In today’s Spotlight Series, meet Akash Raghav, a passionate and dedicated Assistant Professor who is making a significant impact in the field of mechanical engineering. Akash is an alumnus of the April 2022 Batch of the Global Certificate in Data Science program at Accredian. Since completing his program, he has been able to integrate his data science knowledge into his teaching and research, enhancing his abilities as an educator and scholar.
With a strong commitment to teaching technical subjects, Akash is shaping the minds of future engineers, preparing them to tackle complex problems and drive innovation in the industry.
Question 1: Which program and batch are you part of at Accredian and tell us more about your current work profile.
Akash: I am from the April 2022 Batch of the Global Certificate in Data Science program (GCD) and am currently working as an Assistant Professor in an engineering college. My main responsibility is to teach technical subjects related to mechanical engineering.
Question 2: Walk us through your career journey & what got you interested in Data Science & Machine Learning.
Akash: For the past seven years, my primary focus has been on teaching engineering students. However, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, my college initiated an MTP (Mini-Project Training) program related to the Internet of Things (IoT). As I delved deeper into this fascinating field, I began to develop a keen interest in artificial intelligence (AI) and its potential applications in the realm of IoT.
Driven by my curiosity, I turned to Google to explore this domain further. It was during this exploration that I stumbled upon the fields of data science and AI. The more I learned about these exciting areas, the more I became drawn to their vast potential to transform the world around us. I was especially impressed with how data science and AI could enable us to glean valuable insights from large volumes of data and make data-driven decisions.
Question 3: What all tools and packages in Data Science & Machine Learning have you mastered in your Data Science & AI program at Accredian so far?
Akash: I possess proficiency in exploratory data analysis using popular Python libraries such as Pandas and NumPy. However, my primary interest lies in the field of Machine Learning, which I find to be an exciting and dynamic domain.
I enjoy working on Machine Learning projects and have experience in using decision tree and random forest algorithms. These cutting-edge technologies have the potential to revolutionize the way we approach problem-solving and decision-making.
Question 4: What are some of initial challenges when you got started on your Data Science journey and how did you overcome it?
Akash: As I am not from a coding background, I thought it would be very tough for me to learn Python coding. However, I started dedicating 30 minutes of my time every day to learning Python, and now it seems easy compared to other programming languages.
Question 5: Who is your favorite faculty at Accredian and what did you learn from him the most?
Akash: My favorite faculty member in this program is Dr. Darshan, who teaches us machine learning. The way he teaches machine learning has created a strong interest in the subject for me.
Question 6: What is the goal of Data Science?
Akash: The goal of data science is to convert raw data into a readable form, identify the inputs within that data, and utilize them for the benefit of business perspectives.
Question 7: In your view, how has Data Science evolved in last few years?
Akash: In the last few years, data science has evolved quite drastically. Every field has utilized data to improve its operations, using machine learning and AI for future perspectives.
Question 8: What are the current trends in Data Science that you are most excited about?
Akash: Data Science, as of today, has many trends. However, I am excited about the convergence of AI, cloud computing, and IoT, along with superfast networks such as 5G. Together, these technologies enable much more than what they can individually accomplish. Examples of the convergence of these technologies include smart homes, smart factories, smart cities, and more.
Question 9: Which are some of the blogs that you follow?
Akash: I don’t follow many blogs, but I do follow a few, such as ”No Free Hunch” on Kaggle, which offers a direct insight into the minds of data scientists, and tutorials in ‘The News‘ and ‘Simply Statistics‘, which are run by Jeff Flake, Roger Peng, and Rafa Irizarry. These three biostatistics professors blog about the abundance of statistics in big data and how they are utilized by data scientists across various fields.
Question 10: What is your advice to anyone wanting to start a career in Data Science?
Akash: If anyone is about to begin their career in data science, I would like to advise them that it is a great time to do so. In the coming years, the usage of data science and AI is going to increase rapidly. Therefore, if you want to pursue this field, I recommend starting immediately.
We hope you enjoyed reading this interview. Check out the Accredian Spotlight for more interesting student stories like this.
