Data-Analyst-Job-Search-Workbook-1
Data-Analyst-Job-Search-Workbook-1
Job Search
Workbook
Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Welcome
Now that you’ve developed essential data analysis skills, you can leverage them to find
1 Getting started
your next role. This workbook is designed as an interactive resource as you navigate the
job market, from identifying the right opportunities to acing the interview.
Keep this document handy as you begin preparing for your job search. You’ll find a
combination of suggested resources, career tips, and spaces to write or type your 2 Writing your resume and cover letter
thoughts as you prepare your application materials. Here’s what we’ll cover:
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Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
1 Getting started As the amount of data we have access to continues to grow, so does the demand
for people with the right skills to transform that data into actionable insights for
businesses. Applying your data skills doesn’t necessarily mean working in tech; as a
data analyst, you can work in many industries, including business, finance, criminal
N Now wthayu’oaove’dvaltpasunvoaiv vo justice, science, medicine, and government. In fact, the World Economic Forum
Future of Jobs report ranked big data analytics as the biggest potential job creator
from 2023 to 20271.
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Start your job search by identifying the types of roles that align with your
professional goals, interests, and values. And remember, data analysts work in a
wide range of companies and industries.
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1
World Economic Forum. “Future of Jobs Report 2023, https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2023/.” Accessed May 1, 2023. 3
1 Getting started Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
What you can do How much can you make as a data analyst?
As advancing technology has rapidly expanded the types and amount of information we can Even entry-level data analyst positions tend to be well-paid. As you add years of experience and advanced job
collect, knowing how to gather, sort, and analyze data has become a crucial part of almost titles, salaries often increase accordingly. The median advertised salary for data analyst job postings in the
any industry. You’ll find data analysts in the criminal justice, fashion, food, technology, United States from March 2022 to March 2023 is $82,800, and that number is trending upward2. In India, the
business, environment, and public sectors—among many others. Sometimes, your career average base pay for a data analyst (as of May 2023) is ₹6,00,0003.
path might take you deeper into the specialized knowledge of that industry.
• Business analysts use data to help make an organization’s IT processes, organizational Fields with high demand for data analysts
structures, or staff development more efficient and effective.
Industry Total/Unique (Mar 2022-Mar 2023)
• Financial analysts use data to help guide investment opportunities, identify revenue
opportunities, and mitigate financial risk. Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services 18,238 / 8,961
• Operations analysts are tasked with optimizing a company’s performance by Administrative and Support and
13,506 / 6,479
Waste Management and Remediation
identifying and solving technical, structural, and procedural issues.
Finance and Insurance 7,840 / 3,556
• Marketing analysts, also called market research analysts, analyze market trends to
Manufacturing 4,922 / 2,273
help determine product and service offerings, price points, and target customers.
Health Care and Social Assistance 6,703 / 2,192
• Systems analysts use cost-benefit analysis to help match technological solutions to
company needs. Information 4,807 / 1,530
• Health care analysts use data from health records, cost reports, and patient surveys to Real Estate and Rental and Leasing 2,582 / 1,198
help providers improve their quality of care.
Educational Services 3,003 / 1,124
2
Lightcast™, accessed April 27, 2023.
3
Glassdoor. "Data Analyst Salaries in India, https://www.glassdoor.co.in/Salaries/india-data-analyst-salary-SRCH_IL.0,5_IN115_KO6,18.htm." Accessed May 1, 2023. 4
1 Getting started Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
How will you use your new skills at work? Use this space to brainstorm some ideas of what
your role as a data analyst might look like.
• What does my ideal day as a data analyst look like? (What tasks would I do? How
would I do them? What does my environment look like? Who would I interact with?
What would I accomplish?) • What change would I like to be a part of?
• How do you want to feel at work? Think about a time when you felt that way. What
did you do? How did you do it? What felt good about that experience? What do you
need in the workplace in order to replicate that experience? Set up some informational interviews
Want to know more about what it’s like working as a data analyst in a
specific industry? Identify someone in that role on LinkedIn and set
up an informational interview. By speaking with professionals who
have successfully built their careers in data analytics, you can also
learn about their journeys, challenges they overcame, and the types
of projects, tools, and methodologies that are in demand.
• What data analysis tasks do I enjoy the most?
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Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
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2 Writing your resume and cover letter Your resume and cover letter are often your first opportunities to capture
the attention of a recruiter or hiring manager. Let’s take a closer look at how
to build each document to best highlight your skills and experience.
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2 Writing your resume and cover letter Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Your resume As you read a job description, highlight the action words, keywords, and specific workplace and
technical skills mentioned. It’s likely that the ATS is programmed to look for the same or similar
language as that which appears in the job description, so this analysis can help shape the way you
Your resume is a document that encompasses your entire professional journey, showing
approach writing your resume.
where you currently are in your career, how you got there, and where you hope to go next.
