There is a huge gap between the demand and supply of talent in certain emerging technologies. Big Data and Machine Learning are two of those areas where there is a huge demand for skilled professionals at all levels of hierarchy.
How has your career path been, until your big transition to Big Data & ML?
I had completed my engineering from the Vellore Institute of Technology, Chennai in EEE branch in the year 2015. After that, I got placed in Cognizant and was working in Business Intelligence which majorly involved Data migration of the customer data from on-premise to the Cloud. I wanted to upskill, so I took a weekend course with Great Learning which gave me the flexibility to work and learn simultaneously. Now I am working with GainInsights Solutions as Big Data Developer.
How did you decide to take up the Big Data and Machine Learning course with GL?
Though Cloud is also a trending technology and I had prior experience in it too, I did not want to stop with Business Intelligence. 10 years from now, I want to be in a position that I would be able to tackle anything related to data. Having that in mind I was looking for a course in Data Science. I then got in touch with your team through the website and based on my interest and availability; was suggested a course on Big Data and Machine Learning (BDML).
Did you consider any other program apart from GL? How did you finalize on going ahead with GL?
After realizing that pursuing a full-time MBA was an idea of following the masses and that I was not truly wanting it, I did some serious introspection and started focusing on my career. With that began my search for Data Science courses and I landed up with two options; ISB and Great Learning. ISB was very expensive while Great Learning was reliable in terms of Brand and was easily accessible (in terms of reach) to me; so I chose GL at Chennai.
What did you like most about this course?
I think the program was delivered in a very professional manner, like the way it should be. It was not like a college lecture. It was more of a knowledge transfer through discussions and interactions among faculty and students. The professionals who were coming to teach were trying to establish and discuss the ideas rather than putting them across them through PPT.
How was your experience at the Career fair at Chennai and Bangalore? How was the interview with GainInsights Solutions?
I got maximum shortlists at the career fair because my profile was really good and my previous package was very less. I got an offer from Latent View but they were considering me as a fresher and offering a similar package.
Then I was interviewed by GainInsights Solutions where they first offered me a SQL profile but when I told them about my learning and experience here at Great Learning, they interviewed me for Technical rounds in Python and another one with the Chief Technology Officer. Based on my understanding and aspiration in Big Data & Machine Learning, I was offered the Big Data Developer role with a hike of 70%.
How did you manage your studies and work at CTS?
I made myself available at least for an hour every day to practice what I was learning in my classes. Also, I used to devote at least one weekend to complete my assignments or projects and to clear my concepts in a topic through other material on the internet. That helped me to increase the bandwidth of my understanding of that topic and gave me more hands-on experience. Also working on the Cloud-Lab provided by the GL, helped me convince the interviewers to consider me over other candidates.
Any advice for our future aspirants?
If you are joining this course just for the sake of getting a Hike in your salary, then the approach is wrong. One should focus on the learning aspect more rather than the monetary aspect. One should understand that this field is still developing, so are you and the company. Learning with certification will take you to great heights in terms of knowledge and experience.
