Getting back to work after a maternity leave is quite the challenge. However, Khushboo was able to successfully get back to work. Read further to learn about her journey with Great Learning’s PGP Data Science and Business Analytics Course in her own words.
I am from Bangalore, staying here with my husband and 3 years old daughter. My native is Delhi. I have been in the industry for more than 11 years in the business intelligence domain, with my experience ranging across multiple organizations.
Being a working woman is always a challenge, I feel. As one has to keep on proving her worth due to existing pre notions compared to other colleagues and at the same time manage house and family efficiently.
Especially when I took a career break for ten months during my maternity, joining back was difficult as I managed a ten-month-old in the creche (not to miss raised eyebrows) and worked with shaken confidence (due to the long break). When I joined back, I had to search for an assignment in the office for myself, but my options were limited as I had to make sure I leave the office at 5 pm every day to pick my daughter from the daycare. It took me a lot of time and immense effort to prove my worth (though I had always been an exceptional employee before break) because I was back from maternity and was with a new team.
I like to be at the top of everything I do. Since I had experience and understanding of all the phases of a business intelligence life cycle – Data analysis, ETL, Data reporting, I moved towards Data science to complete the process by gaining end-to-end experience in Data Analytics.
In addition to the above, this excites me a lot as through this knowledge, I can understand the end to end impact of the work I have been doing or will do going forward.
One career Advice for all the females who want to transit into Data science is to go ahead and pursue this without being scared of the journey, as the most challenging part is to push yourself and get enrolled (due to daily routine).
Great learning has been the best in Data Analytics course to date with the best faculties. The format of the system with all the quizzes and assignments helped me be regular with my studies and gain confidence and interest in pursuing it with determination.
It wasn’t an easy 1 year for me as I had a 1.5 year old kid, and I was a working professional. But the zeal to prove myself and get back into the game kept me going. I used to work during the day, and my evenings were busy taking care of my daughter. I studied every day at least 2 hours after 10 pm with an all-night study at least once a week. There were a few days when I felt like giving up, but the thought of the result and the fact that this can set an example for my daughter – it’s never too late to work for yourself – helped me continue.
The most important part it helped me gain the inner confidence that I can still achieve anything I put my mind to despite any number of challenges. I also got a chance to present and publish my white paper in an international forum.
It gave me an edge in my current company as my management started looking towards me as a strong, hardworking employee with clear ambitions who can be banked upon for good challenges.
For more such success stories, watch this space.
