Civil Engineer Wanting to Become a Data Scientist

WilhelmBargo on 19/09/2020 - 18:23
Last edited 19/09/2020 - 18:27

I am having somewhat of a crisis in my career and I want to make a change before I deem it financially not viable to do so.

To summarise my current working situation:
- I am a Graduate Civil Engineer of 2 years and 2 months working at a small Land Development firm
- During my time there I, and all the other engineers have been only given drafting work to do as we are extremely cheap employees. We have all been held back in progressing to the Design Team which is our ultimate career path
- I have had a lot of exposure to what the work is that I'll be doing when I eventually do progress to design and I am realising that its a painfully monotonous line of work that I don't think I will have a passion for

I am someone who loves to optimize and innovate. I have made VBA spreadsheets and codes (LISPs) for AutoCAD and that gives me a huge thrill. I have also learned basic Python language (thanks to Udemy of course).

That's what makes me think I would be much better suited to a Data Analyst/Scientist role where I can optimise/improve and expand my knowledge of coding.

My question to you all is - How can I make the transition to become a Data Analyst? Can I do this without returning to University?

TLDR
How can I get from Civil Engineer to Data Scientist?

Thanks

Education & Work

Comments

  • theHMASfriendship on 19/09/2020 - 18:25
    +14

    Change your LinkedIn profile to "data scientist".

    • GoldenPan on 19/09/2020 - 19:30
      +1

      I don't mean to hijack to the joke, but it's a loose definition to be honest.

      Most of the salaries are pushed up by self-motivated performers. If the OP isn't one of those self-starters, there really is no point becoming a data scientist. It's those people in financial positions which are pulling up the salaries.

      I'm trying to get a better idea of what the OP really wants. If they are just playing with algorithms and making small optimisations using default models, then that really isn't data science. Any kid can do that and it isn't worth anything in the field.

      In fact those optimisations are generally automated with machine learning these days. I really suspect the OP doesn't want to hear what I have to say about the truth.

      If the OP can pass this test of courage, then I can probably wish them well, but they really need to know what direction they want to go in. It's not for us to show him/her the path because it's not actually defined properly. Unless of course they just want a basic data analyst job which is a government job that is not really analytically vigorous.

      Okay, I just finished reading the text again. It looks like they want to be in a civil engineering design team. I'm not one myself, but maybe someone can tell us if that is mathematical and how that is related to anything data science? I'm really confused. That's why I brought up the other suggestions in my other posts, just to cut to the chase and figure out just exactly what the OP really needs personally to succeed.

      I'm a bit concerned to be honest, no one should be out there just running up debt. Doing a PhD is expensive as well, I regret it to some extent when I see my tax returns. The pay is good but not everyone makes it. You might see a lot of unfilled jobs in data science, but that's because they really only want the best. The fact is, most people don't have the skills even after graduating with a Masters in Data Science.

  • megaalc on 19/09/2020 - 18:33
    +1

    one of live job openings, to give you idea about skills required - https://apply.workable.com/lab3/j/6412D40E81/
    plus I would suggest to read a couple of ms learn blog posts
    https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-learn-blog/…
    https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-learn-blog/…
    you can start leaning data science by preparing to pass MS exams: dp-100 dp-200, dp-201, ai-100, dp-900, ai-900
    Some learning paths :
    https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/certificate/microsoft-azur…
    https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/certificate/azure-data-sol…
    https://app.pluralsight.com/paths/certificate/microsoft-azur…

    • WilhelmBargo on 25/09/2020 - 17:12
      +1

      Very helpful thanks!

  • No Username on 19/09/2020 - 18:38
    +2

    Try Pluralsight. Although the platform is monthly subscription it is totally worth the investment. 10x better than the paid courses on Udemy. There are quizzes you can do for each topic and there are even IQ test. Each topic also include downloadable content so you can import them into your note taking app with ease.

    Currently there are many pathways for the Data Science and even exam prep for DP-100 and DAS-01

    From what I can see you can learn pretty much any database framework
    R Programming
    Python
    Power Bi

  • jjjaar on 19/09/2020 - 18:52
    +1

    I work in transport and I know a lot of civil engineers that have been able to work in the transport field and ultimately do a lot of data analysis as part of their role. (These roles are often “transport engineer” or “transport planner”).

    They’ve been able to then use the experience gained within their role to focus on data analytics or data science when progressing to new roles. These new roles are still within the transport field.

    If you are not fussed with the type of data you will be working with, then I’d just look for any role where you can transfer your current skills, but also where the new role is a bit more broad and will allow you to use data on a more frequent basis.

    • GoldenPan on 19/09/2020 - 19:22

      It all comes down to what the OP wants to do.

      If they are just looking to make more money, becoming a data analyst or even gaining that title in their current company would be meaningless. Anyone can be one, including those in government departments which are "data analyst", but are really just admin jobs.

      Let's cut to the chase, I believe that the OP has raised this data scientist issue because it is listed as one of the highest paid jobs, but in fact it actually isn't when you look closer at the data.

