Meet Zong Wei. A teacher turned into a data scientist within a year, without any prior coding knowledge.
Here’s how he did it.
About Zong Wei
A school teacher who saw the growing demand for data science in the market, and eventually became a data scientist.
How he used data science 360
After trying online courses on platforms like Udemy, he discovered that the way to become a data scientist is to practice.
Outcome
Landed his dream job as a data scientist in MC Crenergy, a custom software development company in Malaysia
Back in 2020, Zong Wei was working as a temporary primary school teacher, as he pursued an engineering degree. At that time, the reason he studied engineering was that he hoped to receive a high salary after graduating.
Eventually, he got a position as an engineer at Shimano Components, developing the company’s process control.
Picking up data science to move up the career ladder.
During his tenure at Shimano Company, he was tasked to work on some data analysis for the company, eventually leading him to find an interest in the field of data.
Upon doing some research, Zong Wei discovered that the demand for data scientists in Malaysia was growing extensively.
He decided to pick up data science as a way to move up the career ladder and grow.
“I started self-learning on Udemy & YouTube”
Zong Wei didn’t have a coding background. He began learning data science by watching videos on YouTube and taking courses on Udemy.
One of the immediate fears he faced, was having to learn many new things quickly. Fortunately, as someone without a coding background, his advantage was a fresh mind in the world of programming languages.
Zong Wei’s advice for new data scientists.
If you want to become a data scientist, but do not have coding skillsets, then you have to be prepared to learn by asking questions. It’s not quite a disadvantage, compared to other peers with coding skills, but you’ll need to work on practice data projects to build your skillsets in coding.
How Data Science 360 helped.
Eventually, Zong Wei felt that he needed some guidance if he wanted to pursue a serious data science career. He joined a live session hosted by Dr. Lau and decided to enrol in Data Science 360.
“I was never ashamed to ask questions.”
Data Science 360 provided him with a platform to ask questions and get help to solve the roadblocks he was facing.
How did he become a data scientist that quickly?
It was during Data Science 360 when Zong Wei realized that getting his hands dirty was the only effective way to master data science.
By the end of the program, he managed to build a data science portfolio based on an analytics project, analyzing fraud in credit card transactions.
Eventually, he used the project as a portfolio when applying for jobs as a data scientist.
Don’t be afraid of looking like a beginner.
Even after landing a data science job at MC Crenergy, a custom software development house, Zong Wei was never afraid of appearing like a beginner, asking questions.
His most memorable data science achievement so far was to work on a route optimization project for a customer. The project required him to download and process large volumes of historical traffic, weather, postcodes and holidays data along with access to geolocation and street maps.
This required him to use the practical lessons he learned from Data Science 360, from using Python, AI, and machine learning techniques.
Zong Wei now works in his dream job.
Even though Zong Wei did not have a coding background or computer science degree, he now works in his dream job as a data scientist.
A data scientist role isn’t easy, especially if you don’t have a coding background. But for someone like Zong Wei, he fits right in as he loves taking on challenges to push his limits.
If you want to be a data scientist, Zong Wei’s story shows you can too.
Zong Wei did not have coding skillsets. But according to him, becoming a data scientist is possible because, with data science, you only need to be good at programming with Python.
One of the important things to do is to practice on real-world projects instead of watching online videos.
Learn how to break into a data science career.
One of the biggest misconceptions people have about shifting into a data science career is that they need a computer science degree. Our students, like Zong Wei – have shown, that you don’t even need prior coding knowledge.
What’s important is to be able to provide value from your data analysis to the company you work at. Let us show you how it’s possible to become a data scientist. All you have to do is to enter your email to watch our video masterclass below: How to Break into a Data Science Career
Zhong wei is a humble guy and willing to teach us even when he’s busy.
His story really impressed.