How to become a data scientist in Nigeria, learn skills you need, and how to build a successful data science career, on A3 Techworld. Similar post – How to become an Ethical Hacker in Nigeria.
What is Data Science? Data Science is a blend of various tools, algorithms, and machine learning principles to discover hidden patterns from the raw data. Similar post – How to become a security software developer or engineer.
Nigeria is gradually moving to become a major outsourcing hub for the local and international markets for data science with its growing number of new data scientists. A big name in the game is Data Science Nigeria, one of the pioneers of the data science movement in Nigeria.
Data science is arguably the hottest career of the 21st century. In today’s high-tech world, everyone has pressing questions that must be answered by “big data”. Similar post – Best database certifications for database administrators in 2022
This article will tell you everything you need to build a successful career in data science; steps to take, skills needed, data science jobs in Nigeria, etc. Similar post – What are the best data analytics tools for data analysts?
How to Build A Successful Career in Data Science
Below is a general guide to becoming a data scientist/analyst in Nigeria 2022:
- Earn a bachelor’s degree in IT, computer science, math, physics, or another related field.
- Learn data science basics.
- Build the skills.
- Obtain an entry-level job
- Become familiar with – Python, R, and SQL.
- Get data science certifications.
- Gain experience in the field you intend to work in.
- Learn from other experts in the field.
- Earn a master’s degree in data or related fields.
- Build a portfolio.
Future data scientists can begin preparations before they even step foot on a university campus or launch themselves into an online degree program.
Becoming proficient with the most widely used programming languages in data science such as Python, Java, and R — and refreshing their knowledge in applied math and statistics — will help aspiring data scientists get a head start.
Common degrees that help you learn data science include:
- Computer science
- Statistics
- Physics
- Social science
- Mathematics
- Applied math
- Economics
Obtain an entry-level data science job (or Internship)
A lot of companies are often eager to fill entry-level data science jobs. Most entry-level data scientist roles in Nigeria require at least a bachelor’s degree.
On LinkedIn, you can search for positions such as Junior Data Analyst or Junior Data Scientist. On the job, you gain experience and get the opportunity to test your skills.
Skills needed to become a data scientist in Nigeria
Becoming an expert at data science and building a successful career as a data scientist won’t come through by going to school and reading alone. Some of the main languages needed in data science are Python, JavaScript, Scala, R, SQL, and Julia.
One of the most important technical data scientist skills is statistical analysis, computing, mining, and large data sets.
The following are the skills you need to become an expert data scientist:
- Programming Skills – Python, R, and SAS
- Analytical tools – SQL, Spark, and Hoop
- Machine learning
- Data visualization – Power BI and Tableau
- Adept at Working with Unstructured Data
- Deep Learning – Deep Reinforcement Learning, Natural Language Processing, and Computer Vision
Online data science certifications in Nigeria
Data science certifications are a great way to gain an edge. Whether you’re looking to gain experience as a new grad, demonstrate your knowledge of data analytics, land a new job role in Nigeria, or a promotion, the following certifications will work for you. Best Machine Learning Frameworks(ML) for Experts in 2022.
- Certified Analytics Professional (CAP)
- Cloudera Certified Associate (CCA) Data Analyst
- Cloudera Certified Professional (CCP) Data Engineer
- Data Science Council of America (DASCA) Senior Data Scientist (SDS)
- Data Science Council of America (DASCA) Principle Data Scientist (PDS)
- Dell EMC Data Science Track (EMCDS)
- Google Professional Data Engineer Certification
- IBM Data Science Professional Certificate
- IBM Certified Data Architect – Big Data
- IBM Certified Data Engineer – Big Data
- Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Fundamentals
- Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Scientist Associate
- Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE): Data Management and Analytics
- Open Certified Data Scientist (Open CDS)
- SAS Certified AI & Machine Learning Professional
- SAS Certified Big Data Professional
- SAS Certified Data Scientist
- Tensorflow Developer Certificate
Free Online data science certifications & courses in Nigeria
Below we have a list of free data science courses and certifications you can take online in Nigeria:
- Data Science Crash Course, John Hopkins University (Coursera)
- Introduction to Data Science (Revised) – Alison
- Data Science and Machine Learning Essentials – Microsoft (EdX)
- Best automatic machine learning frameworks
- Data Science – Harvard
- Learn Data Science – Dataquest
- Introduction to Data Science Using Python – Rakesh Gopalakrishnan (Udemy)
- The Open Source Data Science Masters
- Learnds.com
- Course Duck Machine Learning Course
Kindly look into DataCamp.cam, I think it should be on the list
Hello Kamso, Thank you for your suggestion.
We would review and update the article.
Ur article motivated me to hard to become a computer scientist
Glad to hear that, Good luck!
This is like the best guide for data science beginners, nice one.
Thanks alot for this information. My question is this: Can a Bachelor degree holder in Urban and Regional Planning study Data Science for a Master’s degree? Would appreciate a feedback. Thank you.
Hello Stephanie,
There is no restriction entirely but prior experience in data science and some entry-level certifications in data science would be a big advantage.
wow, your article really motivates me to work very hard to write a good article. Yours is full of great ideas and the simplicity is amazing.