Since it’s meant to be a concise brief—often condensed to just one page—that can feel like a Consider highlighting some of these skills, which appeared most frequently in data analyst job
lot of storytelling for a small space. postings from March 2022 to March 20232:
To make a resume that fully demonstrates your experiences and goals, it’s important to be 1. Data analysis
strategic with the language, format, and sections you include. 2. SQL
3. Tableau
4. Python
5. Power BI
6. Computer science
Free resume templates 7. Dashboard
8. Data visualization
If you’re starting with a blank page, use these free customizable 9. R
templates for a chronological resume or functional resume to 10. Business intelligence
make your resume in a Google Doc. Simply log into your Google
account and select the ‘Make a copy’ prompt.
2. Select a resume format. Consider adapting one of these for your resume's "Certificates" section:
When it comes to formatting, there are three common types of resumes—chronological,
Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate
functional, and combination—along with several more specialized options. If you’re applying
Completed: May 2023
for jobs online, ATS software is generally programmed to interpret chronological resumes.
The software may still identify important keywords in alternative formats, but potentially • Cleaned, organized, and analyzed data using spreadsheets, SQL, and R
less accurately.
• Visualized data findings in dashboards, presentations, and commonly used visualization platforms,
If you’re unsure of the resume format you should choose, a chronological resume with like Tableau
standard 1-inch margins, black text, and a common font like Times New Roman or Arial is
• Learned strategies for communicating clearly with and managing the expectations of stakeholders
typically a safe choice.
• Completed a data analyst case study
3. Write your resume sections. • Created charts, plots, and interactive dashboards with Excel, IBM Cognos Analytics, and Matplotlib
Guided by your keyword list and format, you’re ready to start filling out your resume sections. • Developed working knowledge of Python language for analyzing data using libraries like Pandas and
You’ll typically want to include sections for your header, work experience, education, and Numpy
skills, but there are optional sections you can add to amplify the story you want to tell. • Composed queries to access data in cloud databases using SQL and Python from Jupyter notebooks
Have you earned a Professional Certificate in data analytics from • Completed the data analysis process, including data preparation, statistical analysis, and predictive
Google or IBM? Be sure to include it in your resume! Include the modeling using R, R Studio, and Jupyter
certificate name and date completed, and consider listing any
• Created relational databases to query, sort, filter, and aggregate data sets using SQL and R from
relevant skills you learned.
JupyterLab
• Communicated findings through charts, plots, and interactive dashboards with Cognos and R Shiny
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2 Writing your resume and cover letter Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
4. Resume checklist
Your cover letter
At this point, you are almost ready to submit your resume. Before you do, let’s do one final
Your cover letter often serves as your introduction to a potential employer. While not all
check. Ask yourself:
recruiters or hiring managers will take the time to read your letter, a well-written cover letter
Did I write my resume with my audience in mind? could mean the difference between a hiring manager looking at your resume and considering
an interview or moving on to the next candidate for those who do. For a role you’re
Did I strategically select action words and keywords?
passionate about, it’s worth the extra effort.
Have I clearly demonstrated my relevant skills and experience?
If you’re looking for your first job as a data analyst, whether you’re just out of school or
Are my margins set to 1 inch on all sides? switching careers, you may be wondering what to include in your cover letter. Even if you
Is my font easy to read? don’t have previous experience in a data analyst role, you likely still bring transferable skills
that can benefit you (and your employer) in your work as a data analyst.
Did I include all of the key resume sections?
Did I edit for proper spelling and grammar? Cover letters should typically fit on a single page and include three key paragraphs:
If you can answer “yes” to all of these questions, save your resume as a PDF file with a title First paragraph: Introduce yourself
that includes your name and “resume.”
Begin your letter by addressing the hiring manager by name if you have that information.
Your first paragraph is your opportunity to introduce yourself and introduce the value you
can bring to the company. In this paragraph, be sure to state clearly:
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2 Writing your resume and cover letter Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
4. 4.
For example, strong communication skills are often required for data analysts, who are
tasked with presenting their findings to management and stakeholders. If you’ve given
presentations as part of a university class or in a previous role, call out this experience. How
many people attended? What were the results of the presentation? Final tip: Proofread your work
Back up each accomplishment with data or metrics, when possible. Data analytics requires attention to detail, a skill you’ll want to
demonstrate in your cover letter. It’s also a good idea to verify
whether your cover letter should be sent as an attachment,
pasted into the body of an email, or uploaded to a website. Some
companies have specific requirements for subject line formatting
and attachment naming conventions—check before you send.
