Analytics is a rapidly growing sector of today with more and more industries embracing big data/data science/ analytics for greater business success. With the rapid development in the field of technology and the advent of the internet, organizations have large amounts of raw data at their disposal and through analytics, there are several tools and techniques that are also available to analyze and find correlations between seemingly unrelated data.

There are heavy investments in this field and there is rapidly rising demand for skilled professionals and experts in this field to the tune of 2.3 million today. But there is a severe shortage of experts who can fill these vacancies and therefore, there are big remunerative packages for these jobs. Accordingly, there are numerous data analytics courses available today.

Considering how big and diverse the field of analytics is, there is a wide range of courses available, making the choice of training/ course tough and confusing. Choosing the analytics certification course that is best suited to you, is a great investment. This is because the course will influence the kind of skills and knowledge you acquire and accordingly, your pay package. Considering the fact that the cost of most data analytics courses is on the higher side, pay package is an important consideration (being the return on investment). There are a number of free, online courses and MOOCs out there to confuse you further on the choice of course.

Let us discuss some pointers to help you make this choice of course.

Spelling out the goals: This is the foundation. You need to be clear about why you want to take up data science/ data analytics/ big data, what you wish to do with this education/ training, how will this help you in your current job and how it aligns with your personal goals and aspirations. If you are simply looking for a new, high paying job or does the field fascinate you or do you want to change your current domain, etc. are some questions you need to answer for yourself, so as to arrive at the specific goals and objectives for taking up the course. It really helps to jot down all your expectations from a job as a data expert.

What are knowledge and skill gaps need to be filled? Your educational and work background are important considerations when it comes to the choice of course. This is because it will determine what skills and knowledge you already have, and what gaps need to be filled to be a successful data expert. Your level of education: graduate, post-graduate or PhD, as well as your stream of education, play an important role in your choice of data analytics course. If you are a fresher with no knowledge of statistics or economics or programming, you should choose a basic course that teaches you the foundational concepts of analytics. If you are an experienced professional in the data field, you may want to choose a specialization to study. Similarly, the industry you work in or wish to work in is also important since it will decide how you wish to integrate analytics into your work.

Research available options: It is very useful to research all available options keeping in mind your goals as well as your skill and knowledge gaps. There are several courses available:

• With specific specializations such as machine learning, AI, programming, data mining, market research and so on.
• With a difference in the level of learning: fresher, expert, graduate, post-graduate, PhD, a refresher for experienced personnel, etc.
• Free, online courses such as MOOC and other courses from private institutions as well as paid courses offered by top-notch institutions and universities across the globe.
• With a difference in the length of the courses: long-term, short-term, workshops, etc.

So, it is best for you to research these different options before making a choice. You could also research about scope, job placements, earning capacity, etc. of the courses as well.

Information interviews with industry insiders: You could interview some industry insiders to get more information about the kind of jobs available, minimum qualifications, kind of additional training that is required and so on. This will give you insights into a career in analytics/ data science/ big data and as to what to expect.

Make your choice: Once you have listed your expectations and goals, identified your skill and knowledge gaps, gathered relevant information and researched your available options, you should make your choice in consonance with your goals, personal and professional. You could additionally make a timeline of other analytics courses you should study to further upskill yourself and broaden your knowledge base.

The bottom line is that you should not follow the herd and study the data analytics course that best suits your interests and fulfills your needs.