Top skills for Junior Data Analyst

Data-driven organizations rely on specialists who know how to get value out of data. Data analysts are among these specialists, along with data engineers, and data scientists. So, what exactly do data analysts do?

Typical responsibilities of a Junior Data Analyst are: collecting and cleaning data, analyzing and modeling it, and then creating reports and visualizations to highlight valuable insights from this data. To be more specific, data analysts:

• Collect the right kind of data from a variety of sources using SQL, Python, and other tools.
• Clean and transform the data (put it into a format that can easily be used and remove any errors).
• Perform data analysis, including exploratory data analysis, data visualization, and data modeling.
• Discover and report valuable patterns in data and provide insights to guide problem-solving and decision-making processes within an organization.

Ultimately, data analysts have an impact on all the strategic decisions a company makes; no wonder this career pays off.

Indeed reports that the average salary for a data analyst in the United States is $70,218 per year. If you have less than one year of experience, you are likely to earn around $66,552 per year, while a data analyst with 10+ years of experience usually gets $83,000 and up. Here are some of the key skills every data analyst should include in their CV in order to get a well-paid job.

Statistics?

Some basic knowledge of calculus and probability will be highly beneficial. In your data analysis role, you will need to be able to spot trends and fluctuations. To refresh your statistics knowledge - check out this Statistics 101 course at Vertabelo Academy.

Excel

Even though Excel might not be the most effective tool for data analysis – especially when working with large amounts of data – you are still likely to find lots of company data stored in Excel spreadsheets. So, as a junior data analyst, you should be able to collect data from spreadsheets and know when it can be more effective to do data analysis in Excel.

SQL (Structured Query Language)?

SQL is the main tool for interacting with relational databases, so SQL skills provide data analysts with additional speed and independence from database engineers. Knowing how to retrieve data directly from an SQL database allows data analysts to respond quickly to varying management requests and add yet more value to the company.

I recommend starting your journey with SQL by trying out a few exercises for free in our SQL Basics course . It will give you a practical understanding of what SQL is about.

Python

Python is a multi-purpose language that is crucial for data analysis work. In recent years it has quickly emerged as an industry-standard in analysis, Data Science, and other data-related fields.?

Data analysts are not required to have the same programming skills as software engineers or developers. However, knowing how to analyze your data with Python is practically a “must-have” for data analysts these days.?

As a junior Data Analyst, it would be beneficial to know how to use Python to clean data, explore and model data, visualize data, and develop machine learning algorithms.

Data Visualization

There are a lot of tools for this. Some of them help you to make beautiful graphs, others are great multifunctional business intelligence platforms like Tableau or Power BI. It’s also good to have at least a basic understanding of how they can help your company to grow.

To become an effective business data analyst, you should also master Business Intelligence (BI) tools – software used to collect, organize, visualize and analyze data accumulated through business operations.

Some examples of popular BI tools include Tableau and Microsoft Power BI. Different companies prefer different BI tools; if you know which organization you want to work for, just focus on the tools they use. If you don’t have this info yet, any of the tools on this list of top 10 tools for business analytics will be a good starting point.

If you need training in BI tools for your company, check out videos on YouTube, in particular the great channel - LearnBI.online .

Presentation skills

Presentation skills might be not as necessary as technical skills when applying for entry-level positions. However, being able to clearly and effectively present big amounts of data is a valuable skill for your future career development.

Problem-solving and critical thinking skills

Those skills refer to the ability to use knowledge, facts, and data to effectively solve problems. The ability to develop a well-thought-out solution and back it up with data is a skill that employers value greatly. It’s always good to include those skills in your CV while applying not only to Data-analysts jobs but to any data-related positions.

Remember, learning is an investment that always pays off. Each skill you acquire now will bring you fruits in the future. The wider your skill set is the more chances you have to get your dream job!

Check out full Roadmap to Becoming a Data Analyst

This article is based on the work of Kateryna Koidan’s, "Are You Ready to Become a Data Analyst ?", Kateryna Koidan’s “Roadmap to Becoming a Data Analyst ” and Kate Stolarek's “Skills Every Data Analyst Should Have ”.