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2 Writing your resume and cover letter Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Here's an example of a cover letter for a data analyst role: Use this space to jot down notes for your cover letter:
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Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
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3 Building your portfolio Now that you have the skills and knowledge you need to become a data analyst,
you’re ready to show that you are one. Your data analyst portfolio showcases
your skills through the projects you’ve completed. When you’re looking for a job,
this can be a helpful addition to your cover letter and resume to demonstrate
N Now tohayu’vouhaewodhwlp your approach to problem-solving, thought process, and creativity.
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3 Building your portfolio Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Your portfolio Some skills you may want to highlight through your projects include:
Projects
This section will make up the bulk of your portfolio. Here, include projects that demonstrate
Where to host your portfolio
your key skills, as well as any context to highlight your approach, process, and reasoning.
There are several places you may choose to host your portfolio. Here are
some common spaces people use:
• Professional website
You can include any projects you’d like to in your portfolio,
• GitHub
whether you completed them in a formal work setting or as part
• Kaggle
of a personal project. The important thing isn’t whether you were
paid to do a project; it’s that you used skills, tools, and processes • LinkedIn
that are relevant to the data analysis process. Where you host your portfolio is less important than what you include
in it. To start, choose the platform you feel the most comfortable and
confident using, and remember to include a link to your portfolio on all of
your professional profiles.
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3 Building your portfolio Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Portfolio resources Use this space to jot down ideas for your portfolio:
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Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
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4 Preparing for interviews The interview process is a chance for you to formally introduce yourself to a
potential employer, demonstrate your skills, and learn whether a particular
job opportunity is the right fit for you. Use these reflections, research tips,
and practice questions to organize your thoughts and build your confidence
N Noow thaywau ’va teyd’lpa’loted as you prepare to meet your potential employers.
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4 Preparing for interviews Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Common types of interviews Remember to take notes whenever you come across information that feels significant to you:
approaches you like, interesting similarities and commonalities, questions that arise, and specific
ways you think you can contribute.
Recruiter screenings: Introductory conversations with the person responsible for matching
qualified individuals with open roles at a company. These interviews generally serve to
verify the information that you submitted with your job application and confirm your
interest in the role.
Reflection: your strengths
Take some time to reflect on your personal and professional strengths. When you speak with potential
Hiring manager interviews: In-depth conversations with the person in charge of the team
employers, lead with these strengths and connect them back to the position you’re hoping to get.
with the open role. This is when you’ll talk more specifically about your skills and the way
you hope to use them. Here are some prompts to guide this reflection:
Technical interviews: Prompts to use your technical knowledge and skills to solve problems
and answer questions. Here, you may be challenged to perform mock tasks associated with • What accomplishments are you most proud of?
the responsibilities outlined in the job description.
Through your research, you can find out what this company does, how they do it, and how
they present their work to the world.
Here are some places to look to learn more about the company, team, and role: • When have you felt most confident in the workplace?
• Company website
• Company LinkedIn profile
• Company social media accounts
• Interviewer’s LinkedIn profile
• Interviewer’s website, if they have one • What have your colleagues recognized in you or praised you for?
• Job description
• LinkedIn profiles of people with related roles
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4 Preparing for interviews Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Practice interview questions 4. How do you explain technical concepts to a non-technical audience?
What they’re really asking: What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Find more common data analyst interview questions and tips for answering them here.
Talking about a project you’re proud of is your chance to highlight your strengths and how
you’ve successfully used your skills. On the other hand, talking about a challenging project is
your chance to demonstrate growth: identify what went wrong in the situation, the lesson you
learned, and how you’ve adjusted your approach moving forward.
What they’re really asking: What’s your thought process? Are you an analytical thinker?
With this type of question (sometimes called a guesstimate), the interviewer presents you with
a problem to solve in order to evaluate your overall comfort working with data, for example,
“How would you estimate the best month to offer a discount on shoes?” Since this is about
how you think, you may talk about the data you would need, where you might find it, and how
you would analyze it to get your estimate.
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4 Preparing for interviews Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
1. How do you measure success? • Situation: Describe what happened, where it happened,
and when it happened.
2. Under what conditions does this team operate best?
3. How do you describe your ideal candidate to fill this role? • Task: Detail your role in the situation and what was
expected of you.
4. What tools or programs do you typically use?
• Action: Explain what you did to resolve the situation,
5. What are the immediate and long-term priorities for this role?
complete your task, and fulfill your responsibilities.
6. What do you envision as the growth path for this role?
• Result: Share how your actions impacted your company,
your team, or your approach moving forward.
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Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
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5 Keeping up with industry trends The work of a data analyst will continue to evolve as new technologies and
techniques emerge. As you grow in your new career, regularly immersing yourself
in the language, ideas, and trends of data can be an essential skill for continued
development. Consider these recommended books and podcasts as a starting
point for your journey of lifelong learning.