      Data analytics is all around us, but to use it in a meaningful manner and to really call yourself a data analyst and to earn those high salaries; requires a more vigorous approach and a lot of study.

      • Ghost47 on 20/09/2020 - 12:31

        I'd say once OP gets their foot in the door with the right team, if they are able to upskill (on the job mainly and probably after work) in areas such as R, Python, SQL, some sort of ETL analytics software e.g. Knime or Alteryx, studies some data analytics (e.g. predictive modelling such as KNN and Naive Bayes, regression) and learns how to apply them on the data then they'd be on the right track.

  • kanad on 19/09/2020 - 18:54

    I work in a company that has a data science team. To tell very bluntly all those cloud AI/ML courses and Python programming is fine, but there is no escaping the fact that you need PhD level education and strong statistics/maths background, as that is what those in the team are.

    There are good online professional courses like
    https://www.edx.org/course/subject/data-science

    • GoldenPan on 19/09/2020 - 19:18
      +1

      Yeah agreed on your comments, but I disagree on the courses that are required or the one that you recommended. None of the courses I know of that are online walk you through how the models work in enough detail to make those students suitable candidates. I know well I only landed my current job because of my PhD in Statistics.

      All those other data science jobs are just fake admin jobs dressed up as data science. Believe me, you don't want to be in one of those jobs. They are long hours, low pay, and even worse than Accounting. Civil Engineering would beat that any day. Everyone knows how bad the turnover is in Accounting. It's almost 10x worse in those fake data science jobs.

      • elgrande on 19/09/2020 - 22:52

        For a data scientist you sure do male a lot of generalisations.

        • GoldenPan on 01/10/2020 - 20:21

          That's how the models work sadly. They are a product of the biases within the person who creates them.

          Google "algorithm discriminates against blacks"

  • Ghost47 on 19/09/2020 - 20:10
    +1

    You could probably start out as a data analyst. If your workplace has a data team can you reach out to them and ask for a secondment? I'm guessing you're not in a grad program.

  • flyingtrapeze on 19/09/2020 - 20:29
    +1

    gcp data engineer is a qualification that is well respected. know your way around R, pandas(python)+jupyter notebook. gcp big query labs are free mostly, check out qwiklabs.
    crunching numbers can be just as boring so ask yourself if you are doing for passion or money?

  • Indomietable on 19/09/2020 - 21:39

    If you can tinker with python, you probably have more skill and learning capacity than most powerBI analysts that I know.

    • SF3 on 20/09/2020 - 15:22
      +1

      Yep, Marketing != Skills, however people (decision makers) buy into shiny things.

  • AustriaBargain on 20/09/2020 - 02:25

    I have made VBA spreadsheets and codes (LISPs) for AutoCAD and that gives me a huge thrill

    You should get an accounting degree and work for that tax company that hires the actors to play geeks excited about tax savings for clients. Or work for the advertising agency that wrote that ad.

  • Candour on 20/09/2020 - 14:56

    the grass is not greener on the other side. try and see if you can create an independent source f income which can use yoru skills to earn real money, eg in trading and investment where data mining aka technical analysis etc pays off if you can make the right models. then just stay in your job and move to another in your field. you need time to get opportunities in a dangerous recession. or move to the public service in your field i you can. always try to find an independent source of income which can develop your data mining skills and payoff for you long term,.accounting is overrated in oz. and underpaid.I was one and many lost jobs over decades.

  • SF3 on 20/09/2020 - 15:19

    I am someone who loves to optimize and innovate.
    Design Team which is our ultimate career path

    Does a design team give you “optimize and innovate” opportunities?

    IMO, Data Scientist is a fad, until some new thing comes along.

    Since, you have been working for “2 years and 2 months” what sort of people are you competing against in the design team? As you are probably seen as a junior member, it’s likely you’ll get given “inside the box” jobs to do, designed by senior coworker, and limited autonomy (let me know if I’m wrong).

    It’s early days in your career, in a few years time, you might be on a completely different career path that you haven’t yet discovered or foreseen.

    • WilhelmBargo on 26/09/2020 - 16:56

      Thanks for the response. If I make any sort of innovations it has to be in my own time - there is no allowance for 'non-billable' work. I don't mind doing this is if I'm passionate about what I'm working on but If I could find a line of work that allows me to innovate within my working hours that would be amazing.

      I have not done any design work and have been held in Drafting, which has given me plenty of time to reconsider my career path which lead to the Data Science field

  • Doggiie on 20/09/2020 - 18:36

    To have a feel of what a Data Scientist does, you can have a little at some people's works here: https://www.kaggle.com/

    It will gives you a little taste on what you can do with different data sources. Might also help you gauge your interest in finding insights in data that you've never seen before.

  • Jagernaut on 24/09/2020 - 09:08
    +1

    My suggestion would be to move to a larger engineering firm/professional service provider which has a scope that includes both civil engineering and an analytics capability. Without trying to be harsh - at two years, you have very little knowledge of the full scope of what you can do as a Civ Eng and even less understanding of what is involved in Data Analytics. Moving to such an organisation will allow you to progress your exposure in both areas, while giving you the potential to support projects involving analytics as a cheap resource.

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