries today, given the massive
amounts of data that are produced, and is one of the most debated topics in IT
circles. Its popularity has grown over the years, and companies have started
implementing data science techniques to grow their business and increase
customer satisfaction. In this article, we’ll learn what data science is, and how you
can become a data scientist.

Are you considering a profession in the field of Data Science? Then get certified with
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What Is Data Science?

Data science is the domain of study that deals with vast volumes of data using
modern tools and techniques to find unseen patterns, derive meaningful information,
and make business decisions. Data science uses complex machine learning
algorithms to build predictive models.

The data used for analysis can come from many different sources and presented in
various formats.

Now that you know what data science is, let’s see why data science is essential to
today’s IT landscape.

The Data Science Lifecycle

Data science’s lifecycle consists of five distinct stages, each with its own tasks:

1. Capture: Data Acquisition, Data Entry, Signal Reception, Data Extraction.

This stage involves gathering raw structured and unstructured data.

2. Maintain: Data Warehousing, Data Cleansing, Data Staging, Data

Processing, Data Architecture. This stage covers taking the raw data and
putting it in a form that can be used.

3. Process: Data Mining, Clustering/Classification, Data Modeling, Data

Summarization. Data scientists take the prepared data and examine its
patterns, ranges, and biases to determine how useful it will be in predictive
analysis.

4. Analyze: Exploratory/Confirmatory, Predictive Analysis, Regression, Text

Mining, Qualitative Analysis. Here is the real meat of the lifecycle. This
stage involves performing the various analyses on the data.

5. Communicate: Data Reporting, Data Visualization, Business Intelligence,

Decision Making. In this final step, analysts prepare the analyses in easily
readable forms such as charts, graphs, and reports.
Prerequisites for Data Science

Here are some of the technical concepts you should know about before starting to
learn what is data science.

1. Machine Learning

Machine learning is the backbone of data science. Data Scientists need to have a
solid grasp of ML in addition to basic knowledge of statistics.

2. Modeling

Mathematical models enable you to make quick calculations and predictions based
on what you already know about the data. Modeling is also a part of Machine
Learning and involves identifying which algorithm is the most suitable to solve a
given problem and how to train these models.

3. Statistics

Statistics are at the core of data science. A sturdy handle on statistics can help you
extract more intelligence and obtain more meaningful results.

4. Programming

Some level of programming is required to execute a successful data science project.

The most common programming languages are Python, and R. Python is especially
popular because it’s easy to learn, and it supports multiple libraries for data science
and ML.

5. Databases

A capable data scientist needs to understand how databases work, how to manage
them, and how to extract data from them.
What Does a Data Scientist Do?

A data scientist analyzes business data to extract meaningful insights. In other

words, a data scientist solves business problems through a series of steps,
including:

• Before tackling the data collection and analysis, the data scientist
determines the problem by asking the right questions and gaining
understanding.

• The data scientist then determines the correct set of variables and data
sets.

• The data scientist gathers structured and unstructured data from many
disparate sources—enterprise data, public data, etc.

• Once the data is collected, the data scientist processes the raw data and
converts it into a format suitable for analysis. This involves cleaning and
validating the data to guarantee uniformity, completeness, and accuracy.

• After the data has been rendered into a usable form, it’s fed into the
analytic system—ML algorithm or a statistical model. This is where the
data scientists analyze and identify patterns and trends.

• When the data has been completely rendered, the data scientist interprets
the data to find opportunities and solutions.

• The data scientists finish the task by preparing the results and insights to
share with the appropriate stakeholders and communicating the results.

Now we should be aware of some machine learning algorithms which are beneficial
in understanding data science clearly.

Why Become a Data Scientist?

According to Glassdoor and Forbes, demand for data scientists will increase by 28
percent by 2026, which speaks of the profession’s durability and longevity, so if you
want a secure career, data science offers you that chance.

Furthermore, the profession of data scientist came in second place in the Best Jobs
in America for 2021 survey, with an average base salary of USD 127,500.

So, if you’re looking for an exciting career that offers stability and generous
compensation, then look no further!

Where Do You Fit in Data Science?

Data science offers you the opportunity to focus on and specialize in one aspect of
the field. Here’s a sample of different ways you can fit into this exciting, fast-growing
field.

Data Scientist

• Job role: Determine what the problem is, what questions need answers,
and where to find the data. Also, they mine, clean, and present the relevant
data.

• Skills needed: Programming skills (SAS, R, Python), storytelling and data

visualization, statistical and mathematical skills, knowledge of Hadoop,
SQL, and Machine Learning.

Data Analyst

• Job role: Analysts bridge the gap between the data scientists and the
business analysts, organizing and analyzing data to answer the questions
the organization poses. They take the technical analyses and turn them
into qualitative action items.

• Skills needed: Statistical and mathematical skills, programming skills (SAS,

R, Python), plus experience in data wrangling and data visualization.
Data Engineer

• Job role: Data engineers focus on developing, deploying, managing, and

optimizing the organization’s data infrastructure and data pipelines.
Engineers support data scientists by helping to transfer and transform data
for queries.

• Skills needed: NoSQL databases (e.g., MongoDB, Cassandra DB),

programming languages such as Java and Scala, and frameworks (Apache
Hadoop).

Data Science Tools

The data science profession is challenging, but fortunately, there are plenty of tools
available to help the data scientist succeed at their job.

• Data Analysis: SAS, Jupyter, R Studio, MATLAB, Excel, RapidMiner

• Data Warehousing: Informatica/ Talend, AWS Redshift

• Data Visualization: Jupyter, Tableau, Cognos, RAW

• Machine Learning: Spark MLib, Mahout, Azure ML studio

Difference Between Business Intelligence and Data

Science

Business intelligence is a combination of the strategies and technologies used for

the analysis of business data/information. Like data science, it can provide
historical, current, and predictive views of business operations. However, there are
some key differences.
Business Intelligence Data Science