What qualification I need for data analyst?

Specialisms tagged are TechXDataXAdvancedXAnalytics

On your journey to become a Data Analyst, you can pick up skills at university, bootcamps, training courses and more. If you are looking to upskill, Hays Learning for IT professionals offers free data courses online across a wide array of topics which can be completed at your own pace.  You can also undertake formal education in a relevant discipline like computer science or information technology and then go on to do a graduate degree specialising in data analytics. You should also consider building data visualisation skills by learning data design principles. A good place to start is by learning HTML, CSS, Javascript (jQuery) and sketch. 

Required Data Analyst skills can change as you progress in your career. You should be looking to specialise in certain areas of data analytics - e.g., behavioural data analytics or data mining – as well as seek out on-the-job learning opportunities at your current employer. 

In most cases, expected Data Analyst qualifications include a degree in data analytics, data science or data engineering. The role is multidisciplinary, so professionals need to have expertise in data mining, statistics, data visualisation and a degree of programming knowledge.  There are several certifications you can pursue to improve your chances of getting a job in this field. Two of the most popular Data Analyst certifications are the IBM Certified Analytics Professional certification and the SAS data analytics certification. It is worth gaining these certifications if they are relevant to your career aspirations.   

Do you need to go to university to become a Data Analyst? Not necessarily, a strong portfolio of proven work could help you get a job without a formal education. However, the vast majority of working professionals in this field will have a university education. 

Working as a Data Analyst means you will need to be data-driven in all your decisions, so you should read data analytics blogs, attend seminars and workshops. You can also subscribe to newsletters to stay up-to-date on the latest trends.  A Data Analyst's role will grow more demanding as they gain experience, so it is important for you to continue upskilling by learning new data visualisation skills, data presentation skills and data strategy skills. Of course, you should also keep up to date with the latest technologies, software and productivity tools related to your job. 

Upskilling has traditionally been time consuming and expensive, but with Hays Learning, our free innovative e-learning platform brought to you in partnership with Go1, we are frequently adding more online courses to make sure you always have in-demand skills for a successful future. Sign up now for free to explore our online data courses. 

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Are you a natural problem solver and like working with numbers? Then a data analyst could be a potential career option for you. The profession gives you opportunities to put your intuition, logic, and technological abilities to productive use.

Data analysts are the investigators of the information age. They recognize, gather and analyze data to help organizations make the right decisions that improve their competitiveness and profitability.

You must complete a Bachelor’s degree in mathematics, information management, statistics, or computer science. It will help you gain the essential knowledge and skills to enter a role in the industry.

Here is a comprehensive guide to tell you more about this role and the necessary steps to become a Data Analyst. From the daily job duties, requisite skills and qualifications to salary potential and the prominent industries, you will learn everything to make an informed start.

1. Who Is A Data Analyst?

Data Analysts are expert logical thinkers and problem-solvers who specialize in financial, marketing, operations, or other business units. They are responsible to study gigantic amounts of data and transform it into meaningful and usable information for businesses.

Data Analysts interpret and analyze data to lower costs and boost revenue generation in the business. They work with business leaders across multiple business units to determine business data requirements, and improve data mining strategies and the quality of data results.

2. Reasons To Become A Data Analyst

We generate an overwhelming 2.5 quintillion data bytes daily. All this data is digital white noise without proper strategies to interpret it and find valuable insights.

Data Analytics is about recognizing meaning in numbers. It analyses enormous raw statistical info and data sets to draw inferences that help businesses form better decisions. This concludes with a greater demand for data analysts than ever.

Still unsure whether this is the right career for you? Check out some of the convincing reasons why you should become a Data Analyst.

• It is a high-demand and stable profession that projects strong future growth in salary and career opportunities. SEEK, projects healthy growth over the coming 5 years. Moreover, the job satisfaction rate is incredibly high in this profession.

• A career in data analytics doesn’t take much to start. Basic knowledge of Data Science, predictive analysis, SQL, and Python coding, qualifies you for an entry-level role.

3. Duties Of A Data Analyst

Several businesses need a data analyst to provide them with valuable insights into trends and competition within industries. Their skills and expertise greatly help businesses to reduce overall costs and stay competitive and profitable.

The exact tasks and responsibilities of these professionals vary based on the business unit in which they work:

• When working as part of the strategy team, they explore new market opportunities for the determination of expansion options.

• In the marketing sector, they define a new audience, develop marketing strategies based on the data insights, and compare the performance of marketing campaigns of different businesses. 

• In a product team, they use data to form decisions concerning product design. Or they may work with a marketing team to help.

