In this Accredian Spotlight interview, we feature Ankita Bhanushali, Executive Analytics, Kantar World Panel. Her quest for knowledge and passion for upskilling led her to enroll in the Global Certificate in Data Science Program at Accredian.
Question 1: Which program & batch are you a part of at Accredian & tell us more about your current work profile?
Ankita: I have been a student at Accredian since March 2020 as I joined the GCD program. Currently, I am working at the Kantar World panel division in Mumbai. Kantar is a Research company and helps clients by offering business solutions. My job responsibilities are as a Data Analyst.
Question 2: Walk us through your career journey & what got you interested in Data Science & Machine Learning?
Ankita: I completed MSC Statistics at Mithibhai College. Later, I started my research about the application of Statistics in business problems hence I began my journey in Data Science and Machine Learning where I got introduced to building products based on numbers and advanced statistical models.
Question 3: What tools and packages in Data Science & Machine Learning have you mastered at Accredian so far?
Ankita: Being a Non-programmer Python was tough. At Accredian I’ve learned to use the most important Python libraries for Data Science tasks covering areas such as Data processing, Modeling, and Visualization on NumPy, Pandas, Sci-kit, Matplotlib, etc.
Question 4: What challenges did you face when you started your Data Science journey and how did you overcome it?
Ankita: I was a fresher when I started with the Data Science course and was a little worried.
Our faculty at Accredian, Suchit Majumdar encouraged me to continue my learning and not give up. He helped me to cope with the course and I’ve emerged as a confident Professional.
Question 5: Who is your favorite faculty at Accredian and what did you learn from him the most?
Ankita: Without any doubt, Suchit Majumdar is my favorite. He helped and motivated me during the first two months of the Data Science journey. In every class, he introduced something new and exciting to learn and think about. I believe I have built a great foundation for the future and I’m really grateful to him.
Question 6: What is the goal of Data Science?
Ankita: As a Data Science Professional, I can help and recommend various companies to improve their product service and experience. This can help a business grow and acquire more clients in the future.
Question 7: How has Data Science evolved over the last few years?
Ankita: Evolution is the truth of mankind. There is immense progress in the field of Data Science & Artificial Intelligence. There are ample opportunities for growth and learning in this sector. Moreover, we can practically see the application of Data Science & AI in every industry and field.
Question 8: What current trends in Data Science are you most excited about?
Ankita: There has been a rapid growth in the technology of Machine Learning and this is the main factor for the beginning of automation in ML. It is estimated that 40% of the work of Data Science will be automated in the coming years. Every business can extract smart and unique Insights from Big Data by smartly using the combination of automation and powerful machine learning tools, which cannot be optimized by scale data science, data analysis alone.
Question 9: Which Data Science blogs do you follow?
Ankita: I have started with following the Accredian blog where I gathered lots of information about my seniors and their journey. Also, I’m following Accredian’s podcast on YouTube, especially by my mentor Manvender Singh as he explains each topic in a very simple manner with a variety of examples.
The Data Science Career Launchpad sessions are highly informative. They help us to enhance our skills further towards building a Resume, preparing and cracking the right Roles, polishing our LinkedIn and Github profiles.
Additionally, I follow Towards Data Science, Analytics Vidhya, and various others.
Question 10: What advice would you give to a beginner starting a career in Data Science?
Ankita: I’d say simply focus on practical applications and not just theory during your course at Accredian. This will help you not only understand the concepts but also give you a deeper sense of how they will be applied in real-time scenarios.
Follow Data Science blogs and at least have one mentor who can guide you in the right direction towards your journey in Data Science.
Hope you enjoyed reading this interview. If you want to read more such interesting student stories, check out Accredian Spotlight.