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5 Keeping up with industry trends Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Data analytics books 6. Data Science for Business: What You Need to Know about Data Mining and
Data-Analytic Thinking by Foster Provost and Tom Fawcett
Topic: Business analytics
You’ll find no shortage of excellent books on data analytics out there, but we’ve decided to
focus on those that are most relevant to beginners. Many of these titles offer an introduction 7. Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans by Melanie Mitchell
or overview of a topic rather than a technical deep dive. Some of the more skills-based books Topic: Artificial intelligence
include exercises to get you practicing real-world data skills.
8. Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals
1. Data Analytics Made Accessible by Dr. Anil Maheshwari by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic
Topic: Data analytics overview Topic: Data visualization
2. Numsense! Data Science for the Layman: No Math Added by Annalyn Ng and Kenneth 9. The Hundred-Page Machine Learning Book by Andriy Burkov
Soo Topic: Machine learning
Topic: Data science overview 10. Business unIntelligence: Insight and Innovation beyond Analytics and Big Data
3. Python for Everybody: Exploring Data in Python 3 by Dr. Charles Russell Severance by Dr. Barry Devlin
Best book to learn Python Topic: Business intelligence
4. SQL QuickStart Guide: The Simplified Beginner’s Guide to Managing, Analyzing, and 11. Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the Data by Charles Wheelan
Manipulating Data With SQL by Walter Shields Topic: Statistics
Topic: SQL 12. Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and
5. Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think by Kenneth Threatens Democracy by Cathy O’Neil
Cukier and Viktor Mayer-Schönberger Topic: Data bias
Topic: Big data
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5 Keeping up with industry trends Data Analyst Job Search Workbook
Data podcasts 8. The Artists of Data Science: Each episode comes full of advice on how to develop
professionally, stay informed, and practice good data ethics.
Whether you’re looking for a way to build up your data science vocabulary, keep up with the 9. Not So Standard Deviations: Roger Peng (professor of biostatistics at Johns Hopkins
latest developments in the field, learn new data skills, or even get advice on getting your first Bloomberg School of Public Health) and Hilary Parker (data scientist at Stitch Fix) co-host
data analytics job, there’s a podcast for that. this discussion of industry news.
Listening to some of these podcasts can be a great way to improve yourself as a data 10. Data Science at Home: Dr. Francesco Gadaleta discusses topics in machine learning,
professional, whether you’re just starting out or are already a seasoned pro. The best part? You artificial intelligence, and algorithms and interviews top minds in the field of AI.
can squeeze in some listening when you’re cleaning the house, grocery shopping, exercising, or 11. The TWIML AI Podcast: Analyst Sam Charrington interviews researchers, data scientists,
otherwise on the go. engineers, and IT leaders on a broad range of topics related to machine learning and AI.
1. Analytics Power Hour: Co-hosts Michael Helbling, Tim Wilson, and Moe Kiss share their 12. Gradient Dissent: This machine learning podcast gives a behind-the-scenes look at how
thoughts on a different data topic each week, from the psychology of data analytics to leaders across a variety of industries are using machine and deep learning models to solve
making statistics more accessible. real-world problems.
2. Data Skeptic: This popular podcast, hosted by Kyle Polich, covers a wide range of topics, 13. In Machines We Trust: Jennifer Strong with the MIT Technology Review guides listeners
including machine learning and artificial intelligence, and statistics. through discussions on the ways we entrust technology with some of our most sensitive
3. DataFramed: In this podcast from DataCamp, host Adel Nehme interviews data leaders decisions.
working in both industry and academia about all things data. 14. More or Less: Behind the Stats: This podcast from Tim Harford and the BBC helps make
4. Women in Data Science: Professor Margot Gerritsen from Stanford University hosts a sense of statistics through short and snappy episodes.
series of conversations with leading women in the data science field. 15. Talk Python to Me: Python’s versatility as a programming language is on full display in this
5. Lex Fridman Podcast: This podcast offers a broader perspective on how data fits into the podcast.
bigger picture of philosophy, history, health, and technology. 16. The Data Engineering Podcast: The show focuses on the tools and techniques associated
6. SuperDataScience: This lighthearted podcast features conversations around the tools, with data engineering, as well as the difficulties engineers might face when managing
techniques, and data-driven processes involved in real-world data science. workflow, automation, and data manipulation.
7. Data Futurology: Data science executive Felipe Flores hosts this podcast, where he 17. Data Viz Today: Data visualization designer Alli Torban shares the latest methods and tools
interviews some of the world’s leading data practitioners. through her own work and interviews with other top data designers.
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