Regardless of the industry, here are the common everyday tasks and duties of a data analyst:

• Find survey participants and collect the relevant information by conducting questionnaires and interviews.

• Prune, organize and analyze vast amounts of raw data that are significant to the business.

• Use programming skills to convert data into information to provide key insights for decision-making in businesses.

• Identify consumer behavior, market trends, patterns, feasibility, logistics, and transport issues within complex data sets.

• Analyze performance outcomes and determine the success potential of new products. 

• Convert numbers, data types, and figures into narratives that answer stakeholder’s queries and guide business decisions.

• Prepare reports (comprising visual elements such as diagrams and graphs) to share data insights with stakeholders.

• Work in teams with managers and department heads to determine project guidelines and prioritize information requirements.

• Work with clients, managers, and supervisors, to fulfill goals specified by all parties. 

• Translate and report the findings in an understandable way to non-technical managers and personnel.

• Devise strategies to collect and analyze data and optimize statistical results.

• Put survey data in online databases and manage them for specific business areas 

• Apply complex statistical analysis and algorithms to clean data to identify hidden insights, patterns, and information. 

• Create and implement simulations and models to produce reports, graphs, visualizations, and models of the results.

• Research ways improve data usage and efficiency

• Stay updated with existing regulations like data privacy laws

4. Skills for A Successful Data Analyst Career

Data Analyst can be a rewarding profession for those who possess the following essential skills.

• Logical and critical thinking

• Outstanding technical and problem-solving skills

• Excellent Analytical abilities

• Ability to discover and implement new ways to execute tasks 

• Highly observant

• Inquisitive

• Good pattern recognition skills

• Poficiency in computer programming 

• Expertise in mathematics, and statistics to develop statistical models

• Great verbal and non-verbal communication skills.

• Able to explain their findings meaningfully and comprehensibly

• Organized

• Meticulous

• Able to assess data and extract relevant information

• Teamwork skills

• Keen to stay updated with the latest Analytics tools and methodologies

• Willingness to work hard for the advancement of the company

5. Qualifications For Data Analyst In Australia

• Complete the Senior Secondary Certificate of Education in one or more prerequisite subjects like English, Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics. 

• Aspiring data analysts require good knowledge of data-oriented software and programming languages such as SQL, Microsoft Excel, statistical programming languages like Python or R, SAS, JavaScript, SharePoint, and Extensible Markup Language. 

• Completing a university-level Bachelor’s degree in mathematics, statistics, information management, or computer science will help you acquire the necessary knowledge and skills for an entry role.

• Internships and Industry experience can improve your chances to find work with real data, programming languages and help build a work portfolio to impress potential employers.

• To further enhance your skills and employability, undertaking a relevant short course or earning a post-graduate qualification such as a Master of Business Data Analytics will help.

6. Steps To Become A Data Analyst In Australia

The road to becoming a data analyst requires gaining a good knowledge of different aspects of data analytics such as programming languages, data analytics, machine learning, and data science.

Here are the common steps to qualify and get started in this profession:

Step 1: Learn Programming Languages

Data Analysts is the fastest growing profession all over the globe. Nowadays, every company requires skilled workers to compile, organize and examine data patterns. A strong command of programming languages such as JavaScript, Python, Hadoop, SQL, R, and XML is a key requirement to analyze data.

If you aim to pursue this occupation, undertaking programming courses will help you develop data algorithms and models to identify patterns and hidden insights, and information in raw data.

Step 2: Complete a Bachelor’s Data Analyst degree

Data Analytics is a high-demand and competitive industry. Around 45.4% of employed data analyst professionals hold a Graduate Diploma and Post Graduate in this field.

To succeed in getting an entry-level role, you must obtain at least a university-level Bachelor’s degree in mathematics, statistics, or computer science. Additionally, having professional certifications and relevant work experience boost your resume and chances of job success.

A Bachelor of Information Technology and Data Analytics provides a comprehensive understanding of programming languages, statistics, and data analysis methods. It teaches the right ways to clean, organize and prepare data for precise and effective data-driven predictions and insights.

Alternatively, to enter the profession as a graduate, consider studying the following courses to acquire data analytics skills:

• Certificate IV in Information Technology (Networking)

• Diploma of Information Technology

• Graduate Certificate in Data Science

• Graduate Certificate in Business Analytics

• Business Analytics

• Business Analytics with SQL and Python (Short Course)

• Business Analytics and Visualization (Short Course)

Step 3: Obtain Work Experience

Volunteering and Internships are good ways to find opportunities to gain hands-on practical experience with actual data. You get the chance to get in touch with experienced professionals and learn from them.

