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Self-Taught Data Scientists Fail to Go Deep Enough
I know I did.
I would like to start by declaring that I’m a self-taught data scientist. Actually, it is better to say it in this way: I have managed to land a data scientist job after a long period of self-study.
It took me 2 years to get my first job as a data scientist. I took online courses, read and wrote articles, watched tutorials, did some projects, and so on.
I spent a great deal of time and effort to learn what could possibly help me get my first job. However, after I started working as a data scientist, I realized that my self-taught process was not deep enough. I was only scratching the surface. I feel like it is the same for most of the others who follow a similar path.
I will elaborate on what I mean by “not deep enough” but let me first explain why I studied on my own.
There are two main advantages of learning on your own. The first one is the cost. You can find highly valuable resources for free or at very low prices. The second one is flexibility. You can do your own schedule and study whenever and wherever you want.
Thus, if you already have a full-time job and cannot afford to quit, self-taught is usually the only option you have.