The more projects you complete and the more experience you gain, the better your chances to land your dream position.

Step 4: Join Professional Communities

GitHub is a vast digital resource and community specifically for programmers. By joining this community, you can post projects and obtain constructive feedback from professional programmers.

This is a great platform to demonstrate your work to prospective employers and land a role.

Step 5: Apply for Data Analyst jobs

With the right qualification, skills, and work experience under your belt, you are all set to enter the job market. Customize your resume for the data analyst job you are applying for. Mention technical certifications, analytical skills, etc., that show you a perfect candidate for the role.

Considering the constant and quick evolution of the industry, regularly update yourself on the latest data analytics technologies, processes, and emerging trends. Actively participate in digital forums, and read industry publications to stay well-informed and competitive.

7. Relevant Data Analyst Courses In Australia

Do you want to know how to become a data analyst with no experience? Undertaking the relevant data analytics courses is the first step to making a new and dynamic career. The transferable skills you gain as a result will enable you to work in any industry, the public sector firms, innovative start-ups, big companies, and more.

The graduate data scientist course in Australia is elaborately designed to develop a base in python programming, applied analytics, visualization, and data wrangling that employer looks for across business functions and industries.

It is best-suited for consultants and analysts in the business, finance, product, web, and finance sector who wish to create a thriving career in data analytics while capitalizing on the unending opportunities of big data. Online courses give you the freedom to learn on your terms and save time and money that is otherwise spent on commutation.

Here are a few Data Analyst Courses TAFE to become a professional data analyst:

• Graduate Certificate in Business Analytics - RMIT Online 

• Graduate Certificate of Data Science -  James Cook University 

• Data Analysis Essentials TAFE Queensland 

• Master of Analytics (UNSW Online Course)

• Certificate IV in Business Big Data Swinburne University 

• Graduate Certificate in Analytics UNSW (Online Course)

• Graduate Diploma in Analytics UNSW (Online Course)

8. Where Does A Data Analyst Work In Australia?

Data Analyst professionals work indoors in varied occupational environments across a diverse range of businesses.

Some of the top industries that recruit these professionals to include:

• Education and Training

• Financial and Insurance Services

• Scientific and Technical Services

Presently, Victoria and New South Wales are the top Australian states where the most data analysts are employed in the following positions:

• IT Systems Analyst

• Digital Marketing Manager

• Research and Data Analyst

• Data Engineer

• Operations Analyst

• Business and Data Analyst 

• IT Data and Reporting Analyst 

• Customer Experience Analyst

• Feasibility Analytics 

• UX Designer

• Transport Logistics Specialist

Experienced data analysis professionals who have adequate start-up capital have the opportunity to work as self-employed.

9. Data Scientist Job Outlook In Australia

Cloud-based companies such as Dropbox, pCloud, and Google are increasingly developing data centers to gain valuable insights to measure economic health.

As Big Data is restructuring the business landscape and companies are amassing more data than ever, the future of data analysts seems very promising.

Considering the growth of the data science sector in the last 5 years, a drastic, and very swift change is expected in the coming years.

This data-driven future will lead to plenty of career opportunities for full-time data analyst professionals in Australia and worldwide.

10. How Much Does A Data Analyst Earn In Australia?

The salary of a data analyst depends on several factors such as industry, area of work, experience, qualification/ certifications, and position. Data analysts who specialize in a specific niche are in high demand and earn more.

According to PayScale, the average data analyst salary in Australia is AU$72,606, or an equivalent of AU$34.61 per hour.

Average Annual Salary Based on Experience

• Entry-level data analyst salary in Australia (<1-year experience): AU$61,561 Early career data analyst (1-4 years of experience): AU$71,150 

• Mid-career Data Analyst (5-9 years of experience): AU$87,309 

• Experienced Data Analyst (10-19 years of experience): AU$97,734

Average Annual Salary Based on Location

According to Indeed, the data analyst salary in top cities in Australia are as follows:

• Docklands Victoria: $103,317

• Sydney New South Wales: $102,447

• Brisbane Queensland: $96,643

• Melbourne Victoria: $95,344

• Perth Western Australia: $94,015

• Canberra Australian Capital Territory: $91,739

11. Conclusion

The scope of data application is as vast as the scope of the human imagination. Considering the rapid pace at which the world is progressing, owning a data analysis skillset has become essential in the business world.

Qualifying as a data analyst, you become competent to provide meaningful and precise data insights to help businesses improve and thrive in the competitive market.

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